IEC TR 62678:2010

Audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment activities and considerations related to accessibility and usability

IEC/TR 62678:2010(E) provides information on accessibility and usability terms, activities, completed and ongoing standards, technical reports, projects, and specifies user needs that may or may not apply to audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment. Comments about demographics and public policies are included. A checklist of accessibility and usability considerations is also included. Industry experts may or may not apply this information when they evaluate opportunities to integrate support for accessibility and usability in their work.

General Information

• Status: Withdrawn
• Publication Date: 04-Oct-2010
• Withdrawal Date: 12-Sep-2021
• ICS: 29.140.10 - Lamp caps and holders
• ICS: 33.160.01 - Audio, video and audiovisual systems in general
• Technical Committee: TA 16 - Active Assisted Living (AAL), wearable electronic devices and technologies, accessibility and user interfaces
• Current Stage: WPUB - Publication withdrawn
• Start Date: 13-Sep-2021
• Completion Date: 10-Sep-2021

Standards Content (Sample)

IEC/TR 62678 ®
Edition 1.0 2010-10
TECHNICAL
REPORT
colour
inside
Audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment activities and
considerations related to accessibility and usability

IEC/TR 62678:2010(E)
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IEC/TR 62678 ®
Edition 1.0 2010-10
TECHNICAL
REPORT
colour
inside
Audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment activities and
considerations related to accessibility and usability

INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
PRICE CODE
ZZ
ICS 33.160.01 ISBN 978-2-88912-205-9
– 2 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
CONTENTS
FOREWORD.4

INTRODUCTION.6

1 Scope.7

2 Normative references .7

3 Terms, definitions and abbreviations .7

3.1 Terms and definitions .7

3.2 Abbreviations .8

4 Applications of terms and definitions .9
4.1 Applications and intentions.9
4.2 Applications of the terms: universal design, barrier-free design, accessibility,
and disability in Japan.10
4.3 Application of the term: barrier-free design in China .12
4.4 User needs and accessibility in the U.S. .12
4.5 Universal design and design-for-all in Germany.13
4.6 French application of the terms usability and accessibility .13
4.7 Use of terms and definitions for disability and disabled person in the UK.13
4.8 Interchangeability of terms .14
5 Organizations and topic areas .14
5.1 Priorities.14
5.2 Resources for standards development.14
6 Completed standards, technical reports, and projects .19
6.1 Compilation .19
6.2 Tabular list .19
7 User needs.21
7.1 A range of user needs extracted from ISO/IEC TR 29138-1:2009 .21
7.2 Tabular list .21
8 Demographics .27
8.1 Population growth .27
8.2 Reports from various nations.27
9 Public policies .27
9.1 Global policy .27
9.2 Domestic policy .27

10 Checklist of accessibility and usability considerations.28
11 Summary.29
11.1 Use of terms and checklist .29
11.2 User needs and scenarios .30
Annex A (informative) UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.31
Annex B (informative) Comments about some IEC TC 100 standards which contain
accessibility considerations.
Annex C (informative) Research projects in Europe .34
Bibliography.40

Figure 1 – People and their particular user needs .

TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 3 –
Table 1 – Organizations and topic areas .15

Table 2 – Completed standards, technical reports, and projects.19

Table 3 – User needs (from ISO/IEC TR 29138-1:2009).22

Table 4 – Checklist of accessibility and usability considerations .29

– 4 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION

____________
AUDIO, VIDEO AND MULTIMEDIA SYSTEMS AND EQUIPMENT

ACTIVITIES AND CONSIDERATIONS RELATED TO

ACCESSIBILITY AND USABILITY
FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote
international co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To
this end and in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications,
Technical Reports, Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as “IEC
Publication(s)”). Their preparation is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested
in the subject dealt with may participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and non-
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with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by
agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all
interested IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National
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8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is
indispensable for the correct application of this publication.
9) Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this IEC Publication may be the subject of
patent rights. IEC shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
The main task of IEC technical committees is to prepare International Standards. However, a

technical committee may propose the publication of a technical report when it has collected
data of a different kind from that which is normally published as an International Standard, for
example "state of the art".
IEC 62678, which is a technical report, has been prepared by IEC technical committee 100:
Audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment.
The text of this technical report is based on the following documents:
Enquiry draft Report on voting
100/1688/DTR 100/1737/RVC
Full information on the voting for the approval of this technical report can be found in the
report on voting indicated in the above table.

TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 5 –
This publication has been drafted in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.

The committee has decided that the contents of this publication will remain unchanged until

the stability date indicated on the IEC web site under "http://webstore.iec.ch" in the data

related to the specific publication. At this date, the publication will be

• reconfirmed,
• withdrawn,
• replaced by a revised edition, or

• amended.
A bilingual version of this publication may be issued at a later date.

IMPORTANT – The 'colour inside' logo on the cover page of this publication indicates
that it contains colours which are considered to be useful for the correct
understanding of its contents. Users should therefore print this document using a
colour printer.
– 6 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
INTRODUCTION
With an objective to research, review, and consider accessibility and usability and to start the

project, a survey was designed and distributed to the IEC TC100 P-members to obtain

information about the related issues, public policies, and activities. In April 2008, the survey

results were reported to the AGS (Bangkok, Thailand) and in November, 2008 the first in-

person meeting of the Project Team was held in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Subsequently, four global teleconferences, numerous electronic mail exchanges, and use of

the IEC on-line Collaboration Tools located at www.iec.ch occurred. The Project Team also

held an in-person meeting in Tel Aviv, Israel in October 2009. As a result of these sessions,

the Project Team produced this TR which attempts to explain the possible relevance of
accessibility and usability to the IEC TC100 programme of work. Every aspect of this TR may
or may not be appropriate for all IEC TC100 projects and / or participants. Likewise, this TR
may or may not address considerations for product designers. However, this TR does provide
information to assist the IEC TC100 standards experts in their accessibility and usability
research, review, and consideration.
Clause 2 (Normative references) includes those documents referenced in the main body of
this TR with the exception of Table 2. This document is numbered with other documents of the
Project Team, 002-012, dated 03/31/10.
This TR extracts and applies the user needs published in the ISO/IEC TR 29138-1,
Information Technology-Accessibility considerations for people with disabilities – Part 1: User
needs summary, paraphrased and extracted with permission.
This TR contains four informative annexes:
a) Annex A on the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
(paraphrased and extracted with permission),
b) Annex B which comments on some IEC TC100 standards which contain accessibility
considerations,
c) Annex C on research projects in Europe.
Every effort was made to include resources that are publicly accessible.

TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 7 –
AUDIO, VIDEO AND MULTIMEDIA SYSTEMS AND EQUIPMENT

ACTIVITIES AND CONSIDERATIONS RELATED TO

ACCESSIBILITY AND USABILITY
1 Scope
This Technical Report (TR) provides information on accessibility and usability terms,

activities, completed and ongoing standards, technical reports, projects, and specifies user
needs that may or may not apply to audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment.
Comments about demographics and public policies are included. A checklist of accessibility
and usability considerations is also included. Industry experts may or may not apply this
information when they evaluate opportunities to integrate support for accessibility and
usability in their work.
2 Normative references
The following referenced documents are indispensable for the application of this document.
For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition
of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO/IEC 25062:2006, Software product quality requirements and evaluation (SQuaRE) –
Common Industry Format (CIF) for usability test reports
ISO/IEC TR 29138-1:2009, Information technology – Accessibility considerations for people
with disabilities – Part 1: User needs summary
3 Terms, definitions and abbreviations
3.1 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
3.1.1
accessibility
degree to which a product (e.g., device, service, and environment) is accessible by as many
people as possible
NOTE Accessibility can be viewed as the "ability to access" the functionality, and possible benefit, of some
system or entity. Accessibility is often used to focus on people with disabilities and their right of access to entities,
often through use of assistive technology. Several definitions of accessibility refer directly to access-based
individual rights laws and regulations. Products or services designed to meet these regulations are often termed
“Easy Access” or “Accessible”. See: www.wikipedia.org
3.1.2
adaptive design
interoperability with assistive technology
NOTE See ISO/IEC Guide 71.
3.1.3
assistive technology
designates assistive, adaptive, and rehabilitative devices designed to enable use by people
with disabilities or to enhance usability

– 8 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
3.1.4
barrier-free design
design without barriers for individuals with disabilities

3.1.5
design-for-all
DFA
design and development of products and / or services with the aim that, regardless of age,

gender, capabilities, or cultural background, everyone can easily use and access a product

and / or service
3.1.6
disability
any restriction or lack (resulting from an impairment) of ability to perform an activity in the
manner or within the range considered normal for a human being
NOTE See World Health Organization (WHO), www.who.int/en/
3.1.7
eAccessibility
access to mainstream information and communication technology (ICT) and audio video (AV)
products and services by the widest number of people in accordance with design-for-all (DFA)
NOTE See European Association for the Co-ordination of Consumer Representation in Standardisation (ANEC)
also described as the “European consumer voice in standardisation” and the European Disability Forum (EDF).
3.1.8
universal design
design for usability by the widest range of users based on their sensory, physical, and
cognitive abilities
3.1.9
usability
extent to which a product can be used by specified users to achieve specified goals with
effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction in a specified context of use
NOTE See ISO 9241-11.
3.1.10
user accessibility need
user need
requirements of a product or its environment of use that improves accessibility to the system

for users whose abilities are reduced through environmental factors, injury, disability, or
natural degradation from aging
NOTE See ISO/IEC TR 29138-2: 2009.
3.2 Abbreviations
For the purposes of this document, the following abbreviations apply.
ADA Americans with Disabilities Act
ANEC European Association for the Co-ordination of Consumer Representation
in Standardisation
ASTC Advanced Television Systems Committee
AT Assistive Technology
CFR Code of Federal Regulations

TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 9 –
CIF Common Industry Format
dB decibel
DDA Disability Discrimination Act

DFA Design-For-All
EC European Commission
EU European Union
FY Fiscal Year
ICT Information and Communication Technology

ISO International Standards Organization

ITU International Telecommunication Union
ITU-T ITU Telecommunication Sector
JIS Japanese Industrial Standard
JISC Japanese Industrial Standards Committee
JCA-AHF Joint Coordination Activity on Accessibility and Human Factors
MEAC Measuring Progress of E-Accessibility in Europe
METI Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry
MIC Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications
MLIT Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism
NWIP New Work Item Proposal
SQuaRE Software product quality requirements and evaluation
SWG-A Special Working Group on Accessibilty (of the ISO/IEC Joint Technical
Committee One, JTC1)
TA Technical Area
TR Technical Report
TRS Telecommunications Relay Service
VDT Visual Display Terminal
UK United Kingdom
UN United Nations
U.S. United States of America
USC United States Code
U.S.FCC U.S. Federal Communications Commission
W3C World Wide Web Consortium
WHO World Health Organization
WG Working Group
4 Applications of terms and definitions
4.1 Applications and intentions
Although the application of terms and definitions related to accessibility and usability may
differ, often the meaning is the same: i.e. to reach as many people as possible. See Figure 1
which depicts the importance of the human aspect in accessibility / usability of terms and
definitions.
– 10 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
Among the participants of a survey, designed and distributed to obtain information about

accessibility and usability issues, public policies and activities, Japan, China, the U.S.,

Germany, France and the UK described their use of terms and definitions. They stated that

individuals attempting to apply terms and definitions are also encouraged to research national

policies. IEC/TC 100 addresses many areas of audio, video and multimedia equipment

standardization. As the experts choose to consider the terminology for accessibility and

usability, they may use the “Checklist of accessibility and usability considerations” in Clause
11 of this TR.
universal
design
/
barrier-free
People and
their specific
and / or
particular
user need(s)
universal accessibility
design /
/ usability
design-for-all
(DFA)
IEC  2309/10
NOTE People and their specific and/or particular user need(s) are, figuratively, placed in the center of
terminology that expresses the intention to meet specific or particular user needs.

Figure 1 – People and their particular user needs
4.2 Applications of the terms: universal design, barrier-free design, accessibility, and
disability in Japan
The terms “universal design” and “barrier-free” are used in Japan to describe technology,
buildings, and other physical infrastructures. Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS) X 8341
applies terms that may assist audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment standards
designers who address individuals with disabilities or individuals who are experiencing natural
degradation typically due to aging. JIS X 8341 provides information on ways to improve
accessibility, required when (primarily) elderly persons, persons with disabilities and those
with temporary disabilities use office equipment. The standard gives information concerning
the usability aspects when planning, developing and designing office equipment. In this case,
office equipment refers to copying machines, multifunction devices, and page printers that are
used in office environments.
TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 11 –
In Japan, the term “accessibility" is used to communicate a few concepts with regard to

information. Specifically, “accessibility” in Japan is used to communicate the concepts of

accessible, usable, and useful information. Generally, the term is used to communicate where

“the user can use equipment and services smoothly”. The previous text includes an informal

translation of the definition for the term “accessibility”.

NOTE 1 See Barrier-Free, Universal Design Promotion Outline of Japan’s Cabinet Office.

NOTE 2 See Japan’s Info-Communication Access Council.

