(EU) 2019/882 Original text

Directive (EU) 2019/882 of the European Parliament and Council

April 17th, 2019

Requirements for auxiliary functions of products and services

(Text related to EEA)

The European Parliament and the Council of the European Union,

Considering the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, particularly Article 114,

Considering the proposal of the European Commission,

After submitting the draft legislative bill to the parliaments of various countries,

Considering the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee (1),

Acting according to the ordinary legislative procedure (2),

But

(1) The purpose of this directive is to promote the normal operation of the internal market by approaching the laws, regulations, and administrative provisions of member states regarding accessibility requirements for certain products and services, particularly by eliminating and preventing barriers to the free flow of certain accessibility products and services caused by different accessibility requirements of member states. This will increase the availability of products and services available in the internal market and improve the accessibility of relevant information.

(2) The demand for accessible products and services is high, and it is expected that the number of people with disabilities will significantly increase. A more accessible environment for products and services can create a more inclusive society and promote independent living for people with disabilities. In this case, it should be remembered that the disability prevalence rate among EU women is higher than that of men.

(3) This directive defines persons with disabilities based on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD) adopted on December 13, 2006. The alliance became a party to the convention on January 21, 2011, and all member states have ratified the convention. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities states that persons with disabilities "include those who suffer from long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory disabilities that, when interacting with various disabilities, may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others". This directive promotes full and effective equal participation by improving access to mainstream products and services that meet the special needs of people with disabilities through their initial design or subsequent adjustments.

(4) People with limited functionality, such as the elderly, pregnant women, or those traveling with luggage, will also benefit from this instruction. The concept of "functionally restricted persons" referred to in this directive includes individuals who suffer from any physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairment, age-related impairment, or other permanent or temporary reasons related to human functioning, which interact with various obstacles to reduce their opportunities to access products and services, resulting in a need for these products and services to meet their specific needs.

(5) There are differences in laws, regulations, and administrative provisions among member states regarding the accessibility of products and services for people with disabilities, which create barriers to the free flow of products and services and distort effective competition in the internal market. For certain products and services, these differences may increase in the European Union after the implementation of the United Nations CRPD. Economic operators, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), are particularly affected by these barriers.

(6) Due to differences in accessibility requirements among countries, individual professionals, especially small and medium-sized enterprises and micro enterprises, are not encouraged to enter commercial activities outside their own markets. The accessibility requirements set by member states at the national, regional, or local level currently vary in terms of coverage and level of detail. These differences have a negative impact on competitiveness and growth, as developing and marketing accessible products and services for each country's market incurs additional costs.

(7) Due to limited competition among suppliers, consumers of accessible products and services, as well as assistive technologies, face high prices. The fragmentation between national regulations reduces the potential benefits of sharing experiences with domestic and international peers in response to social and technological development.

(8) Therefore, similar national measures at the EU level are necessary for the normal operation of the internal market, in order to end the fragmentation of accessible product and service markets, create economies of scale, promote cross-border trade and liquidity, and help economic operators focus resources on innovation rather than using these resources to pay for the scattered legislation across the EU.

(9) The implementation of Directive 2014/33/EU (3) of the European Parliament and the Council on elevators and Regulation (EC) No 661/2009 of the European Parliament and the Council (4) in the field of transportation has demonstrated the benefits of coordinating accessibility requirements in the internal market.

(10) In Declaration No. 22 on Persons with Disabilities attached to the Amsterdam Treaty, the Conference of Government Representatives of Member States agreed that EU institutions should take into account the needs of persons with disabilities when formulating measures in accordance with Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).

(11) The overall goal of the European Commission's "European Digital Single Market Strategy" on May 6, 2015 is to provide sustainable economic and social benefits through an interconnected digital single market, thereby promoting trade and employment within the EU. EU consumers still cannot enjoy all the benefits of prices and choices that the single market can offer, as cross-border online transactions are still very limited. Fragmentation also limits the demand for cross-border e-commerce transactions. Coordinated action is also needed to ensure that people with disabilities have full access to electronic content, electronic communication services, and audiovisual media services. Therefore, it is necessary to coordinate the accessibility requirements of the entire digital single market and ensure that all EU citizens, regardless of their abilities, can enjoy its benefits.

