Monitoring eAccessibility in Europe: 2011 Annual Report
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Internet (Web content)Despite the fact that the accessibility issues of Web content are well defined, and there is a set of guidelines supported by the W3C9 to ensure that a wide range of users can access the Web, many websites currently present barriers for people with physical, cognitive/neurological disabilities, older people, or users who lack the latest technology, and so on. The sampling was determined using MeAC 2007/2008 criteria and following a framework to ensure that important websites are included. The websites tested in 13 European Member States and selected other countries (Norway, Australia, Canada and USA) are classified into two domains: government websites and private and sector-specific websites. For each website a relevant sample of pages was selected for both automated and manual analyses in the context of currently accepted accessibility guidelines (W3C-WAI-WCAG). In Annex I Methodology, the specific Web accessibility evaluation is described in detail regarding the sample selection, the methodology for assessing Web accessibility as well as the quantitative indicators for Web evaluation. Figure . Status of Internet accessibility (Web content) in EU and non-EU countries
Figure . Status of Internet accessibility (Web content), by country Source: Own elaboration, 2011. Unit: Percentages The level of accessibility of public website content is substantially higher than for private websites, which is consistent with the fact that regulations on access to content on the Web were applied mainly to government websites or to those supported by public funds. The overall level of accessibility of Internet in the European Union countries studied is medium, reaching 29%. Highest implementation level of practices identified is in Spain (62%), the UK (47%) and Czech Republic (39%), while the rest of the countries have low levels of accessibility, with the lowest in Hungary (16%), France (17%) and Ireland (19%). However, these results should be interpreted with caution due to the size of the sample of websites analysed in each country. Internet in the EU is slightly less accessible than in the non EU reference countries. The average in those countries stands at 33%, four points higher than in the EU. The non EU reference country in which Internet reaches the greatest degree of accessibility is Australia (39%), and the lowest level is in United States (22%), that is the only non EU country with a low level of compliance. For the 17 countries surveyed, the 13 European Union members and four non-EU countries considered jointly, the average is 30% (medium accessibility). No country stands out for having a high level of accessibility in Internet (values above 66%). Making a distinction between the level of accessibility of Web content linked to public and private entities, it should be noted that in the European Union countries surveyed, greater efforts were made to ensure that the contents of the government websites are accessible: the level of accessibility of the contents of the government websites is 39% (intermediate level of accessibility) and those related to private organisations is 18% (low accessibility level). The trend in countries outside the EU is similar: 39% in the Web content linked to public organisations and 27% in private organisations. Table . Status of Internet accessibility (Web content)
Source: Own elaboration, 2011. Unit: Percentages Web content (government websites)Following the international experts’ workshop held in Brussels on 10 June 2010 to discuss the methodology used in the study, we identified the need to investigate more thoroughly the accessibility of government websites in Europe as well as in the international context beyond the European Union. The main reason is that the initial sampling approach only looked at the reality of the top tier of each country's political and administrative structure (central government), ignoring other levels and areas of general public concern. For this reason, Technosite aims to go a step further in its approach to the state of government web accessibility in Europe. Although it also takes an exploratory approach, it addresses European government website accessibility with a wider and more representative scope and includes other international Web accessibility benchmarks. To do so, as well as major central government websites, the new proposal also analyses the websites of regional and local government (as appropriate to the territorial organisation of each state). These websites will be from the seventeen countries covered by the sample (with broad representation from European Union countries and other reference countries outside the EU). It will also include the main features that are characteristic of electronically-delivered government services in these states. To further ensure that the sample of government websites in each country is representative and provides sufficient coverage, and to get a broader picture of the state of accessibility of public bodies, it was been decided to make a semi-predefined selection of the eight websites to be evaluated, based on criteria of representativeness and general public interest. To do so, the eight websites evaluated in each country were selected from four categories to ensure the necessary coverage:
The methodology for assessing the accessibility of public-sector websites is a major improvement in comparison with the previous year, 2010, when the national technology experts were initially responsible for evaluation of Web accessibility following specific and detailed instructions, but in many cases, these experts were not Web accessibility technicians. For that reason, in 2011, Technosite has centralised the technical analysis of Web accessibility of public-sector websites in a single team of expert consultants to carry out the evaluation of Web accessibility to ensure greater consistency and quality in the analysis of the eAccessibility. However, these improvements in the methodology are the reason why there is a decrease in the accessibility status in 2011, as the web analysis has been more accurate and restrictive in 2011, and therefore the results regarding level of accessibility are lower for Internet. The analysis of Web accessibility itself follows the previous assessment methodology for each of the selected websites, with automated and manual checks of compliance with WCAG 1.0 accessibility requirements (Levels A and Double A) and the application of WCAG 2.0-specific requirements (only considering WCAG 2.0 when a website already complies with WCAG 1.0 level Double A), based on a selection of the criteria included in the Unified Web Evaluation Methodology (UWEM). The level of accessibility to the content of government websites was established based on three indicators: 1) Existence of certification or labelling schemes for government websites, 2) Provision of accessibility claims about the conformance with WCAG 1.0/2.0 in government websites, and 3) Degree of Web accessibility in government websites. The latter is a composed indicator constructed taking into account the level of conformance with WCAG 1.0 (Levels A and Double-A) and WCAG 2.0 in government websites using both automated evaluation tools and manual evaluation procedures.