The term “accessibility” is defined in Japan for the information technology sector by the

Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) to address all people including, elderly

and disabled persons so they can use information technology products, services and facilities
without difficulty.
NOTE 3 Source for documents published in the Japanese: http://www.soumu.go.jp/s-news/2005/051215_1.html
For the terms “accessibility” and “usability” used with respect to equipment and services the
JIS Z 8071 standard may be followed. The scope of JIS Z 8071 begins as follows: “This guide
provides guidance to writers of relevant standards on how to take into account the needs of
older persons and persons with disabilities. Whilst recognizing that some people with very
extensive and complex disabilities may have requirements beyond the level addressed in this
Guide, a very large number of people have minor impairments which can be easily addressed
by relatively small changes of approach in standards, thereby increasing the market for the
product or service”.
The scope of JIS Z 8071 continues, as follows “this Guide aims to inform, increase
understanding and raise awareness about how human abilities impact on the usability of
products, services and environments”. As stated in the scope, JIS Z 8071 aims to outline the
relationship between the requirements in standards and the accessibility and usability of
products and services and to raise awareness about the benefits of adopting accessible
design principles in terms of wider markets. The scope explains that the Guide applies to
products, services and environments encountered in all aspects of daily life and intended for
the consumer market and the workplace.
According to the Japanese “Physical Disability Welfare Act (informal translation)”, enacted in
1951, which was partially amended to define disability for people of 18 years of age and older,
the term “disability” consists of various types of disabilities including sight, hearing, and motor
skills. Glaucoma, total blindness, and amblyopic conditions are also included. Notably, colour-
blindness, conditions of cataract, and the degradation of sight due to aging are not included.
Therefore, an all-encompassing definition of “disability” is not intended. The concept of a
hearing disability, in Japan, addresses a specific hearing disability of 70 decibel (dB) and
above, but does not include degradation due to aging which results in hearing loss of sounds
at higher frequencies.
The participants in the IEC/TC 100 from the Japanese National Committee comment that as
the AV products decrease in their size and the functions of such products change, improved
usability and added convenience results for those individuals experiencing natural
degradation due to aging or due to disabilities. Reportedly, some Japanese industries share a
common concept surrounding the improvement of usability. That is, the concept of "universal
design" which has applications in various industrial areas and is useful for communication
purposes. According to the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI),
regardless of one’s culture, language, nationality, age, gender, or disability, “universal design”
expresses how one can use products, facilities, and information. The “universal design”
concept, in Japan, remains general and widely used for industrial products and product
features.
NOTE 4 See http://www.meti.go.jp/report/data/g00828bj.html.
NOTE 5 See http://www.meti.go.jp/report/downloadfiles/g10522cj.pdf.

– 12 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
In Japan, “barrier free design” applies to public transportation infrastructure and buildings.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) promotes “barrier free” to

communicate the concept that, regardless of disability, age, sex, and race, easy operation

including life-style and environment are provided.

NOTE 6 See http://www.mlit.go.jp/sogoseisaku/barrierfree/index.html

NOTE 7 See http://www.mlit.go.jp/sogoseisaku/barrier/mokuji_.html

NOTE 8 See http://www.mlit.go.jp/kisha/kisha05/01/010711_.html

Japan’s “Law for accessible transportation and facilities” (known as the ‘New Barrier-Free
Law’) communicates barrier-free design. Japan’s MLIT promulgates this law as the position of

the “General Principles of Universal Design Policy.”
NOTE 9 See http://www.mlit.go.jp/kisha/kisha05/01/010711/04.pdf
Although the physical infrastructure, including buildings, remains out of the scope of this TR,
mentioning this aspect assists in describing the overall trend of helping people. Other data
include the FY 2005 reports that the awareness of universal design was 64,3 % in Japan and
the awareness of barrier-free was 93,8 %.
NOTE 10 See “The Japanese People’s Awareness Survey for Promoting Barrier-free Society (informal translation
of the survey name),” December 2005 the Cabinet Office.
4.3 Application of the term: barrier-free design in China
In China, “barrier-free design” applies to public transportation infrastructure and buildings.
The term is promoted for the transportation and facility sector by the Ministry of Housing and
Urban-Rural development and the Ministry of Railways.
The barrier-free design concept in China applies regardless of disability, age, sex and race.
“Barrier- free design” is a concept which provides easy operation. This includes aspects of
life-style and environment.
4.4 User needs and accessibility in the U.S.
In the U.S., the “user needs” of individuals with disabilities are discussed within the context of
information and communication technology (ICT) and the requirements to assist individuals
with disabilities. Generally, “good usability” occurs when the user experiences improved
usability.
Accessibility in the U.S., as codified in Federal regulations, addresses the features and functions that
support the use of a device by as many people as possible. The Americans with Disabilities Act

(ADA) provides for an individual who is considered to have a "disability" if that person has a
physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, has a
record of such impairment, or is regarded as having such impairment. The Electronic
Technology Accessibility Standards (Section 508) and the Closed Captioning of Video
Programming, 47 Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.), Section 79.1, and the Section 255,
Manufacturers of Equipment, of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 set forth accessibility
provisions. New, draft Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Standards and
Guidelines, released for public comment in March 2010, are under consideration for Section
508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (29 U.S.C. 794d).
NOTE 1 See www.access-board.gov
NOTE 2 See www.fcc.gov
TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 13 –
4.5 Universal design and design-for-all in Germany

In Germany, the terms “universal design” and “design-for-all (DFA)” are used synonymously

and interchangeably. These terms are used to convey a goal of reaching the widest possible

range of users based on their sensory, physical and cognitive abilities.

In Germany, persons with disabilities are sometimes described as a heterogeneous group

which, in some cases, need special services or products. Therefore, according to the

European Association for the Co-ordination of Consumer Representation in Standardisation
(ANEC), also known as “The European consumer voice in standardisation,” the importance of

supporting the interoperability between assistive and mainstream technologies remains.

For the purpose of this Technical Report, Germany’s observations include the point that
improvements in audio video usability will not only benefit individuals with disabilities, but will
also assist the growing number of people who are aging. Germany’s eInclusion activities,
following the policies of the EU Commission and the ratification of the UN Convention of the
Rights of Persons with Disabilities, add to a high awareness of this nation’s accessibility. In
Germany, usability remains a competitive advantage and the implementation remains
voluntary, whereas accessibility is typically mandated by Law.
According to the European Commission, in the Commission’s “eAccessibility” communiqué,
DFA consists of three main strategies:
a) design for most users without modifications;
b) design for easy adaption to different users (e.g., using adjustable interfaces), and
c) design with a view to connect seamlessly to assistive technology devices.
4.6 French application of the terms usability and accessibility
The French practices for large home appliances, sometimes known as “white goods,” address
“usability,” and no issues are anticipated with using the terms “usability” and “accessibility”
interchangeably due to the similarity of their definitions. Usability, however, is an important
element of differentiation for a product choice. The BP X35-074, a guide for good practices,
gives guidance for designers regarding usability. The guide is for white goods. According to
the French National Committee of the IEC/TC 100, the use of terms may or may not present
realistic goals for standards experts if applied to many products that are used by a broad
range of people. The specific concern is that such terms and goals may lead to an unrealistic
design expense related to attempting to address the needs of most users. Therefore, the
French National Committee recommends that a focus on specific user needs remain
important. The French National Committee also recommends that the IEC/TC 100 role in
usability standards is to give a list of desirable improvements and inadvisable design, and
also to give methods of measurement of the level of usability for product designers.

