Telstra announces accessibility initiatives

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Thursday, 18 September 2014 10:39am

Telstra has announced several new initiatives aimed at improving access for people with disabilities to telecommunications services.

The company has launched a portal on Telstra.com that lets users search for features that may assist specific disabilities such as speech, vision, cognitive and dexterity impairment.

For vision, features include: screen reader, adjustable font-size, high contrast mode and voice output of caller ID.

For cognition, features include: simplify display, photo associated phone book, supports third party apps and supports gesture navigation.

For dexterity, features include: stylus, flat back, anti-slip features and prosthetic device support.

For hearing, features include: adjustable maximum volume, hearing aid compatible, adjustable vibrating alerts and supports closed captioning.

General features include: large screen, easy battery placement, voice dialling / features access and external keyboard support.

The company has also announced that it has removed all use of CAPTCHA from Telstra.com. It had announced in December 2013 that it would no longer use CAPTCHA tests on its apps and websites.

CAPTCHA is known to be difficult to use for people with vision impairment among other disabilities, and has been the subject of a campaign for its removal from use on websites.

Telstra also announced that it has commenced providing open captioning on 14 BigPond movies, and will expand the number of BigPond movies with open captioning over time.


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