(12) Since the EU became a party to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, its provisions have become an integral part of the EU legal order, binding on EU institutions and their member states.

(13) The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities requires its contracting parties to take appropriate measures to ensure that persons with disabilities have access to the physical environment, transportation, information and communication, including information and communication technologies and systems, as well as other facilities and services open or provided to the public in urban and rural areas on an equal basis with others. The United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has identified the need to create a legislative framework that includes specific, enforceable, and time bound benchmarks to monitor the gradual implementation of accessibility.

(14) The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities calls on its contracting parties to conduct or promote research and development, and to facilitate the provision and use of new technologies applicable to persons with disabilities, including information and communication technologies, mobility aids, devices, and assistive technologies. The United Nations CRPD also calls for prioritizing affordable technology.

(15) The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities takes effect in the legal orders of member states and requires additional national regulations on accessibility of products and services. If no action is taken by the International Telecommunication Union, these provisions will further increase the differences between the laws, regulations, and administrative provisions of member states.

(16) Therefore, it is necessary to promote the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in the European Union by providing common alliance rules. This directive also supports member states in their efforts to fulfill their national commitments in a coordinated manner, as well as fulfilling their obligations regarding accessibility in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

(17) The communication from the committee on November 15, 2010, titled "European Disability Strategy 2010-2020- Reaffirmed Commitment to an Accessible Europe", identified accessibility as one of the eight action areas in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, indicating that it is a fundamental prerequisite for participation in society and aimed at ensuring accessibility of products and services.

(18) The determination of products and services within the scope of this directive is based on a screening process conducted during the preparation of impact assessments, which identifies products and services related to persons with disabilities, and Member States have adopted or may adopt different national accessibility requirements that would disrupt the functioning of the internal market.

(19) In order to ensure the accessibility of services within the scope of this directive, products used to provide services for consumers to interact with should also be required to comply with the applicable accessibility requirements of this directive.

(20) Even if a service or part of a service is subcontracted to a third party, the accessibility of the service should not be affected, and the service provider should comply with the obligations of this directive. Service providers should also ensure appropriate and ongoing training for their employees to ensure they understand how to use accessible products and services. This training should cover issues such as information provision, consultation, and advertising.

(21) Accessibility requirements should be introduced in a way that minimizes the burden on economic operators and member states.

(22) It is necessary to establish accessibility requirements for products and services within the scope of this directive to ensure their free circulation in the internal market.

(23) The instruction should make functional accessibility requirements mandatory and should be developed based on general objectives. These requirements should be precise enough to create legally binding obligations and detailed enough to assess compliance, to ensure good functioning of the internal market for the products and services covered by this directive, and to allow for a certain degree of flexibility to allow for innovation.

(24) This instruction contains many functional performance standards related to the operation mode of products and services. These standards are not intended as a general alternative to the accessibility requirements of this directive, but should only be used in very specific circumstances. When the accessibility requirements of this directive do not involve one or more specific functions or features, these standards should apply to the specific functions or features of the product or service, making it easy to access. In addition, if the auxiliary function requirements include specific technical requirements and alternative technical solutions are provided in the product or service for these technical requirements, the alternative technical solutions should still comply with the relevant auxiliary function requirements and should achieve equivalent or enhanced auxiliary functions by applying relevant functional performance standards.

(25) The instruction should cover consumer general-purpose computer hardware systems. In order for these systems to execute in an accessible manner, their operating systems should also be accessible. The characteristic of this computer hardware system is its versatile nature and the ability to perform the most common computing tasks requested by consumers using appropriate software, and is designed to be done by consumers. Personal computers, including desktops, laptops, smartphones, and tablets, are examples of such computer hardware systems. Specialized computers embedded in consumer electronic products do not constitute consumer grade general-purpose computer hardware systems. This instruction should not separately cover individual components with specific functions that are currently or may be used in such systems, such as motherboards or memory chips.