Notably, the French law defines “disability” as everyone with difficulties in everyday activities
due to temporary or permanent symptoms or reduced quality or strength of health. French
regulations impose accessibility for individuals in wheelchairs for public buildings. The
usability of Internet sites is still under study.
4.7 Use of terms and definitions for disability and disabled person in the UK
The UK’s Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) of 1995 defines “disability” and “disabled
person” as “a person with a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-
term adverse effect on his (or her) ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. .Further,
the UK’s DDA of 1995 uses the terms disability and/or disabled person as they can relate to
user needs addressed by universal design, barrier-free, and DFA. The terms are used quite
broadly and with significant influence.

– 14 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
4.8 Interchangeability of terms

Applying the various terms, previously mentioned, interchangeably is recommended until such

an approach raises ambiguity. Any ambiguity could be resolved, however, through the use of

graphics, drawings, images, and by textually describing those processes that take place in

audio, video and multimedia equipment and systems that yield accessibility / usability
environments. Notably, any graphics, drawings, images or text, however, should not take the

form of labeling, since labeling systems remain outside the scope of the IEC/TC 100.

Should one intend to address accessibility and usability, a person with physical or mental

impairments should be involved in the discussions. Specifically, the impairments should have

a substantial and long-term adverse effect on the individual’s ability to carry out normal day-

to-day activities, as defined in UK DDA, and other laws and policies.
Similarly, from a broader perspective, individuals representing the needs of specific
communities should also be involved. Furthermore, information about how the influence of the
use of certain terms and their potential impact on audio, video and multimedia equipment
functions, features, and standardization potential to reach the broadest possible audience
should be analyzed. The terminology used in the IEC/TC 100 standards activities may
purposefully align with those terms that are used in already existing various accessibility and
usability standards, practices, and guidelines.
5 Organizations and topic areas
5.1 Priorities
Many key priorities for accessibility and usability state:
a) information should be perceivable and understandable;
b) user interfaces should be operable by all, and
c) content should be robust enough to be reliably interpreted in a variety of systems which
may also include the use of assistive technology.
In some countries, meeting identified accessibility requirements, along with the above
priorities allows audio video and multimedia systems and equipment to be used by individuals
with disabilities and those individuals who experience natural degradation due to aging.
5.2 Resources for standards development
Table 1 describes some of the organizations and their accessibility and usability topic areas
that provide resources for audio, video, multimedia systems and equipment standards
development. Notably, for software, product quality requirements and evaluation, a common

format, and usability testing becomes a priority in some cases. ISO/IEC 25062, Software
product quality requirements and evaluation (SQuaRE) – Common Industry Format (CIF) for
usability test reports is an example of a standard for this purpose. Table 2 includes other
examples.
TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 15 –
Table 1 – Organizations and topic areas

Organization Topic areas
Standards development for the digital transport stream including closed
Advanced Television Systems
captioning features and functions, such as various character sets,
Committee (ATSC)
multiple fonts within a window, language options, as well as many
www.atsc.org
closed captioning window commands.

Industry standards development for interoperability between new
Consumer Electronics Association
products and existing devices.

(CEA)
Standards making body accredited by the American National Standards
www.ce.org
Institute (ANSI).
European Telecommunications
Standards Institute (ETSI)
Electrical products with reference to persons with special needs.
http://portal.etsi.org
European Committee for
Electrotechnical Standardization
Voluntary electrotechnical standards that help develop the Single
(CENELEC)
European Market/European Economic Area for electrical and electronic
http://cenelec.eu/Cenelec/About+Cen goods and services removing barriers to trade, creating new markets,
elec/default.htm and cutting compliance costs.

Accessibility considerations for persons with disabilities.
ISO/IEC JTC1 Special Working
Group on Accessibility (SWG-A)
This Special Working Group developed technical reports on
accessibility, including the technical report on user needs which IEC
http://isotc.iso.org/livelink
(ISO/IEC 29138-1) paraphrases.
Standardization of basic characteristics, test methods and other related
items, excluding such interfaces, communication interfaces and
ISO/IEC JTC1 SC28
protocols, of office equipment and products such as printers, copying
http://isotc.iso.org/livelink
equipments, digital scanners, facsimile equipment and systems
composed of combinations of office equipment.
ISO/IEC JTC1/SC35
http://isotc.iso/org/livelink
Working Groups follow:
WG1 Keyboards and input interfaces
WG2 Graphical user interface and
interaction
WG4 User interfaces for mobile User-system interfaces between users (including people with special
devices needs) and systems encompassing input and output devices in
information technology environments, with a priority of meeting the
WG5 Cultural and linguistic
JTC1 requirements for cultural and linguistic adaptability.
adaptability
WG6 User Interface Accessibility
WG7 User interfaces object, actions

and attributes
WG8 User interfaces for remote
interactions
ISO/Technical Committee (TC)159
Ergonomics
http://isotc.iso/org/livelink
Working Groups follow:
Guidelines for auditory signals on consumer products, sound pressure
levels of signals in noisy conditions, signs, displays, luminance, and its
SC 4/WG 5 Software ergonomics and
use in assessment of light.
human-computer dialogues
SC 4/WG 6 Human-centred design
processes for interactive systems

– 16 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
Organization Topic areas
Question 4/2 (continuation of Q.3/2): human factors and

telecommunications to address needs of all members of society,

including older people and persons with disabilities, to maximize
the accessibility and usability of telecommunication/ICT services

and products.
Service acceptance, accessibility, and usability through “universal

design” (design of products, environments, programmes and

services to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible,
without the need for adaptation or specialized design). “Universal
design” shall not exclude assistive devices for particular groups of

persons with disabilities where this is needed. (excerpt from

Article 2 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities).
Access for persons with disabilities to new information and
ITU-T Study Group 2 – Operational
communications technologies and systems, including the Internet
aspects of service provision and
(Article 9).
telecommunications management
Design, development, production and distribution of accessible
http://www.itu.int/ITUT/studygroups/c
information and communications technologies and systems at an
om02/area.html
early stage, so that these technologies and systems become
accessible at minimum cost (Article 9).
Human interface, service access and control procedures, feedback,
and tone signal user acceptance.
Voice-assisted user/service dialogue.
Entry of alphabetic information with numeric keypad.
Language issues for voice response.
Symbols and pictograms to assist telecommunication users, including
facilities and services that accommodate people with disabilities,
older people, and children.
Reduced complexity of mobile phones.
Radio communication broadcasting, including vision, sound, multimedia
and data services principally intended for delivery to the general
ITU-R Study Group 6 – Broadcasting
public. Working Party 6A has developed a preliminary draft, new
Service
Recommendation: “Digital Radio Broadcast Service, Captioned
Radio.”
TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 17 –
Organization Topic areas
Performance, perception, and control of communications for maximum

usability in accordance with the principles of inclusive design.

