In a somewhat novel application of the Americans with Disabilities Act, a gamer with a visual impairment is suing Sony for failing to make its online games accessible to people with disabilities. I’m assuming that this individual is basing his claim on Title III of the ADA, which covers places of public accommodations. The suit raises an interesting question: are massively-multiplayer games like World of Warcraft and EVE Online places of public accommodations under the ADA, just like movie theaters, restaurants, or museums? While not binding precedent, Target settled a similar suit last year regarding the accessibility of its retail website. The rise of social gaming may expand the focus of accessibility advocates beyond websites to any application that makes itself available via the digital commons.
I can’t imagine it would cost Sony much additional expense to add some basic accessibility features to its online games and such investments might pay dividends in terms of more customers. Sony may want to emulate Warcraft developer Blizzard, which a gained a reputation for making its games accessible to gamers with a range of disabilities. A little too accessible, judging from the number of hours I’ve spent playing the damn thing.
It is something we are dealing with now. It is so easy to make things accessible, why not do it? Luckily we have a vendor we will be using who likes to go above and beyond what is required according to accessibility standards. Wouldn’t it be great if everyone did?