(26) This directive should also cover payment terminals, including their hardware and software, as well as certain interactive self-service terminals specifically designed to provide the services covered by this directive, including their hardware and software, such as automated teller machines; Ticket vending machines that issue physical tickets are allowed to use services such as travel ticket vending machines; Queuing ticket machines in bank offices; Boarding aircraft; And interactive self-service terminals that provide information, including interactive information screens.

However, certain interactive self-service terminals that provide information should be excluded from the scope of this directive, as these terminals form part of vehicles, aircraft, ships, or locomotives that are not covered by this directive.

(28) The directive should also cover electronic communication services, including emergency communications as defined in Directive (EU) 2018/1972 of the European Parliament and of the Council. At present, the measures taken by member states to provide accessible facilities for people with disabilities vary and have not been coordinated throughout the internal market. Ensuring the application of the same accessibility requirements throughout the EU will bring economies of scale to economic operators active in multiple member states and promote effective accessibility for people with disabilities when traveling between member states. In order to make electronic communication services, including emergency communication, easily accessible, providers should provide real-time text and comprehensive dialogue services through video, in addition to voice, to ensure synchronization of all these communication methods. In addition to the requirements of this Directive, Member States shall also determine relay service providers available for use by persons with disabilities in accordance with Directive (EU) 2018/1972.

(29) This directive coordinates the accessibility requirements for electronic communication services and related products, and supplements Directive (EU) 2018/1972, which sets equal access and selection requirements for end-users with disabilities. Directive (EU) 2018/1972 also stipulates the requirements for affordability of Internet access and voice communication, as well as affordability and availability of services for relevant terminal devices, specific devices and consumers with disabilities under the obligation of universal service.

(30) The instruction should also cover consumer terminal devices with interactive computing capabilities, which are expected to be primarily used for accessing electronic communication services. For the purposes of this directive, the device shall be deemed to include equipment used as part of the setup for accessing electronic communication services, such as routers or modems.

(31) For the purposes of this directive, access to audiovisual media services shall mean that access to audiovisual content is accessible and that mechanisms are in place to allow disabled users to use their assistive technologies. The services that provide access to audiovisual media services may include websites, online applications, set-top box based applications, downloadable applications, mobile device based services (including mobile applications and related media players), and connected television services. Directive 2010/13/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council (6) regulates the accessibility of audiovisual media services, except for the accessibility of electronic program guides (EPGs), which are included in the definition of services providing access to audiovisual media services to which this Directive applies.

(32) In terms of air, bus, railway, and water passenger services, this directive should cover the transportation service information required for disabled passengers to travel, including providing real-time travel information through websites, mobile device based services, interactive information screens, and interactive self-service terminals. This may include information about the service provider's passenger transport products and services, pre journey information, during journey information, and information provided when services are cancelled or delayed. Other information elements may also include price and promotional information.

(33) This directive should also cover websites, mobile device based services, including mobile applications developed or provided by or on behalf of passenger service operators within the scope of this directive, electronic ticketing services, electronic tickets, and interactive self-service terminals.

(34) The scope of this directive regarding air, bus, railway, and water passenger services should be based on existing departmental legislation related to passenger rights. If this directive does not apply to certain types of transportation services, Member States should encourage service providers to apply the relevant accessibility requirements of this directive.

Directive (EU) 2016/2102 of the European Parliament and of the Council (7) has established the obligation for public sector institutions providing transport services (including urban and suburban transport services as well as regional transport services) to provide their websites. This directive includes exemptions for micro enterprises providing services, including urban and suburban transportation services as well as regional transportation services. In addition, the directive also includes the obligation to ensure that e-commerce websites are accessible. Due to the fact that this directive includes an obligation for the vast majority of private transportation service providers to provide website accessibility, there is no need to impose further requirements on the websites of urban and suburban transportation service providers, as well as regional transportation service providers, when selling tickets online in this directive.

(36) Certain elements of accessibility requirements, particularly those related to the provision of information specified in this directive, are already included in the field of passenger transport