What happens on June 28, 2025? From this date, digital accessibility will no longer be an option or a "nice practice" to implement with residual end-of-project budgets. It will become a binding legal requirement that will separate who can continue to operate in the market from who will be excluded. An important page in the European digital market.
Of course, being a new requirement, many organizations frown upon it, seeing it as yet another bureaucratic cage imposed by Europe. But are we sure that the European Accessibility Act (EAA) represents just another regulatory obstacle to overcome? What if, instead, it concealed a unique opportunity to stand out, a competitive differentiation opportunity, particularly in the world of public administration?
The most forward-thinking companies are already changing perspective. Those who truly shine a light on the future stop calculating "how much will it cost us to comply?" and instead ask "how much advantage can we gain, what strategic return, by embracing and anticipating this change?".
This article is a magnifying glass focused on this shift in approach. It explores how to transform regulatory compliance into a strategic asset, examining not only the technical implications of the EAA but also its potential for business transformation as a true engine of growth and innovation.
Those who understand first that website accessibility is no longer a marginal cost, an optional extra, but a core element of the digital product will obtain a measurable competitive advantage: in public tenders, in expanding the potential market, in reducing operational costs, and in innovating digital products.
And you? Are you ready to look at the European Accessibility Act 2025 with new eyes?
The EAA (EU Directive 2019/882) introduces stringent requirements for digital products and services. The regulation requires compliance with the WCAG 2.1 AA level (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines), a framework that requires significant interventions on architecture, interfaces, and development processes. Our compendium on the EAA is a comprehensive guide that analyzes these requirements in detail (it's focused on Italy and available in Italian only), but it's essential to understand that the impact is systemic.
Historically, website accessibility has often been treated as a secondary element, managed with residual budgets and addressed in the final phases of projects, when fundamental architectural choices were already consolidated. This approach has led to suboptimal, expensive, and often ineffective solutions.
With the entry into force of the European Accessibility Act 2025, we are witnessing a fundamental paradigm shift: accessibility becomes a primary functional requirement, on par with security or performance.
This shift is particularly evident in the public sector, where tenders and bids will necessarily have to include detailed and binding accessibility requirements from the functional specification phases, in line with what is also provided for by the AGID accessibility guidelines.
In the context of recent public tenders, digital accessibility requirements occupy an increasingly significant portion of the total technical specifications, with contractual clauses that provide for penalties in case of non-compliance. This is indicative of the direction the market is taking, with increasing attention to web accessibility as a key element of digital transformation.
Decision makers must make a crucial mindset change: stop seeing website accessibility only as an additional cost to minimize, and consider it as a true strategic investment that decides who will be competitive tomorrow.
Companies that see far ahead, that are already anticipating this shift in perspective, are already securing important competitive advantages.
Because implementing accessibility doesn't mean making superficial and trivial adjustments. It requires a holistic vision, a true rethinking of information architecture, user interaction, and the entire development process.
For decision makers, this means considering website accessibility not as an additional end-of-project cost, but as a structural investment, a solid foundation in the foundations of the digital product. An investment that, among other things, puts you in line with the WCAG guidelines (level 2.1 AA) and all Italian regulations on the matter.
If you want to build a site or application that is truly accessible and EAA compliant, capable of growing with you, the real starting point is the design system. It is the foundation for any scalable implementation of the Accessibility Act. Think of it as the instruction manual for your digital interface, but it speaks accessibility from the first page.
Working side by side with clients in various sectors, we have refined an approach based on some key principles:
This methodological approach allows us to approach projects with an integrated vision of accessibility from the beginning, reducing subsequent implementation costs and improving the overall quality of digital products, for all users.
The first phase consists of auditing the existing design system (or designing a new accessible one from scratch). This requires a deep and systematic analysis that looks at:
Accessibility profoundly impacts the overall architecture of digital products. For decision makers, it's important to understand how this translates into concrete requirements for development teams.
The front-end is the direct point of contact between your digital product and people. This is where a fundamental match for accessibility is played. It's not enough that it "seems" accessible; it must be so in its architecture.
This means going beyond the visual aspect, taking care of the code to include the correct accessibility tags and to manage interaction, navigation, and information that changes in real-time.
Indeed, accessibility goes beyond aesthetics, making the use of a site inclusive for people with limited interaction capabilities or using non-standard devices. Think, for example, of those who use the keyboard to navigate, those who rely on a screen reader, or even those who simply suffer in case of animations. A front-end architecture designed to be accessible from the beginning makes a concrete difference for the end user.
An accessible front-end architecture must support:
In short, accessibility is not just about contrast between elements, font readability, or alternative texts for images, but also much more complex and less obvious aspects. As can be inferred from these examples, ensuring that such technical aspects are impeccably managed is not trivial. It requires specific front-end skills, deep knowledge of WCAG guidelines, and an approach to development that puts accessibility at the center, from design to code writing.
The choice of an expert partner like SparkFabrik, able to effectively guide important projects in the new landscape of digital accessibility, is more fundamental than ever.
Website accessibility requires a structured approach to testing, integrated into the development process. An effective testing framework includes:
This methodology allows for early identification and resolution of accessibility problems, significantly reducing overall development and maintenance costs, and identifying further areas for improvement.
As already touched upon, the implementation of digital accessibility brings tangible benefits well beyond simple regulatory compliance, representing a genuine business opportunity. Let's review these aspects in detail.
