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Accessibility legislation in different countries (particularly in Europe)

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From: Birkir R. Gunnarsson
Date: Apr 17, 2012 12:52PM

Hello listers

I was asked to create a document with descriptionof current
accessibility regulations around the world, particularly answering the
questions:

What web accessibility standard is used to measure accessibility of
websites (WCAG 1.0 vs 2.0 A vs AA vs AAA). Are there any standards of
recommended best practices ouside of web accessibility (ATAG etc)

What is the scope of the regulation (government/public websites only,
private websites that offer public services, think private banking,
retail etc)

What, if any, are the monetary fines or consequences of not following
set standards (open to law suits, open to any type of audit).

Who can certify websites regarding accessibility within each country
(what agency, if any), which private companies.

I believe I have good grasp of the U.S., Canada, Australia and the UK,
also Norway. But I need info regarding Sweden, Denmark, Finland,
Germany, Netherlands (not that repeat of that info would not be
helpful), Switzerland, France, Italy, and really any other country I
can get my hands on.

I have a few blogs and other online resources from the WAI websites.
Some of them seem a bit outdated, and I have not found much on these
countries yet.
I will be doing internet search, and asking people I know, and would
be happy to share the resulting document.
If anyone has resources, info or opinions, feel free to post it here,
or mail it to me privately.
Thanks very much
-Birkir