The People v. Online Businesses
Last week, people with disabilities were victorious over Target Corporation - and big business in general - with a federal ruling that requires companies' online presence to
meet the terms of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), just as offline business have been required to do since the law's passage in 1990. The verdict comes after the
National Federation of the Blind sued Target, charging that the company's Web site is inaccessible to the blind and therefore violates the ADA, as well as the California Unruh
Civil Rights Act and the California Disabled Persons Act. Thus, PR professionals are now mandated by law to ensure their company's Web presence is user-friendly for all consumers
- a challenge that will require execs to explore technologies that facilitate use by people of any and all physical limitations.