The European Accessibility Act (EAA) represents a major regulatory milestone in harmonizing accessibility requirements across the European Union, particularly in the domains of digital products and services. While the EAA establishes a common legal framework, its practical impact is strongly shaped by national transposition processes, pre-existing accessibility regulations, enforcement mechanisms, and cultural-administrative contexts within individual European Member States. As a result, the degree to which accessibility has been strengthened, clarified, or effectively implemented varies significantly across countries.
In some countries, well-established accessibility regimes already existed, whereas others relied on fragmented or limited provisions. Understanding these “before” conditions is essential for assessing what has concretely improved through the EAA and where gaps or challenges remain.
This thematic session aims to explore and critically compare the national implementations of the EAA. It focuses on how accessibility was regulated before the EAA, how the directive has been transposed into national law, and what substantive changes can be observed in terms of scope, enforceability, and practical outcomes. By bringing together legal, policy, technical, and socio-political perspectives, the session seeks to foster a deeper understanding of the EAA’s real-world effects and its potential to drive sustainable accessibility improvements across Europe.
Scientific and practice-oriented contributions may address, but are not limited to, the following topics:
- National transposition of the EAA: legal approaches, timelines, and deviations
- Comparative analyses of “before and after” accessibility regulations at national level
- Improvements, limitations, and unintended consequences resulting from EAA implementation
- Enforcement mechanisms, market surveillance, and sanctions in different countries
- The role of standards (e.g. EN 301 549, WCAG) within national implementations
- Impacts of the EAA on industry, public administration, and service providers
- Perspectives of persons with disabilities and advocacy organizations on the effectiveness of national implementations
- Interactions between the EAA and other regulatory frameworks (e.g. public procurement, anti-discrimination law)
- Open challenges, best practices, and recommendations for future policy development and harmonization
This session seeks to contribute to an evidence-based and comparative understanding of the European Accessibility Act, highlighting both progress and remaining challenges in achieving accessible products and services across Europe.
Chairs
Melanie Schaur, Johannes Kepler University Linz
Reinhard Koutny, Johannes Kepler University Linz