Updated no 10 - 2020
 

Accessibility at a distance

The main reason for conferences and meetings is, well, to meet. Speakers and panels are of course important, but quite often the most interesting conversations occur during the coffee break. This is hard to replicate when most events happen online.

A week focusing on disabilities

Early December each year, many of us who work with disability issues in different ways come together to celebrate the international (or European) Day of Persons with Disabilities. This years meetings were held online but with a program as exciting as usual. There are a lot of interesting recording to watch, we have listed some of our favorites here.

Accessibility in Smart Cities

Smart Cities is a concept that encompasses all types of digitisation and smart technology. But for it to work for everyone, it must not only be smart, but accessible. We contribute to that in a Norwegian research project.

Captioned video - What's the status?

How will the requirements of the Web Accessibility Directive on captions affect the production of video? This is what we wanted to investigate together with the Swedish National Association of the Hearing Impaired.

Text in images - read our latest tips in our Accessibility in social media series

If you want to use text in an image, keep in mind that the text must be readable, both visually and technically, to comply with the directive and work for everyone.

Three questions for Jan Lundin, CEO of Funka

What impact does the increased legal requirements for accessibility in Europe have on the market?

It is definitely a big change. The demand from our clients in the public sector is increasing enormously, but also organisations that until now haven’t been covered by the regulations need a lot of support. We see that more and more of the IT companies are certifying themselves, which means that there are many more players around. That helps in driving the market forward. Over time, the demands on accessibility expertise will increase, as our clients become more knowledgeable in the area and place higher demands on deep knowledge in accessibility with their suppliers.

How can the technical development in the field of accessibility help?

We work focused on automating and digitising our cutting-edge areas in analysis, support and training. We believe in being able to serve our customers even better with more automated services and tools. With the help of machine learning, we can sharpen and refine 20 years of experience in the field for the benefit of our clients.

What about the future, what will Funka look like in 2025?

Funka was relevant already 20 years ago when we were founded. We have been constantly involved in pushing development, policy and requirements forward and we will continue doing that. We see that we will be even more relevant in the future as even more digitalisation and new requirements are introduced. Funka's knowledge is in demand in many markets and a broad range of sectors. In 2025, we will offer even more services both within and outside of the EU.

Robot to be introduced to special needs school

Researchers from the University of the West of England are investigating how socially intelligent robots can be used in schools to support young autistic people.

New braille keyboard for Android

A Braille keyboard for Android with the aim to make the Android operating system (OS) more accessible to those who are visually impaired.

All accessibility options

The Last of Us Part 2 is one of the most accessible games, with dozens of accessibility options to tailor the experience to exactly how you want it or help those who are disabled or have difficulties playing action games.

Funka's newsletter "Updated" is free of charge and may be circulated to anyone who is interested. If you cite us, please name the source.

Please visit our website as well - www.funka.com

Funka is the market leader in accessibility in Sweden. Our services cover website development, audits and user testing, on the web as well as in the built environment. Moreover, we provide training and support on all aspects of inclusive design. We are also active in research projects and standardisation. Everything we recommend has been tested in real life. We have offices in Stockholm, Oslo and Madrid.