The european e-government web accessibility divide

Abstract

Online interactions have rapidly become the main channel of communication as greater inclusiveness creates efficiencies for both the private and public sectors. In Europe, almost three-quarters of the population is now regularly using the Internet. But the push towards an information society also has unintended consequences as those who are unable to partake in it fall further behind in that they cannot utilize online services. Bridging digital divides is therefore more important than ever in creating an inclusive society and to reap the economic and social benefits thereof. This is of particular concern to people with disabilities. For instance, despite progress made in the supply of public sector information and services only 10% of Europe's government websites are fully accessible today, according to a study carried out for the European Commission (EC). This paper briefly reviews digital divides that limit greater usage before turning to the web accessibility divide more specifically. Given a lack of existing legislation or uneven adoption in this area, third-parties in particular the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) with their Web Accessibility Initiative and related communities are filling a void by setting standards and promoting implementation. In this regard, the paper discusses the efforts of the European Internet Inclusion Initiative (EIII), which is building a website that contains a new combination of existing and evolving evaluation tools and support for user testing of websites through crowd-sourcing in order to support greater digital inclusion.