Video standards for sign language and lip reading at very low bit rates

in error prone environments.
Communication equipment interfaces to allow user interface equipment

to be attached by people with varying capabilities and preferences.

Support for talking menus, keyboards, pointing devices, listening and
viewing devices, Braille and voice call control
...

IEC/TR 62678 ®
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TECHNICAL
REPORT
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Audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment activities and
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IEC/TR 62678:2010(E)
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IEC/TR 62678 ®
Edition 1.0 2010-10
TECHNICAL
REPORT
colour
inside
Audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment activities and
considerations related to accessibility and usability

INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
PRICE CODE
ZZ
ICS 33.160.01 ISBN 978-2-88912-205-9
– 2 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
CONTENTS
FOREWORD.4
INTRODUCTION.6
1 Scope.7
2 Normative references .7
3 Terms, definitions and abbreviations .7
3.1 Terms and definitions .7
3.2 Abbreviations .8
4 Applications of terms and definitions .9
4.1 Applications and intentions.9
4.2 Applications of the terms: universal design, barrier-free design, accessibility,
and disability in Japan.10
4.3 Application of the term: barrier-free design in China .12
4.4 User needs and accessibility in the U.S. .12
4.5 Universal design and design-for-all in Germany.13
4.6 French application of the terms usability and accessibility .13
4.7 Use of terms and definitions for disability and disabled person in the UK.13
4.8 Interchangeability of terms .14
5 Organizations and topic areas .14
5.1 Priorities.14
5.2 Resources for standards development.14
6 Completed standards, technical reports, and projects .19
6.1 Compilation .19
6.2 Tabular list .19
7 User needs.21
7.1 A range of user needs extracted from ISO/IEC TR 29138-1:2009 .21
7.2 Tabular list .21
8 Demographics .27
8.1 Population growth .27
8.2 Reports from various nations.27
9 Public policies .27
9.1 Global policy .27
9.2 Domestic policy .27
10 Checklist of accessibility and usability considerations.28
11 Summary.29
11.1 Use of terms and checklist .29
11.2 User needs and scenarios .30
Annex A (informative) UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.31
Annex B (informative) Comments about some IEC TC 100 standards which contain
accessibility considerations.
Annex C (informative) Research projects in Europe .34
Bibliography.40

Figure 1 – People and their particular user needs .

TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 3 –
Table 1 – Organizations and topic areas .15
Table 2 – Completed standards, technical reports, and projects.19
Table 3 – User needs (from ISO/IEC TR 29138-1:2009).22
Table 4 – Checklist of accessibility and usability considerations .29

– 4 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________
AUDIO, VIDEO AND MULTIMEDIA SYSTEMS AND EQUIPMENT
ACTIVITIES AND CONSIDERATIONS RELATED TO
ACCESSIBILITY AND USABILITY
FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising
all national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote
international co-operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To
this end and in addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications,
Technical Reports, Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as “IEC
Publication(s)”). Their preparation is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested
in the subject dealt with may participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and non-
governmental organizations liaising with the IEC also participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates closely
with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by
agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all
interested IEC National Committees.
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6) All users should ensure that they have the latest edition of this publication.
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8) Attention is drawn to the Normative references cited in this publication. Use of the referenced publications is
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9) Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this IEC Publication may be the subject of
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The main task of IEC technical committees is to prepare International Standards. However, a
technical committee may propose the publication of a technical report when it has collected
data of a different kind from that which is normally published as an International Standard, for
example "state of the art".
IEC 62678, which is a technical report, has been prepared by IEC technical committee 100:
Audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment.
The text of this technical report is based on the following documents:
Enquiry draft Report on voting
100/1688/DTR 100/1737/RVC
Full information on the voting for the approval of this technical report can be found in the
report on voting indicated in the above table.

TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 5 –
This publication has been drafted in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.
The committee has decided that the contents of this publication will remain unchanged until
the stability date indicated on the IEC web site under "http://webstore.iec.ch" in the data
related to the specific publication. At this date, the publication will be
• reconfirmed,
• withdrawn,
• replaced by a revised edition, or
• amended.
A bilingual version of this publication may be issued at a later date.

IMPORTANT – The 'colour inside' logo on the cover page of this publication indicates
that it contains colours which are considered to be useful for the correct
understanding of its contents. Users should therefore print this document using a
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– 6 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
INTRODUCTION
With an objective to research, review, and consider accessibility and usability and to start the
project, a survey was designed and distributed to the IEC TC100 P-members to obtain
information about the related issues, public policies, and activities. In April 2008, the survey
results were reported to the AGS (Bangkok, Thailand) and in November, 2008 the first in-
person meeting of the Project Team was held in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Subsequently, four global teleconferences, numerous electronic mail exchanges, and use of
the IEC on-line Collaboration Tools located at www.iec.ch occurred. The Project Team also
held an in-person meeting in Tel Aviv, Israel in October 2009. As a result of these sessions,
the Project Team produced this TR which attempts to explain the possible relevance of
accessibility and usability to the IEC TC100 programme of work. Every aspect of this TR may
or may not be appropriate for all IEC TC100 projects and / or participants. Likewise, this TR
may or may not address considerations for product designers. However, this TR does provide
information to assist the IEC TC100 standards experts in their accessibility and usability
research, review, and consideration.
Clause 2 (Normative references) includes those documents referenced in the main body of
this TR with the exception of Table 2. This document is numbered with other documents of the
Project Team, 002-012, dated 03/31/10.
This TR extracts and applies the user needs published in the ISO/IEC TR 29138-1,
Information Technology-Accessibility considerations for people with disabilities – Part 1: User
needs summary, paraphrased and extracted with permission.
This TR contains four informative annexes:
a) Annex A on the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
(paraphrased and extracted with permission),
b) Annex B which comments on some IEC TC100 standards which contain accessibility
considerations,
c) Annex C on research projects in Europe.
Every effort was made to include resources that are publicly accessible.

TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 7 –
AUDIO, VIDEO AND MULTIMEDIA SYSTEMS AND EQUIPMENT
ACTIVITIES AND CONSIDERATIONS RELATED TO
ACCESSIBILITY AND USABILITY
1 Scope
This Technical Report (TR) provides information on accessibility and usability terms,
activities, completed and ongoing standards, technical reports, projects, and specifies user
needs that may or may not apply to audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment.
Comments about demographics and public policies are included. A checklist of accessibility
and usability considerations is also included. Industry experts may or may not apply this
information when they evaluate opportunities to integrate support for accessibility and
usability in their work.
2 Normative references
The following referenced documents are indispensable for the application of this document.
For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For undated references, the latest edition
of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO/IEC 25062:2006, Software product quality requirements and evaluation (SQuaRE) –
Common Industry Format (CIF) for usability test reports
ISO/IEC TR 29138-1:2009, Information technology – Accessibility considerations for people
with disabilities – Part 1: User needs summary
3 Terms, definitions and abbreviations
3.1 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the following terms and definitions apply.
3.1.1
accessibility
degree to which a product (e.g., device, service, and environment) is accessible by as many
people as possible
NOTE Accessibility can be viewed as the "ability to access" the functionality, and possible benefit, of some
system or entity. Accessibility is often used to focus on people with disabilities and their right of access to entities,
often through use of assistive technology. Several definitions of accessibility refer directly to access-based
individual rights laws and regulations. Products or services designed to meet these regulations are often termed
“Easy Access” or “Accessible”. See: www.wikipedia.org
3.1.2
adaptive design
interoperability with assistive technology
NOTE See ISO/IEC Guide 71.
3.1.3
assistive technology
designates assistive, adaptive, and rehabilitative devices designed to enable use by people
with disabilities or to enhance usability

– 8 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
3.1.4
barrier-free design
design without barriers for individuals with disabilities
3.1.5
design-for-all
DFA
design and development of products and / or services with the aim that, regardless of age,
gender, capabilities, or cultural background, everyone can easily use and access a product
and / or service
3.1.6
disability
any restriction or lack (resulting from an impairment) of ability to perform an activity in the
manner or within the range considered normal for a human being
NOTE See World Health Organization (WHO), www.who.int/en/
3.1.7
eAccessibility
access to mainstream information and communication technology (ICT) and audio video (AV)
products and services by the widest number of people in accordance with design-for-all (DFA)
NOTE See European Association for the Co-ordination of Consumer Representation in Standardisation (ANEC)
also described as the “European consumer voice in standardisation” and the European Disability Forum (EDF).
3.1.8
universal design
design for usability by the widest range of users based on their sensory, physical, and
cognitive abilities
3.1.9
usability
extent to which a product can be used by specified users to achieve specified goals with
effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction in a specified context of use
NOTE See ISO 9241-11.
3.1.10
user accessibility need
user need
requirements of a product or its environment of use that improves accessibility to the system
for users whose abilities are reduced through environmental factors, injury, disability, or
natural degradation from aging
NOTE See ISO/IEC TR 29138-2: 2009.
3.2 Abbreviations
For the purposes of this document, the following abbreviations apply.
ADA Americans with Disabilities Act
ANEC European Association for the Co-ordination of Consumer Representation
in Standardisation
ASTC Advanced Television Systems Committee
AT Assistive Technology
CFR Code of Federal Regulations

TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 9 –
CIF Common Industry Format
dB decibel
DDA Disability Discrimination Act
DFA Design-For-All
EC European Commission
EU European Union
FY Fiscal Year
ICT Information and Communication Technology
ISO International Standards Organization
ITU International Telecommunication Union
ITU-T ITU Telecommunication Sector
JIS Japanese Industrial Standard
JISC Japanese Industrial Standards Committee
JCA-AHF Joint Coordination Activity on Accessibility and Human Factors
MEAC Measuring Progress of E-Accessibility in Europe
METI Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry
MIC Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications
MLIT Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism
NWIP New Work Item Proposal
SQuaRE Software product quality requirements and evaluation
SWG-A Special Working Group on Accessibilty (of the ISO/IEC Joint Technical
Committee One, JTC1)
TA Technical Area
TR Technical Report
TRS Telecommunications Relay Service
VDT Visual Display Terminal
UK United Kingdom
UN United Nations
U.S. United States of America
USC United States Code
U.S.FCC U.S. Federal Communications Commission
W3C World Wide Web Consortium
WHO World Health Organization
WG Working Group
4 Applications of terms and definitions
4.1 Applications and intentions
Although the application of terms and definitions related to accessibility and usability may
differ, often the meaning is the same: i.e. to reach as many people as possible. See Figure 1
which depicts the importance of the human aspect in accessibility / usability of terms and
definitions.
– 10 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
Among the participants of a survey, designed and distributed to obtain information about
accessibility and usability issues, public policies and activities, Japan, China, the U.S.,
Germany, France and the UK described their use of terms and definitions. They stated that
individuals attempting to apply terms and definitions are also encouraged to research national
policies. IEC/TC 100 addresses many areas of audio, video and multimedia equipment
standardization. As the experts choose to consider the terminology for accessibility and
usability, they may use the “Checklist of accessibility and usability considerations” in Clause
11 of this TR.
universal
design
/
barrier-free
People and
their specific
and / or
particular
user need(s)
universal accessibility
design /
/ usability
design-for-all
(DFA)
IEC  2309/10
NOTE People and their specific and/or particular user need(s) are, figuratively, placed in the center of
terminology that expresses the intention to meet specific or particular user needs.
Figure 1 – People and their particular user needs
4.2 Applications of the terms: universal design, barrier-free design, accessibility, and
disability in Japan
The terms “universal design” and “barrier-free” are used in Japan to describe technology,
buildings, and other physical infrastructures. Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS) X 8341
applies terms that may assist audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment standards
designers who address individuals with disabilities or individuals who are experiencing natural
degradation typically due to aging. JIS X 8341 provides information on ways to improve
accessibility, required when (primarily) elderly persons, persons with disabilities and those
with temporary disabilities use office equipment. The standard gives information concerning
the usability aspects when planning, developing and designing office equipment. In this case,
office equipment refers to copying machines, multifunction devices, and page printers that are
used in office environments.
TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 11 –
In Japan, the term “accessibility" is used to communicate a few concepts with regard to
information. Specifically, “accessibility” in Japan is used to communicate the concepts of
accessible, usable, and useful information. Generally, the term is used to communicate where
“the user can use equipment and services smoothly”. The previous text includes an informal
translation of the definition for the term “accessibility”.
NOTE 1 See Barrier-Free, Universal Design Promotion Outline of Japan’s Cabinet Office.
NOTE 2 See Japan’s Info-Communication Access Council.
The term “accessibility” is defined in Japan for the information technology sector by the
Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) to address all people including, elderly
and disabled persons so they can use information technology products, services and facilities
without difficulty.
NOTE 3 Source for documents published in the Japanese: http://www.soumu.go.jp/s-news/2005/051215_1.html
For the terms “accessibility” and “usability” used with respect to equipment and services the
JIS Z 8071 standard may be followed. The scope of JIS Z 8071 begins as follows: “This guide
provides guidance to writers of relevant standards on how to take into account the needs of
older persons and persons with disabilities. Whilst recognizing that some people with very
extensive and complex disabilities may have requirements beyond the level addressed in this
Guide, a very large number of people have minor impairments which can be easily addressed
by relatively small changes of approach in standards, thereby increasing the market for the
product or service”.
The scope of JIS Z 8071 continues, as follows “this Guide aims to inform, increase
understanding and raise awareness about how human abilities impact on the usability of
products, services and environments”. As stated in the scope, JIS Z 8071 aims to outline the
relationship between the requirements in standards and the accessibility and usability of
products and services and to raise awareness about the benefits of adopting accessible
design principles in terms of wider markets. The scope explains that the Guide applies to
products, services and environments encountered in all aspects of daily life and intended for
the consumer market and the workplace.
According to the Japanese “Physical Disability Welfare Act (informal translation)”, enacted in
1951, which was partially amended to define disability for people of 18 years of age and older,
the term “disability” consists of various types of disabilities including sight, hearing, and motor
skills. Glaucoma, total blindness, and amblyopic conditions are also included. Notably, colour-
blindness, conditions of cataract, and the degradation of sight due to aging are not included.
Therefore, an all-encompassing definition of “disability” is not intended. The concept of a
hearing disability, in Japan, addresses a specific hearing disability of 70 decibel (dB) and
above, but does not include degradation due to aging which results in hearing loss of sounds
at higher frequencies.
The participants in the IEC/TC 100 from the Japanese National Committee comment that as
the AV products decrease in their size and the functions of such products change, improved
usability and added convenience results for those individuals experiencing natural
degradation due to aging or due to disabilities. Reportedly, some Japanese industries share a
common concept surrounding the improvement of usability. That is, the concept of "universal
design" which has applications in various industrial areas and is useful for communication
purposes. According to the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI),
regardless of one’s culture, language, nationality, age, gender, or disability, “universal design”
expresses how one can use products, facilities, and information. The “universal design”
concept, in Japan, remains general and widely used for industrial products and product
features.
NOTE 4 See http://www.meti.go.jp/report/data/g00828bj.html.
NOTE 5 See http://www.meti.go.jp/report/downloadfiles/g10522cj.pdf.

