Introduction to Standard Accessibility Reporting, Inc. (SAR)

The idea has been around for decades: the development of a scoring and labelling system to let consumers know how accessible something is before they buy it. Informal conversations began at conferences in the late 1990s as the Internet gained its foothold. At the same time, we were all finding out that widespread implementation of accessibility would remain a problem for some time. More than two decades later, despite recognizable progress, we are still, essentially, collectively aspiring to achieve a more widespread impact in accessibility.

From the consumer’s point of view, at present there is no accessibility score to tell you whether this $2 app will be accessible after you’ve bought it. Nor is there a score to tell the customer if that $800 washing machine will be accessible to blind users. For the corporate purchasing agent, there is no score at all (let alone a standardized score) on the VPAT/ACR to verify whether this $9 Million enterprise software suite will be accessible.

Standard Accessibility Reporting, Inc. (SAR) was formed to change this situation. SAR was formed in 2022 as a non-profit member organization to develop scoring systems and validation methods as new industry consensus standards. Our members are developing these standards and at the same time educating the public and industry on the need for and utility of such a label on websites, apps, consumer technology products and more. Since our inception, membership has grown, and in August of 2023, OZeWAI became a support partner of SAR.

In this free webinar, Chris Law will introduce SAR’s mission and immediate goals in accessibility reporting standards development. The production of new standards will help consumers identify which products and apps are winning in the accessibility game. Chris will share the benefits of participation and membership and how you can get involved in SAR's projects.

About Dr. Chris Law

Dr. Chris M. Law is the founder and executive director of Standard Accessibility Reporting, Inc. He has been an IAAP member since its founding and has been active in accessibility R&D since 1995. In 2016, he co-founded and chaired the annual ICT Accessibility Testing Symposium. He has been involved in the practice and refinement of accessibility testing methods throughout his career in the UK, USA, Canada and Australia. In 2010, he earned his PhD from the School of Business at RMIT University (Melbourne, Australia). In the early 2000s, he worked with a US university-based research team examining issues with the production and practical use of accessibility standards and guidelines. Through his company, Accessibility Track, Chris also consults on accessibility testing and organization-wide implementation of accessibility programs.