Inclusively Telecom

We were joined by Ulrike Haltrich  a Senior Manager at Sony Europe, but who also has a chair role in the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) as the chair of the ETSI Human Factors Technical Committee. We discussed ETSI's work in developing standards for information and communication technologies, including accessibility, and emphasized the societal impact of these standards.

A standards and security perspective on inclusion and accessibility. We were joined by Gill Whitney who works independently with organisations like ANIC, the European consumer group. Her focus is on standards and ensuring accessibility and inclusion. Gill has previously also worked in academia and with the Royal National Institute for Blind People (RNIB) in the UK so has seen the inclusion topic from different angles. In keeping with Inclusively looking to broaden all of our minds, this was an eye opener for us all.

A city is smart only if its services, both digital and physical, are accessible to everybody. How can we achieve this goal? Chris and I spoke with Frazer McKimm, Director at New Way Networks, about how inclusivity in smart city infrastructure should not be an add-on feature, but rather be embedded in the design and deployment of services.

We discussed the roles of public and private ecosystem entities, regulation, and technology, and service requirements for technology to reduce digital, social, and physical barriers, thereby improving the quality of life for all in the cities of the future, starting today.

Inclusively is hosted by Chris Lewis, Lewis Insights, and Monica Paolini, Senza Fili

Following his success organising the London 2012 Paralympics, Chris Holmes, Member of the UK House of Lords, now uses his role in the UK House of Lords to focus on the opportunities that all of these so-called new technologies bring to the table, but, always with the golden thread of inclusion running through everything. Some surprising parallels with the broader telecoms industry come out alongside the development of paralympic sport and accessibility and inclusion.

Nick Hunn, a physicist with extensive experience in Bluetooth technology, discusses audio accessibility and inclusion. He highlights the shift from traditional telecoil-based hearing aids to advanced technologies that benefit everyone, not just those with hearing impairments. The new Bluetooth Auracast standard is a game-changer, enabling easy access to audio broadcasts and enhancing experiences in venues such as theaters and concerts.

Hunn emphasizes the importance of optimizing audio quality for all hearing levels and environments. He notes the trend of integrating hearing aid capabilities into consumer electronics, making them more accessible and reducing stigma. The discussion touches on the potential of audio technology to transform how we consume and interact with sound, including the use of smart devices and AI to enhance experiences.

The conversation also explores the challenges of background noise and the need for better audio algorithms. Hunn envisions a future where audio plays a more central role in our digital lives, with technology becoming more affordable and integrated into everyday experiences. The potential of voice and sound to provide information and guidance is highlighted, suggesting a shift towards more immersive and inclusive communication technologies.

You can find out more about Inclusively at https://senzafili.com/inclusively_in_telecom/

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Larry Goldberg, a media and technology accessibility consultant, shares his journey from public broadcasting to consulting, focusing on accessibility and inclusion. He introduced captioning and audio description at WGBH in Boston and later worked on accessibility initiatives at Yahoo. Larry emphasizes the importance of captions and audio descriptions, noting their widespread adoption and benefits for broader audiences.

He discusses the evolution of technologies, such as Auracast, that offers low-cost, high-quality audio solutions for venues. Larry highlights the potential of AI in accessibility, though he acknowledges the challenges of regulating AI due to its complexity. He advocates for inclusive design, emphasizing that good design inherently includes accessibility.

Larry also explores the role of haptic feedback in enhancing experiences for the visually impaired and the potential of AI to transform content delivery. He stresses the need for companies to prioritize accessibility and inclusivity in their products and services, aiming for a more customer-friendly and human-centric approach.

You can find out more about Inclusively at https://senzafili.com/inclusively_in_telecom/

Send us feedback, questions, and suggestions for guests and topics at [email protected] 

You can subscribe to the podcast on the platform of your choice, including Apple and Spotify

Chris McGinley, a Senior Research Fellow at the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design, part of the Royal College of Art a wholly post graduate art and design institute in London, joined us for this Inclusively podcast. Chris is a Senior Research Fellow. He focuses on the ageing market and diverse user needs in design, but the Centre as a whole looks more broadly at Inclusive Design. In fact, the term Inclusive Design was coined by the original Director of the Centre, Roger Coleman, some thirty years ago. As you might suspect, this is not a technology-centric discussion!

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Neil Milliken and Antonio Santos work for Atos, the global IT Digital Transformation & IT Services Organisation. For them, accessibility and inclusion cut across all domains. Neil and Antonio are also the founders of the AXSChat podcast, which has been running for over ten years and delivers regular content looking at the many aspects of accessibility and Inclusion. Their perspective is one based on delivering advice both within the Atos Group but also to their many clients.

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The elderly population is exploding, and so are their needs and desire to live a fulfilling and independent life and have easy and effective access to healthcare. Wi-Fi and cellular can be game-changing through sensing and home-based services.

I talked to Ronnie Chang, Marketing Director Fixed and Multimedia Terminals at ZTE, about a set of applications and services that are commercially deployed in China and that span a large ecosystem that includes vendors, application developers and health-care providers, in addition to the elderly population and their families.

You can watch a demo of the solution here.

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Jane Hatton started Evenbreak to help employers to improve the recruitment of disabled people, not as a way to comply with regulation, but as an imperative to improve the quality of the workforce, and as an approach that helps everybody—enterprises, disabled people and everybody else. We deep-dived into the impact of AI in recruitment, the value of diversity in the workplace, and how telecom compares to other sectors.

Find out more about Inclusively Telecom and live Inclusively events here