– 12 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
In Japan, “barrier free design” applies to public transportation infrastructure and buildings.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) promotes “barrier free” to
communicate the concept that, regardless of disability, age, sex, and race, easy operation
including life-style and environment are provided.
NOTE 6 See http://www.mlit.go.jp/sogoseisaku/barrierfree/index.html
NOTE 7 See http://www.mlit.go.jp/sogoseisaku/barrier/mokuji_.html
NOTE 8 See http://www.mlit.go.jp/kisha/kisha05/01/010711_.html
Japan’s “Law for accessible transportation and facilities” (known as the ‘New Barrier-Free
Law’) communicates barrier-free design. Japan’s MLIT promulgates this law as the position of
the “General Principles of Universal Design Policy.”
NOTE 9 See http://www.mlit.go.jp/kisha/kisha05/01/010711/04.pdf
Although the physical infrastructure, including buildings, remains out of the scope of this TR,
mentioning this aspect assists in describing the overall trend of helping people. Other data
include the FY 2005 reports that the awareness of universal design was 64,3 % in Japan and
the awareness of barrier-free was 93,8 %.
NOTE 10 See “The Japanese People’s Awareness Survey for Promoting Barrier-free Society (informal translation
of the survey name),” December 2005 the Cabinet Office.
4.3 Application of the term: barrier-free design in China
In China, “barrier-free design” applies to public transportation infrastructure and buildings.
The term is promoted for the transportation and facility sector by the Ministry of Housing and
Urban-Rural development and the Ministry of Railways.
The barrier-free design concept in China applies regardless of disability, age, sex and race.
“Barrier- free design” is a concept which provides easy operation. This includes aspects of
life-style and environment.
4.4 User needs and accessibility in the U.S.
In the U.S., the “user needs” of individuals with disabilities are discussed within the context of
information and communication technology (ICT) and the requirements to assist individuals
with disabilities. Generally, “good usability” occurs when the user experiences improved
usability.
Accessibility in the U.S., as codified in Federal regulations, addresses the features and functions that
support the use of a device by as many people as possible. The Americans with Disabilities Act
(ADA) provides for an individual who is considered to have a "disability" if that person has a
physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, has a
record of such impairment, or is regarded as having such impairment. The Electronic
Technology Accessibility Standards (Section 508) and the Closed Captioning of Video
Programming, 47 Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.), Section 79.1, and the Section 255,
Manufacturers of Equipment, of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 set forth accessibility
provisions. New, draft Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Standards and
Guidelines, released for public comment in March 2010, are under consideration for Section
508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (29 U.S.C. 794d).
NOTE 1 See www.access-board.gov
NOTE 2 See www.fcc.gov
TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 13 –
4.5 Universal design and design-for-all in Germany
In Germany, the terms “universal design” and “design-for-all (DFA)” are used synonymously
and interchangeably. These terms are used to convey a goal of reaching the widest possible
range of users based on their sensory, physical and cognitive abilities.
In Germany, persons with disabilities are sometimes described as a heterogeneous group
which, in some cases, need special services or products. Therefore, according to the
European Association for the Co-ordination of Consumer Representation in Standardisation
(ANEC), also known as “The European consumer voice in standardisation,” the importance of
supporting the interoperability between assistive and mainstream technologies remains.
For the purpose of this Technical Report, Germany’s observations include the point that
improvements in audio video usability will not only benefit individuals with disabilities, but will
also assist the growing number of people who are aging. Germany’s eInclusion activities,
following the policies of the EU Commission and the ratification of the UN Convention of the
Rights of Persons with Disabilities, add to a high awareness of this nation’s accessibility. In
Germany, usability remains a competitive advantage and the implementation remains
voluntary, whereas accessibility is typically mandated by Law.
According to the European Commission, in the Commission’s “eAccessibility” communiqué,
DFA consists of three main strategies:
a) design for most users without modifications;
b) design for easy adaption to different users (e.g., using adjustable interfaces), and
c) design with a view to connect seamlessly to assistive technology devices.
4.6 French application of the terms usability and accessibility
The French practices for large home appliances, sometimes known as “white goods,” address
“usability,” and no issues are anticipated with using the terms “usability” and “accessibility”
interchangeably due to the similarity of their definitions. Usability, however, is an important
element of differentiation for a product choice. The BP X35-074, a guide for good practices,
gives guidance for designers regarding usability. The guide is for white goods. According to
the French National Committee of the IEC/TC 100, the use of terms may or may not present
realistic goals for standards experts if applied to many products that are used by a broad
range of people. The specific concern is that such terms and goals may lead to an unrealistic
design expense related to attempting to address the needs of most users. Therefore, the
French National Committee recommends that a focus on specific user needs remain
important. The French National Committee also recommends that the IEC/TC 100 role in
usability standards is to give a list of desirable improvements and inadvisable design, and
also to give methods of measurement of the level of usability for product designers.
Notably, the French law defines “disability” as everyone with difficulties in everyday activities
due to temporary or permanent symptoms or reduced quality or strength of health. French
regulations impose accessibility for individuals in wheelchairs for public buildings. The
usability of Internet sites is still under study.
4.7 Use of terms and definitions for disability and disabled person in the UK
The UK’s Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) of 1995 defines “disability” and “disabled
person” as “a person with a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-
term adverse effect on his (or her) ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. .Further,
the UK’s DDA of 1995 uses the terms disability and/or disabled person as they can relate to
user needs addressed by universal design, barrier-free, and DFA. The terms are used quite
broadly and with significant influence.

