- From: Cliff Tyllick <Cliff.Tyllick@tceq.texas.gov>
- Date: Sun, 03 Apr 2011 11:33:13 -0500
- To: <w3c-wai-eo@w3.org>
Denis, I agree. This is one reason I believe we need to talk about not "costs" but "investments." The buying power of the group that is people with disabilities is part of the picture of the return on these investments. The rest of the picture involves greater efficiency in business processes and greater value in the information resources themselves. One of our mantras should be, "Accessible information works." Think about that — what are the many ways that information is disabled when it is inaccessible? - Retrieving it is more difficult. - Relating it to other information is more difficult. - Evoking hidden likenesses or trends is all but impossible. - And so on. When we make information accessible, we also empower it to work for us more effectively. if we can illustrate those points, I think we'll have a much more effective presentation. We'll appeal not only to people who are operating businesses, but also to anyone who seeks value from information. Best, Cliff >>> Denis Boudreau <dboudreau@accessibiliteweb.com> 04/02/11 3:48 PM >>> Thanks Catherine, I knew I had seen it somewhere. :) I am currently preparing a slide deck for a presentation on accessibility lawsuits for monday. I found the following article, and thought it pretty much summed up the message I think we need to push for the business case presentation: Avoiding ADA Lawsuits By Joan Stein. "According to the U.S. Department of Labor, people with disabilities have $175 billion in discretionary income, four times the spending power of tweens (8- to 14-year-olds). An Open Doors Organization study estimated in 2003 that diners with disabilities spent $35 billion in restaurants that year. As baby boomers age, more and more seniors will become disabled as ailments and the natural course of aging challenge their bodies. They will seek out level entrances, wide automatic doors and single-level living as they try to avoid stairs and revolving doors. Surprisingly, families with young children also seek these features. Given that all these people with money are looking for easy access to the businesses they patronize, the market is beginning to change. Making commercial enterprises accessible to people with disabilities is smart business." <http://www.facilitiesnet.com/ada/article/Avoiding-ADA-Lawsuits--10433> All it's missing is a parallel for mobile. I believe that anything along those lines is exactly the type of message that gets through decision makers' skulls. -- Denis Boudreau, président Coopérative AccessibilitéWeb 1751 rue Richardson, bureau 6111 Montréal (Qc), Canada H3K 1G6 Téléphone : +1 877.315.5550 On 2011-04-01, at 4:04 PM, catherine wrote: > Hi Denis, all, > > The 10% statistic can be found here on the UN site : > > http://www.un.org/disabilities/default.asp?id=18 > > I do not believe the Convention itself contains any demographic data, > contrarily to what is stated in the microsoft press release and I am > unable to find the data they allude to on the UN site. Of course, when it > comes to statistics on persons with disabilities, reliability is not the > first thing that comes to mind. And the UN data is probably a bit dated. > > > Catherine > > -- > Catherine Roy > http://www.catherine-roy.net > > > > On Fri, April 1, 2011 1:28 pm, Denis Boudreau wrote: >> Good afternoon all, >> >> While we were talking earlier today about slide #7 of the Business Case >> Slide Deck (bcase-presentation-format.ppt), Shadi said the percentage of >> people with disabilities worldwide was around 20%. >> >> I said I thought it was more like 10%, based on some study I remembered >> seeing form the UN. >> >> Then I stumbled unto this(1): >> >> "According to the United Nations Convention on Persons with Disabilities, >> disability affects between 15 percent and 20 percent of the population in >> every country worldwide, and the incidence of disability in industrialized >> nations is increasing as their populations get older. A Forrester Research >> Inc. study commissioned by Microsoft found that 57 percent of working-age >> computer users (18–64 years old) would likely benefit from using >> accessible technology because of difficulties and impairments that may >> affect computer use. As the population continues to age, Forrester noted, >> the number of computer users in the 65–74 age range will increase >> significantly, as will the number of people who would benefit from using >> accessible technology." >> >> Now, I'm pretty sure I've seen 10% before and know I've been using that >> figure for the longest time. I will keep looking in this and get back to >> you when I find it. >> >> In the meantime, I guess this means the score is now Shadi 1, Denis 0. ;p >> >> (1) Source: >> <http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/microsoft-announces-free-accessibility-tools-and-training-for-developers-118162809.html>. >> >> Regards, >> >> -- >> Denis Boudreau, président >> Coopérative AccessibilitéWeb >> 1751 rue Richardson, bureau 6111 >> Montréal (Qc), Canada H3K 1G6 >> Téléphone : +1 877.315.5550 >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> > > >
Received on Sunday, 3 April 2011 16:34:08 UTC