Structured Negotiations and Mobile Access

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This is a post about companies who are working to make their mobile applications work for everyone.  Bank of America and Major League Baseball have improved access.  So has Weight Watchers and health insurance company WellPoint.  All these companies worked with the blind community to improve the usability of their mobile content.

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The annual M-Enabling Summit in Washington, DC is happening this week. It’s a good opportunity to highlight the Structured Negotiations partners who have undertaken mobile accessibility initiatives. The companies listed below have worked in collaboration with the blind community — without any lawsuits — to improve the accessibility and usability of their mobile content.

What is mobile accessibility?

  • It’s making sure that mobile applications work for all users.
  • It’s including people with disabilities in usability testing.
  • It’s training mobile developers to understand the accessibility needs of all users and the accessibility features of all mobile devices.
  • It’s recognizing that accessibility is not an afterthought but integral to the development and design process.
  • It’s knowing that access to information, including information provided through mobile devices, is a civil right protected by federal law.

As of June 10, 2014, the following companies have worked with the blind community in Structured Negotiations to improve the accessibility and usability of their mobile offerings. Please visit the Accessibility Information Pages of these companies, linked below, to learn more and provide feedback.

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Major League Baseball

MLB is the undisputed leader in the sports world in providing digital accessibility. The sports giant issued its first accessibility press release in February 2010 announcing a commitment to meet WCAG 2.0 AA guidelines in developing its website. Read the 2010 MLB press release. Two years later it expanded its initiative to include the accessibility of MLB mobile applications. Read the 2012 press release.

MLB worked with the American Council of the Blind and its Massachusetts and California affiliates in Structured Negotiations on its accessibility efforts. Visit the MLB Category of this website to read summaries of all related posts. Visit the Accessibility Information Page on the MLB website to learn more about MLB’s digital accessibility efforts.

Bank of America

Bank of America has been a national leader in accessible services for customers with visual impairments since 2000. That year the company announced its Talking ATM commitment and became the first bank in the United States to commit to making its online banking platform accessible. In 2013 the Bank renewed its commitment to accessibility, announcing that it had adopted WCAG 2.0 AA for its mobile standard, as well as its web standard. Read the Bank of America mobile accessibility press release.

You can read summaries of all posts on LFLegal about Bank of America in the Bank of America Category. Learn more about Bank of America’s accessible services on the bank’s Accessibility Information Pages

Weight Watchers

Weight Watchers’ online and mobile tools help millions of people lose weight and stay healthy. Working in Structured Negotiations with the American Council of the Blind and blind members, the company announced its commitment to digital accessibility in June 2013. Weight Watchers is using WCAG 2.0 AA for both its web and mobile applications. Read the Weight Watchers press release announcing its accessibility initiative. Visit the Weight Watchers Accessibility Information page to learn more about Weight Watcher’s commitment to accessibility.

WellPoint

WellPoint is one of the largest health insurance entities in the United States, operating Anthem, Blue Cross, and/or Blue Shield companies in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana,Kentucky, Maine, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York Ohio, Virginia and Wisconsin. In February of this year the company announced a comprehensive accessibility plan affecting its websites, mobile applications and print information.

WellPoint has adopted WCAG 2.0 AA as its standard for both web and mobile. With this initiative the company has assumed a leadership position in the healthcare industry, where confidential access to information and services is particularly important. Read the WellPoint accessibility press release on this website. Visit the Accessibility Information page on the Anthem website to learn more.


Structured Negotiations is a collaborative dispute resolution process that avoids litigation and focuses on solution. The blind community was represented in the initiatives described above by The Law Office of Lainey Feingold and Linda Dardarian of the Oakland, California civil rights firm Goldstein, Borgen, Dardarian & Ho. Gratitude to Bank of America, Major League Baseball, Weight Watchers and WellPoint for agreeing to take advantage of the Structured Negotiations process to improve the accessibility and usability of their digital offerings.