CTIA Supports the FCC’s “Accessibility and Innovation Forum”

CTIA supports the FCC in its efforts to enhance accessibility for disabled Americans under Recommendation 9.9 (known as the “Accessibility and Innovation Forum”) of the National Broadband Plan. 

In our comments to the Commission, we reiterated our belief that the forum should focus on consumer education and awareness and recommends the FCC develop a clearinghouse to help consumers find information and tools about accessible products and services.

The U.S. wireless industry is a role model that other countries strive to emulate – we have a robust, innovative and competitive wireless ecosystem that provides consumers with the choice and value they want.

We are constantly offering new devices, services and applications and products every day. With innovations such as built-in accessibility features and “app stores” available on most smart phones on the market today, persons with disabilities can find mobile devices and services to replace older assistive communication devices at significantly reduced costs.

With these tools now available, CTIA believes the Accessibility and Innovation Forum’s goal should be to identify those resources and to answer three core questions:

• Who offers accessible products and services?
• What are the accessible features and functions available to me?
• Where can I find accessible products, services and applications?

This online forum, coupled with education and outreach, will help persons with disabilities successfully navigate the diverse mobile marketplace and assist them in  choosing their wireless products and services.

We encourage you to visit CTIA’s accessibility site AccessWireless.org to learn more about accessible products and services, helpful tips and how-to information. For those interested on the policy topic, we recently updated our accessibility and disability section.