How do the Accessibility Directive and the Digital Services Act change online operations? 

The Act on the Provision of Digital Services, which came into force in Finland in spring 2019, obliges certain private sector operators, in addition to the public sector, to comply with WCAG 2.1 AA level accessibility. These requirements apply to operators in sectors such as water, energy, banking, postal, and transport.

The requirements of the law address the technical implementation, design, and content of the site. The law has three main objectives:

1. Ensure content accessibility with the aid of assistive technologies (such as screen readers)

2. Ensure website usability regardless of visual impairments or other obstacles

3. Ensure content is displayed correctly across different devices. 

The law not only obliges the implementation of the service to be accessible but also requires compiling an accessibility statement. The accessibility statement must describe the level of accessibility aimed for in the service and indicate if any part of the service does not meet the requirements.

The implementation of the law is monitored by the Regional State Administrative Agency for Southern Finland, which has also compiled a separate guideline website. The agency can also impose a conditional fine on operators who do not comply with the law.

Accessibility is also beneficial for business

Accessibility should be part of good web service design and implementation regardless of legislation. Considering accessibility at the planning and specification stage of a new service may not even significantly increase costs but instead guides designers and technical implementers to make sustainable choices.

It is also important to understand that investment in accessibility does not solely concern, to put it frankly, the blind and severely disabled. Up to 20-30% of Finns suffer from some accessibility-restricting issue, and the ageing population will further increase this group. Thus, accessibility is increasingly becoming a genuinely profitable business practice.   

Accessibility promotes equality and enhances customer experience. In the best case, it also saves costs, and as a positive side effect, it often improves search engine visibility. 

The law and standards cover good accessibility only partly. They do not address, for instance, the comprehensibility of service structure or the usability of navigation. Therefore, it is advisable to comprehensively take into account good accessibility in the implementation of digital services as part of user-centred design.

We have compiled a small downloadable guide to help you understand what website administrators should consider following the accessibility directive and the new law.

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For us, accessibility and user-centred design are part of every project. So if you need further assistance with user-centred design that considers accessibility, please get in touch.