18 May 2007

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has released a working draft of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0.

Published on May 17th by the WCAG working group, the new draft ultimately aims to make the web a more accessible place for users with visual impairments and disabilities.

The working group also states that accessibility improvements will be of benefit to older individuals and indeed the "vast majority of users".

With the new document, the W3C is introducing new terminology into the industry, incorporating terms such as "accessibility supported", "advisory techniques" and "programmatically determined", along with a re-evaluation of the term "web page".

Although the working group states that the new draft goes some way towards addressing the problems faced by disabled web users, the body concedes that "there is a need for more research and development in this important area".

In a recent interview for the Web Standards Project, Director of the Web Accessibility Initiative Judy Brewer said that the WCAG 2.0 will be a "substantial step forward" in the field.

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