Industry-Specific Laws
In This Section:
Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA)
Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA)
EU Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD)
European Electronic Communications Code (EECC)
EU eIDAS Regulation
European Accessibility Act (EAA)
Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA)
Enacted in 2010, the CVAA updates United States federal communications law to ensure that modern communications technologies are accessible to people with disabilities. It covers advanced communications services and products including video communications, text messaging, and web browsers on mobile devices.
One of its most significant requirements is that any video program that airs on television with captions must also be captioned when made available online. The CVAA applies to all entities already subject to FCC regulations, including telecommunications hardware and software providers and television broadcasters.
Note that the CVAA does not explicitly extend to web-only videos. However, WCAG 2.0 captioning requirements apply to all online video regardless of whether it was broadcast on television, so in practice web developers need to account for both.
Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA)
Enacted in 1986, the ACAA prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in air travel and requires air carriers to accommodate the needs of passengers with disabilities. It applies to United States and foreign air carriers operating flights within or to the US, or selling tickets to the US public.
A 2013 Department of Transportation rule extended the Act’s reach to carrier websites and ticket kiosks, requiring them to conform to WCAG 2.0 Level AA. This applies to both US carriers and foreign carriers whose public-facing pages are used to advertise or sell air transportation that begins or ends in the US. All compliance deadlines under this rule have now passed.
EU Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD)
The AVMSD (Directive 2010/13/EU) governs EU-wide coordination of national legislation on all audiovisual media, covering both traditional television broadcasts and on-demand services.
It requires media service providers to make their services continuously and progressively more accessible to people with disabilities through proportionate measures. It also requires that emergency information broadcast via audiovisual media be provided in an accessible format. Media service providers are encouraged to develop accessibility action plans to support ongoing progress toward full accessibility.
European Electronic Communications Code (EECC)
The European Electronic Communications Code (Directive 2018/1972) sets out rules for the provision of high quality, secure, and affordable telecommunications services across Europe. It includes several provisions specifically addressing the needs of users with disabilities.
Service providers must make key information, such as pricing and contract terms, available in accessible formats for people with disabilities. The Code also requires accessible emergency services, including equal access to the single European emergency number 112, and accessible missing children and child helpline hotlines. To support affordability, it ensures that specific equipment and services that enhance equivalent access for people with disabilities are available at reasonable cost.
EU eIDAS Regulation
The eIDAS Regulation (EU No 910/2014) establishes rules for electronic identification and trust services for electronic transactions within the EU internal market. Its relevance to accessibility is straightforward: it requires that trust services such as electronic signatures, and the end-user products that provide those services, be accessible to people with disabilities.
European Accessibility Act (EAA)
Adopted in 2019, the European Accessibility Act (EU Directive 2019/882) establishes a common set of accessibility requirements for products and services across EU member states. Its goal is to resolve the inconsistency that had developed as individual member states created their own separate accessibility rules. Member states were required to transpose it into national law by June 28, 2022, with enforcement beginning June 28, 2025.
The EAA applies to the private sector and covers products and services identified as most important to people with disabilities, including computers and operating systems, ATMs, ticketing and check-in machines, smartphones, TV equipment, telephone services, audio-visual media services, air and land passenger transport services, banking services, e-books, and e-commerce.
Conformance is assessed against a set of harmonized European standards, including the revised EN 301 549 (aligned with the Web Accessibility Directive), EN 17210 (built environment), and EN 17161 (Design for All), among others covering support services and emergency communications.
NGOs, national authorities, and other bodies may take legal action on behalf of individuals under national law, and penalties apply for non-compliance. Each member state is responsible for enforcement.