– 14 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
4.8 Interchangeability of terms
Applying the various terms, previously mentioned, interchangeably is recommended until such
an approach raises ambiguity. Any ambiguity could be resolved, however, through the use of
graphics, drawings, images, and by textually describing those processes that take place in
audio, video and multimedia equipment and systems that yield accessibility / usability
environments. Notably, any graphics, drawings, images or text, however, should not take the
form of labeling, since labeling systems remain outside the scope of the IEC/TC 100.
Should one intend to address accessibility and usability, a person with physical or mental
impairments should be involved in the discussions. Specifically, the impairments should have
a substantial and long-term adverse effect on the individual’s ability to carry out normal day-
to-day activities, as defined in UK DDA, and other laws and policies.
Similarly, from a broader perspective, individuals representing the needs of specific
communities should also be involved. Furthermore, information about how the influence of the
use of certain terms and their potential impact on audio, video and multimedia equipment
functions, features, and standardization potential to reach the broadest possible audience
should be analyzed. The terminology used in the IEC/TC 100 standards activities may
purposefully align with those terms that are used in already existing various accessibility and
usability standards, practices, and guidelines.
5 Organizations and topic areas
5.1 Priorities
Many key priorities for accessibility and usability state:
a) information should be perceivable and understandable;
b) user interfaces should be operable by all, and
c) content should be robust enough to be reliably interpreted in a variety of systems which
may also include the use of assistive technology.
In some countries, meeting identified accessibility requirements, along with the above
priorities allows audio video and multimedia systems and equipment to be used by individuals
with disabilities and those individuals who experience natural degradation due to aging.
5.2 Resources for standards development
Table 1 describes some of the organizations and their accessibility and usability topic areas
that provide resources for audio, video, multimedia systems and equipment standards
development. Notably, for software, product quality requirements and evaluation, a common
format, and usability testing becomes a priority in some cases. ISO/IEC 25062, Software
product quality requirements and evaluation (SQuaRE) – Common Industry Format (CIF) for
usability test reports is an example of a standard for this purpose. Table 2 includes other
examples.
TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 15 –
Table 1 – Organizations and topic areas
Organization Topic areas
Standards development for the digital transport stream including closed
Advanced Television Systems
captioning features and functions, such as various character sets,
Committee (ATSC)
multiple fonts within a window, language options, as well as many
www.atsc.org
closed captioning window commands.
Industry standards development for interoperability between new
Consumer Electronics Association
products and existing devices.
(CEA)
Standards making body accredited by the American National Standards
www.ce.org
Institute (ANSI).
European Telecommunications
Standards Institute (ETSI)
Electrical products with reference to persons with special needs.
http://portal.etsi.org
European Committee for
Electrotechnical Standardization
Voluntary electrotechnical standards that help develop the Single
(CENELEC)
European Market/European Economic Area for electrical and electronic
http://cenelec.eu/Cenelec/About+Cen goods and services removing barriers to trade, creating new markets,
elec/default.htm and cutting compliance costs.

Accessibility considerations for persons with disabilities.
ISO/IEC JTC1 Special Working
Group on Accessibility (SWG-A)
This Special Working Group developed technical reports on
accessibility, including the technical report on user needs which IEC
http://isotc.iso.org/livelink
(ISO/IEC 29138-1) paraphrases.
Standardization of basic characteristics, test methods and other related
items, excluding such interfaces, communication interfaces and
ISO/IEC JTC1 SC28
protocols, of office equipment and products such as printers, copying
http://isotc.iso.org/livelink
equipments, digital scanners, facsimile equipment and systems
composed of combinations of office equipment.
ISO/IEC JTC1/SC35
http://isotc.iso/org/livelink
Working Groups follow:
WG1 Keyboards and input interfaces
WG2 Graphical user interface and
interaction
WG4 User interfaces for mobile User-system interfaces between users (including people with special
devices needs) and systems encompassing input and output devices in
information technology environments, with a priority of meeting the
WG5 Cultural and linguistic
JTC1 requirements for cultural and linguistic adaptability.
adaptability
WG6 User Interface Accessibility
WG7 User interfaces object, actions
and attributes
WG8 User interfaces for remote
interactions
ISO/Technical Committee (TC)159
Ergonomics
http://isotc.iso/org/livelink
Working Groups follow:
Guidelines for auditory signals on consumer products, sound pressure
levels of signals in noisy conditions, signs, displays, luminance, and its
SC 4/WG 5 Software ergonomics and
use in assessment of light.
human-computer dialogues
SC 4/WG 6 Human-centred design
processes for interactive systems

– 16 – TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E)
Organization Topic areas
Question 4/2 (continuation of Q.3/2): human factors and
telecommunications to address needs of all members of society,
including older people and persons with disabilities, to maximize
the accessibility and usability of telecommunication/ICT services
and products.
Service acceptance, accessibility, and usability through “universal
design” (design of products, environments, programmes and
services to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible,
without the need for adaptation or specialized design). “Universal
design” shall not exclude assistive devices for particular groups of
persons with disabilities where this is needed. (excerpt from
Article 2 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities).
Access for persons with disabilities to new information and
ITU-T Study Group 2 – Operational
communications technologies and systems, including the Internet
aspects of service provision and
(Article 9).
telecommunications management
Design, development, production and distribution of accessible
http://www.itu.int/ITUT/studygroups/c
information and communications technologies and systems at an
om02/area.html
early stage, so that these technologies and systems become
accessible at minimum cost (Article 9).
Human interface, service access and control procedures, feedback,
and tone signal user acceptance.
Voice-assisted user/service dialogue.
Entry of alphabetic information with numeric keypad.
Language issues for voice response.
Symbols and pictograms to assist telecommunication users, including
facilities and services that accommodate people with disabilities,
older people, and children.
Reduced complexity of mobile phones.
Radio communication broadcasting, including vision, sound, multimedia
and data services principally intended for delivery to the general
ITU-R Study Group 6 – Broadcasting
public. Working Party 6A has developed a preliminary draft, new
Service
Recommendation: “Digital Radio Broadcast Service, Captioned
Radio.”
TR 62678 © IEC:2010(E) – 17 –
Organization Topic areas
Performance, perception, and control of communications for maximum
usability in accordance with the principles of inclusive design.
Video standards for sign language and lip reading at very low bit rates
in error prone environments.
Communication equipment interfaces to allow user interface equipment
to be attached by people with varying capabilities and preferences.
Support for talking menus, keyboards, pointing devices, listening and
viewing devices, Braille and voice call control, text conversation
input and output.
Multimedia services including transformation between different media
forms of the same content to adapt to end-user capabilities.
Automatic: text-to-speech or performed by people, including sign
language interpretation.
User-selectable media, including production, storage, transport,
presentation and logical linking.
Short range wireless accessible services to provide accessible features
ITU-T Study Group 16 – Multimedia on communi
...