Figure . Status of Web content accessibility (government websites) in EU and non-EU countries Source: Own elaboration, 2011. Unit: Percentages Figure . Status of Web content accessibility (government websites), by country Source: Own elaboration, 2011. Unit: Percentages The level of accessibility of government websites in the EU is medium, with the average among the countries surveyed being 39%. Highest implementation level of practices related to websites linked to public entities is identified in Spain (76%), followed by UK (61%) and six other countries with a medium level of accessibility. The lowest levels of accessibility were in France (21%), Sweden (25%) and Greece (27%). The government websites in the EU have the same level of accessibility as in the non EU reference countries considered in this study, with an average in these countries of 39%. All the non EU countries tested have a medium level of accessibility. The non EU reference countries in which the government websites achieve the highest degree of accessibility are Australia and Canada (42%), while the lowest level was detected in the United States (35%). For the 17 countries surveyed, taken together, the 13 EU members and the four outside EU, the average is 39% (medium accessibility). Only one country (Spain) stands out for a high level of accessibility of governmental websites. In calculating the level of Web content accessibility of government websites the following aspects were taken into account: if there is in the country a certificate issued by an external body to verify the level of accessibility achieved; if the sites analysed have a statement of the accessibility level and the actual degree of implementation of content accessibility based on WCAG 1.0 Levels A and Double-A; distinguishing between manual and automated assessment techniques and adaptive level of accessibility requirements listed additionally in WCAG 2.0. The conclusions drawn from the results provided by the expert group on ICT accessibility of the countries covered in this study are:
Regarding the degree of adaptation to the accessibility requirements set out additionally in WCAG 2.0, the level of implementation is very low both in EU countries (3%) and in non EU countries (6%). Table . Technology status of Web content – Government websites
Source: Own elaboration, 2011. Unit: Percentages Web content (private and sector specific websites)The set of private and sector specific websites analysed was determined with the same criteria used in MeAC 2007/2008. To ensure that the results are comparable on a procedural level and between countries, six equivalent websites were selected in the same way in each country. As the sample of websites is not statistically representative in quantitative terms but from a qualitative perspective of the sample selection, a set of representative websites of the main companies and operators of public interest were evaluated in each country. Specifically, the private and sector-specific websites analysed in this section include those of the main national daily newspapers, the main free-on-air broadcasting TV channels, the main national retail banks, the main national railway services and the main national mobile and fixed-line telecommunication operators. The level of accessibility to the content of private and sector specific websites was established based on two indicators: 1) Provision of accessibility claims about the conformance with WCAG 1.0/2.0 in private and sector-specific websites, and 2) Degree of Web accessibility in private and sector-specific websites. The second is a composed indicator constructed taking into account the level of conformance with WCAG 1.0 Levels A and Double-A and WCAG 2.0 in private and sector-specific websites using both automated evaluation tools and manual evaluation procedures.
Figure . Status of Web content accessibility (private and sector specific websites) in EU and non-EU countries Source: Own elaboration, 2011. Unit: Percentages Figure . Status of Web content accessibility (private and sector specific websites), by country Source: Own elaboration, 2011. Unit: PercentagesThe average level of accessibility of private sector websites in the EU is low (18%). Highest implementation level of practices related to private sector websites is detected in Spain (48%), Czech Republic (44%) and Greece (35%), which are the only three countries that reach a medium degree of accessibility. The lowest accessibility levels were identified in the Netherlands, Hungary, Portugal, Ireland and Sweden (all of them below 7%). The Netherlands scores 0%, and according to the national experts, of the five private websites analysed, none of them comply with any of the requirements evaluated (automated and manual validation). Although slightly higher, the accessibility level of websites linked to the private sector in the non EU reference countries is also low (27%), exceeding the average in the EU countries by nine points. The best positioned non EU countries analysed are Australia (36%) and Norway (34%), while the United States reaches only 9%. For the 17 countries surveyed, the 13 EU members and the four outside the EU, the average is 20% (low accessibility). No country stands out as having a high level of accessibility of private sector websites. In calculating the level of Web content accessibility of websites linked to private organisations, the following aspects were taken into account: if the sites analysed have a statement of the level of accessibility applied, and the degree of actual implementation of content accessibility based on WCAG 1.0 Levels A and Double-A; distinguishing between manual and automated assessment techniques, and adaptive level of accessibility requirements listed additionally in WCAG 2.0. The conclusions from the analysis of the results are:
Regarding the degree of adaptation to the accessibility requirements set out in WCAG 2.0, application is low or absent: 12% in EU countries and 10% in non EU reference countries. Table . Technology status of private and sector specific websites
Source: Own elaboration, 2011. Unit: Percentages Download 4.79 Mb. Share with your friends:
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