October 13, 2007
Inaccessible Telephone Technology? AAPD Answers the Call!
Here is Silicon Valley I have the privilege of meeting with technology designers who are in residence or just passing through. Not long ago I had the opportunity to discuss NTT DoCoMo's universally designed phones with their engineering team. One of the problems we lamented was the lack of communication between people with disabilities as consumers of phones and telecommunications companies.
The American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) is taking up the challenge. Because the size of the problem is expanding geometrically with the aging of Baby Boomers the failure of AARP to be a full partner in this work is disappointing. However, it demonstrates once again that the disability community is pioneering the new definition of retirement by being "beta testers for aging."
Consumer Complaint Campaign: People with Disabilities Fed Up With
Poorly Designed Phones
Over the past several months AAPD, and several other national disability organizations, have been assisting consumers with disabilities with their complaints about phones that are not accessible or usable. These complaints are from persons with vision loss, physical disabilities, hearing loss, and in several cases multiple disabilities. Several of the complaints involve aging boomers who expect the same usability they used to have when younger. Complaints range from lack of access to the information on the cell phone screen, such as not being able to navigate through the menus or being able to enter caller information from the keypad, lack of hearing aid compatibility, keypad buttons that are too small or keypads with no indicators, missing calls because the ring tone and vibrate function cannot be turned on simultaneously, customer service reps ignoring disability concerns, bills and product materials unavailable in alternate format, and other barriers to making and receiving calls like everyone else.AAPD believes that most of these concerns are readily achievable
and we remain puzzled why the services providers are not insisting
on more usability from the device manufacturers, particularly as
the product life cycle is short and many of our design needs help
America's aging population. The Section 255 phone accessibility
and usability law was passed in 1996. Yet, eleven years later,
people with disabilities are putting up with clumsy workarounds
and barriers to making and receiving phone calls that mean they
are overpaying for their phone devices and services. It's time to
make sure the phone companies hear from you!AAPD will continue to assist consumers with informal complaints
involving cell and other phones. Please contact Jenifer Simpson,
AAPD staffer, if you have just such a concern. Alternatively you
can file your complaint directly at the FCC using their online
Form 475 at http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/cib/fcc475.cfmJenifer's Email is aapdjenifer@aol.com. Put "phone complaint" in
the subject line for faster handling.Press notices about this consumer campaign can be seen at:
Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology at
http://www.aapd.com/News/telecomm/070814coat.htmHearing Loss Association of America at:
http://www.audiologyonline.com/news/news_detail.asp?news_id=2834American Foundation for the Blind at:
www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=
/www/story/07-26-2007/0004633567SOURCE: AAPD
More on Cell Phones
http://www.rollingrains.com/archives/001538.html