Accessible thanks to AI? Fine for Accessibe plugin
A plugin should make any website accessible. Thanks to AI! Unfortunately, it's not that simple. The company Accessibe is paying one million dollars to the FTC.
Werbesujet Accesibes.
(Image: Accessibe)
Accessibe has laid it on too thick. Website plugins from this company should automatically make every website accessible with just a single line of code. 30 percent of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 Level AA immediately, the remaining 70 percent within 48 hours, thanks to clever artificial intelligence. Unfortunately, this doesn't always work in reality, for example the automatic image recognition is wrong. This is now costing Accessibe one million US dollars.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the US consumer protection authority, has been called in to investigate the unfulfilled advertising promise. It has investigated the matter and criticized another element of Accessibe's business practice: it is said to have misleadingly presented third-party endorsements as independent opinions without disclosing that there are reputable relationships between the authors and the Israeli-American company.
The FTC and Acessibe are now jointly seeking a court order that Accessibe may no longer make the advertising claims unless it has evidence of the promised performance. In addition, it may no longer conceal relationships with evaluators or give the impression that they are independent. In addition, Accessibe is to pay the FTC one million dollars. Each further violation could be penalized with up to 51,744 dollars.
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Thanks to the UN
The FTC can use this money to pay refunds to customers who have been overcharged. The plugin is available from 49 US dollars per month for websites with a maximum of 1,000 pages. Operators of larger sites pay more, for example 349 dollars up to 100,000 pages.
(Image: Faksimile FTC-Klage)
This is tempting, as accessibility for websites and electronic devices is not only important for search engine optimization, but also legally binding. This has long been the case in North America, and in the European Union from June 28. This is when the European Accessibility Act (EAA) comes into force, which is implemented in Germany by the Barrierefreiheitsstärkungsgesetz (BFSG) and in Austria by the Barrierefreiheitsgesetz (BaFG). The new civil rights are a result of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which came into force in 2008. In Germany, there will be chargeable warnings. Correct implementation requires more than an AI plugin; in addition to automatic checking routines, tests with those affected are needed.
The FT commissioners unanimously approved the settlement negotiated with Accessibe (Ref. 222-3156). It will now be published in the US Official Journal; after 30 days of public consultation, the FT Commission will vote on it again.
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