Accessibility: designing to leave no one behind.

According to the World Health Organization, over one billion people live with some form of disability. In Europe alone, around 87 million people experience conditions that directly affect their ability to interact with digital services. Yet, the online experience often remains inaccessible to those who need it most.
The latest WebAIM Million report, which analyzes the accessibility of one million homepages, reveals that 96.3% of sites contain serious errors according to international guidelines. The most common issues involve poor text contrast, missing image alt text, incorrect form labels, and lack of keyboard navigation. Globally, around 15% of the world population lives with a disability — and a significant portion is excluded from the web not due to lack of internet access, but due to a lack of accessibility. These are not exceptions. They reveal a structural design flaw. That’s why the European Union introduced Directive (EU) 2019/882 — known as the European Accessibility Act — which will come into force on June 28, 2025, making accessibility a legal requirement.

What digital accessibility really means

Digital accessibility means designing digital services and content so that they can be used by everyone, regardless of physical, sensory, or cognitive abilities. According to Article 2 of Italian Law 4/2004, accessibility is:

“The ability of IT systems to provide services and information without discrimination, including for those who, due to disabilities, require assistive technologies or special configurations.”

A clear definition that highlights the key point: accessibility is not a “bonus,” but a fundamental condition for equal digital access

What changes with the new EU regulation

The goal of the law is to extend accessibility requirements to private-sector digital services, overcoming a key limitation of previous laws, which in Italy only applied to public administration (Stanca Act, 2004). As Article 1 of the directive states:

“This directive establishes common accessibility requirements for certain products and services in order to contribute to the proper functioning of the internal market.”

In practice, it will affect all public and private players in the digital chain who design, develop, distribute, or deliver digital products and services accessible to the public:

• Private economic operators, such as: e-commerce websites and apps, online banking, transport, electronic communication services, and audiovisual media.
• Providers of hardware and software related to digital services: payment terminals, ATMs, self-service devices, operating systems, browsers, PDF readers.
• Publishers of digital content, such as: eBooks, reading software, digital publications in educational and cultural contexts.
• Digital services for passenger transport, including: websites, mobile apps, e-ticketing, real-time travel information.

The EAA does not apply to microenterprises — companies with fewer than 10 employees and annual turnover under 2 million.
Affected companies must ensure their products and services meet functional accessibility requirements, inspired by WCAG 2.1, and extended to non-web contexts (like physical devices or embedded software). Accessibility must be embedded from the design phase.
Non-compliant companies may face sanctions, sales restrictions, or user reports through institutional channels. Accessibility is no longer optional: it is a design challenge — and a new opportunity to build more inclusive, functional, and human digital experiences.

Accessibility: a matter of rights and strategy

Digital accessibility is not just a technical or legal requirement. It is, above all, a conscious design choice. It means designing for everyone, without exclusion — while also improving user experience, online visibility, and reducing legal risks. That’s why it’s not just a responsibility:

• Rights

Accessibility is, first and foremost, a human rights issue. Excluding millions from an app, a website, or an essential service — simply because it wasn’t designed with their needs in mind — means limiting access to participation, information, and employment. It’s not about offering something “extra,” but guaranteeing a fundamental right.

• Performance

There’s also a clear impact on online visibility. Many elements that make a website accessible — such as semantic HTML, alt text, and content clarity — also enhance SEO performance. An accessible site is often more readable by Google, more structured, more navigable: in short, more effective.

• Compliance

Finally, it’s a matter of compliance. With the EU regulation approaching, failing to meet accessibility requirements can lead to penalties and restrictions. But it also affects brand reputation: more users and customers now evaluate companies based on their inclusion efforts. As accessibility becomes a market standard, non-compliance means falling behind.

What truly makes a digital product accessible

Accessibility isn’t a toggle or a compliance label. It’s the outcome of an integrated, multidisciplinary process in which design, development, and content work together to create a usable experience for all. An accessible product must be conceived, designed, and developed inclusively from the start. It’s a balance between:

• Technology: clean, semantic code compatible with assistive technologies
• Design: visual contrast, hierarchy, navigation, readability
• Content: clear writing, alt text, coherent structure

It’s a practice that demands attention to detail, collaboration across roles (designers, developers, content creators), and an inclusive mindset.

The four pillars of accessibility according to WCAG

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are the international reference standard for accessible design. The current version, WCAG 2.2, is based on four key principles:

• Perceivable

Information must be presented in ways all users can perceive, regardless of sensory ability. Examples: alt text for images, video captions, sufficient color contrast.

• Operable

Interfaces must be navigable and usable.Examples: keyboard navigation, clickable buttons, enough time to interact.

• Understandable

Content and interactions must be easy to understand.Examples: clear language, consistent structure, clear instructions in forms.

• Robust

The product must be compatible with various technologies and future-proof. Examples: valid code, correct HTML use, regular updates.

Conclusions

Accessibility encourages more mindful decisions: clear structure, readable content, intuitive interactions — in short, good design. Not just aesthetics, but functionality, consistency, simplicity. Everything that makes an interface truly usable (and often, more beautiful too). In this sense, designing accessibly also means designing timelessly. An accessible design is one that lasts — because it adapts, it works, and it centers on what matters. It doesn’t chase trends — it meets needs. It doesn’t exclude — it welcomes. Because a well-designed web is one that works for everyone. For the long run.