2004: My Next Wireless Phone

[Janina Sajka]

Well, just to set the record straight, the nondisclosures had to do with
discussions that eventually produced a settlement with Audiovox. Had
they not produced a settlement, we would probably be in a formal hearing
before the FCC. That is how it started. Ms. Bonnie O'Day filed a formal
complaint against Audiovox and a second formal complaint against Verizon
Wireless back in February. I (and others) at AFB provided technical
support to the lawyers who were providing their services pro bono.
Audiovox hired some of the most expensive telecommunications lawyers in
Washington, DC to fight us.

The fact that we settled with Audiovox should suggest that things changed over
the course of the year. And, you can probably guess that we didn't change
the user requirements.

It's probably OK for me to say that the settlement wasn't about any
particular phone, but rather about the kinds of things that are needed
to support customers who are blind or visually impaired including
products themselves and the various kinds of support services that go
along with the products.


Steve Holmes writes:
> From: Steve Holmes <steve at holmesgrown.com>
> 
> Yea, it ain't available yet.  I asked Verizon about it a week or so
> ago and the latest model they had ever heard of was the 8900 & 8600; I
> saw an 8600 and I found the buttons alone to be deplorable! let alone
> not being accessible.  I go to tthe audiovox website just yesterday
> and the model doesn't exist on their search engine.  I just hate non
> disclosure agreements - they are anti competetive.  I mean you signed
> an aggreement not to reveal any more about it but yet the damn thing
> isn't even out there.  You couldn't even find it with your sources
> and/or connections.
> 
> It's just a shame people, that is, companies, not you, have to be so
> secretive about their upcoming innovations when they should be the
> norm for all products.  I don't know if you saw any prototypes or what
> but I hope they were good.  Some of us get to be a bit synical about
> things like this.  How many times over the years have I heard about
> some upcoming trick or gadget for accessibility and have it never come
> to pass? I lost count so until I can see the real thing or at least
> some documentation from the provider it is really being worked on and
> some reasonable expected dates, I tend to call it vaporware.  It may
> really be impatience on my part but I'm not sure what else to feel or do.
> 
> On Sat, Dec 27, 2003 at 08:55:09AM -0500, Janina Sajka wrote:
> > I could tell you things, but I can't because of a piece of paper we
> > signed this past year.
> > 
> > What I can tell you is that we looked hard for this unit around
> > Washington, DC and on the net the other week and didn't find it. I
> > expect we'll look again in early January.
> > 
> > So, can you read between the lines?
> 
> -- 
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> 
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-- 
	
Janina Sajka
Email: janina at rednote.net		
Phone: (202) 408-8175

Director, Technology Research and Development
American Foundation for the Blind (AFB)
http://www.afb.org

Chair, Accessibility Work Group
Free Standards Group
http://accessibility.freestandards.org