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Target Corporation's (NYSE: TGT) website has not been available for use by blind people the way that a number of other websites are. As a result, a federal judge is allowing blind plaintiffs to pursue a class action suit against the company. According to The Wall Street Journal, "granting class-action status allows blind people throughout the country who have tried to access Target.com to become plaintiffs in the suit, which alleges violations with the Americans With Disabilities Act."
Although few people with normal vision realize it, there is software that allows the blind access to websites. The Journal describes it as reading software to vocalize invisible code embedded beneath computer graphics and describe content on a web page.
Target did make some changes to its site after the first suit was filed, but that did not appear to matter to the judge.
The whole incident raises a problems for the e-commerce world. If Target has to provide the software, how many other sites can be sued and forced to do so? Will every retail site have to add the special software? What about content sites?
Added features for the blind to e-commerce sites large and small could cost the industry millions of dollars. No one has explained where that money will come from.
Douglas A. McIntyre is a partner at 24/7 Wall St.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
10-03-2007 @ 12:25PM
Zan said...
WSJ also had a story about a device that allows you to read websites in braille.
11-25-2007 @ 9:30AM
Tom said...
Douglas A. McIntyre your facts are incorrect. The software used is a client program on the sight impaired person's computer. The ecommerce server has no special software. The authors of the ecommercee Web site mearly need to adhere to W3C standards. this would require, for example, the author of the Web site to name an image with descriptive names like "home," "browse categories," "search," and so on rather than "button1," "button2," "button3" etc. which is hwhat the client software has available to read on Web sites that do not adhere to W3C standards.
Your claim that "few people are aware" of the client software used by the sight impaired only reveals your ignorance as this is a gratuitous statement that is without basis.
he fact is, a Web site can be made with accessibility in mind or without observing industry accessibility principals. The cost difference is negligible if it is taken into account when the Web site is developed.
Will every Web site have to add this special software? As described there is no special software, but to answer the spirit of your question: yes, businesses serving the pubblic should allow equal access without discriminating based on race, gender, disability etc.