Fireside Chat: Can Regulation Improve Accessibility? - Léonie Watson

Can a poorly written law actually improve digital accessibility? Learn why the European Accessibility Act is a flawed but necessary step forward for the web.

#1about 4 minutes

Understanding the European Accessibility Act (EAA)

The European Accessibility Act covers specific sectors like e-commerce, banking, and streaming services, but its vague language creates challenges for organizations trying to comply.

#2about 3 minutes

Debating gatekeeping versus an open and innovative web

While strict "building code" style regulations for software could improve standards, they risk stifling the open innovation that has defined the web.

#3about 5 minutes

Integrating accessibility into core developer education

The root cause of inaccessible products is the failure to teach accessibility as a default practice in universities and bootcamps, treating it as an isolated module instead.

#4about 5 minutes

Examining legal enforcement and financial penalties

The lack of significant legal precedent and financial penalties, unlike GDPR for data privacy, has historically weakened the enforcement of accessibility standards.

#5about 6 minutes

Navigating a fragmenting web and AI content scraping

Differing national regulations and corporate paywalls are fragmenting the web, while AI scraping creates traffic issues that may require new content formats like Markdown.

#6about 3 minutes

Shifting accessibility left within product teams

Truly embedding accessibility requires organizational change with dedicated time and KPIs, but individuals can also drive progress through "guerrilla" tactics by integrating best practices without permission.

#7about 6 minutes

How AI and voice interfaces could impact accessibility

While AI-driven voice interfaces offer potential accessibility benefits, their practical application is limited by environmental factors like office noise and privacy concerns.

#8about 5 minutes

Prioritizing foundational training over reactive legislation

The most effective path to accessibility is not just relying on legislation, but fundamentally training designers and developers to build accessibly by default as part of their craft.

#9about 5 minutes

Exploring advances in synthetic speech and voice banking

AI has dramatically improved synthetic speech quality, enabling powerful applications like voice banking for individuals who may lose their ability to speak.

#10about 6 minutes

Fixing common issues at the source in frameworks

Many accessibility problems are simple to fix, and addressing them within popular frameworks and component libraries could have a massive positive ripple effect across the web.

#11about 3 minutes

The future of tech jobs and accessibility-driven innovation

While AI may change the job market, history shows that technological advances create new roles, and accessibility continues to be a key driver of mainstream innovation.