What really matters in digital accessibility

Making platforms, portals and specialised applications accessible and compliant

Digital accessibility is a key requirement in customised software development – not only in the public sector, but increasingly also in regulated industries and e-commerce. Anyone developing portals, platforms or specialised applications must embed accessibility criteria in the architecture and design. This ensures that accessible user experiences do not lead to reworking, but are an integral part of the solution.

Clear specifications through legislation and standards

The European Accessibility Act (EAA) will make digital accessibility mandatory in many sectors from 2025. In addition to public administration, companies in retail, transport, finance and online services will also be obliged to implement it. In Germany, the BITV 2.0 regulations also apply to public bodies.

The aim is to ensure non-discriminatory access to digital services – regardless of visual, hearing, motor or cognitive impairments. The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.1) are particularly important for implementation. They define requirements in the areas of perceptibility, usability, comprehensibility and robustness.

Implementing accessibility requirements in customised software

Digital accessibility does not start with a plugin, but with structured processes: Accessibility must be taken into account throughout the requirements definition, design systems, software architecture and front-end development.

Important technical principles:

• Clean semantics in the markup, supplemented by ARIA roles and attributes
• Keyboard operability and comprehensible focus guidance in complex UI components
• Screen reader compatibility even with dynamic content (e.g. modals, dropdowns)
• Valid forms with label assignment, error displays and context-related help texts
• Responsive layout with high colour contrast and zoom capability
• Fallbacks for assistive technologies and flexible input types

With frameworks such as Angular, React or Vue, accessibility measures must be consciously considered in the component design and tested regularly – e.g. with tools such as axe-core, pa11y or Lighthouse.

Accessibility as part of software quality

Digital accessibility not only improves usability for people with disabilities – it also increases technical quality, maintainability and usability for everyone. Applications with a clear structure, semantically correct code and comprehensible interactions are more stable, perform better and are future-proof.

At the same time, accessibility is becoming an economic factor: it has long been mandatory in public tenders, and in more and more industries it is becoming a prerequisite for regulatory compliance, certifications and international expansion.

Our approach at CONVOTIS

We develop customised applications that are designed for digital accessibility from the outset – professionally, technically and legally. Our solutions not only fulfil WCAG and BITV requirements, but can also be seamlessly integrated into existing system landscapes – whether platform, specialist application or responsive customer portal.

Thanks to our in-depth expertise in accessible architecture, front-end development and automated accessibility tests, we create solutions that are sustainable, maintainable and inclusive in the long term.

Technically accessible. Strategically future-proof.

Digital accessibility is not a side issue – it is an integral part of sustainable software architecture. Anyone developing digital applications today should see accessibility not as an obligation, but as a quality factor – and consistently integrate it into the development process.