With the entry into force of the European Accessibility Act 2025, accessibility criteria will become discriminating factors in public procurement procedures:
This trend is particularly evident in the public sector in Italy, where website accessibility is becoming a central element in the technical evaluations of offers, with increasing attention to adherence to WCAG guidelines and national regulations.
Website accessibility can lead to concrete results in various areas:
It is essential to rethink the allocation of budgets for digital accessibility:
This approach allows for obtaining natively accessible products, avoiding the significantly higher costs of corrective interventions after realization. In this historical phase, there is obviously a race to adapt one's properties by organizations, with highly variable but potentially very significant costs, in the case of important projects. New projects, on the other hand, will necessarily have to be approached by taking accessibility requirements into account from the outset.
We have observed different approaches to implementing accessibility in various sectors.
In the financial sector: The implementation of digital accessibility in this area is particularly critical, considering the complexity of operations and the sensitivity of the data processed. The most advanced financial institutions are adopting an integrated approach that includes:
These implementations have generally led to a significant improvement in the overall user experience, especially for the more senior segments of the clientele, with a consequent increase in the use of digital channels.
In the B2B e-commerce sector: In this area, the approach to website accessibility must take into account the complexity of management interfaces and the frequency of use by operators. The most effective strategies include:
These interventions often lead to improvements in the productivity of all operators, not just those with disabilities, demonstrating how accessibility can be a driver of operational efficiency.
We are at a turning point: digital accessibility is rapidly moving from a secondary element, managed with residual budgets and considered an inevitable cost, to a strategic factor that will determine winners and losers in the post-2025 digital market.
The questions that every decision maker should ask today are no longer limited to "how to comply", but extend to:
The European Accessibility Act 2025 is not just a regulation to comply with, but an opportunity to redefine one's positioning in the market. In particular, in public tenders, the difference between winning and losing could lie precisely in the ability to demonstrate not only compliance with the AGID accessibility directives, but excellence in accessibility.
At SparkFabrik, we deal with these issues daily in custom development projects, integrating accessibility and usability considerations at every stage of the software development cycle, with the aim of transforming a regulatory requirement into an opportunity for improvement and innovation.
For many organizations, the topic of accessibility is a complete novelty. Achieving the level of accessibility required by the regulation, the WCAG 2.1 AA standard, may seem like a challenging peak to climb, full of technicalities and potential costs.
At SparkFabrik, we deal with accessibility daily, and in our daily experience, we have learned how to intervene effectively and with the right priorities, how to apply the right methodologies, how to correctly interpret the guidelines, how to "think" accessible. For this reason, we know that accessibility is perfectly achievable, even quickly and without groping in the dark. As is normal, when you know how to do it and have experience, everything is simpler.
This is why, to make your digital properties accessible effectively and without wasting resources or time, relying on an expert partner like SparkFabrik makes all the difference. A partner who not only knows the WCAG guidelines by heart (we have also created a free and 100% accessible compendium, in Italian), but knows how to apply them concretely in the development process, integrating accessibility from design and code writing. This allows you to achieve compliance efficiently and durably, transforming an obligation into a real opportunity.
Additionally, a further evaluation is necessary. The adaptation to the EAA in this particular phase of introduction is actually part of a moving scenario. Regulations on digital are constantly evolving, and it is likely that in the coming years the level of accessibility required will be further raised (moving from the WCAG 2.1 AA standard to a higher standard).
Getting compliant today with a solid and forward-looking approach and an expert partner is an investment for the future, which prepares you to calmly face the requirements that will come.
Let's take a step back and look at the big picture. Digital accessibility is a virtuous goal to aspire to, to make the internet inclusive and accessible to all users. The new regulation will have the positive effect of raising the overall level of accessibility.
However, this digital accessibility regulation, like others in the digital field (think of NIS2 or DORA), has been in definition for some time. Perhaps, too long, if we think about the speed with which the world of technology moves and evolves.
While the regulation was being discussed, approved, transposed, and finally entering into force (over the course of several years), the tech landscape has radically transformed. Meanwhile, revolutionary technologies have emerged, very powerful, powered by AI.
Think of computer vision that "sees" and understands what's on the screen, text-to-speech tools with natural voices unthinkable until a few years ago. Or again, the ability of AI to describe images, autonomous agents that can operate in our place (not only to automate and make efficient, but also to support those with motor and interaction difficulties), or even the ability of AI to understand and even write code, helping developers.
This scenario leads us to an interesting reflection: perhaps, in a not-too-distant future, many accessibility problems could find more efficient and generalized solutions directly integrated at the level of browsers or operating systems, with the support and integration of brand new AI functions (for example, Apple has recently announced many new accessibility features, available directly in iOS 19).
It could be a potentially more effective approach compared to the current scenario, where each single entity must activate to comply, individually and autonomously.
We therefore do not hide a sad criticism for the time that was necessary to have a regulation that would regulate accessibility. Too long timeframes, and an "unfortunate" timing that could soon make the regulation itself and the requirements imposed by it completely superfluous.
This does not make current compliance less stringent, which remains a duty and, as we have seen, an opportunity. But it's a fascinating perspective on the potential of technology to make accessibility a native and universal characteristic of the digital experience. Regardless of the means, AI or human intervention, what counts is the result: a more accessible and inclusive internet for everyone.
To support decision makers in understanding and implementing the EAA requirements, we have created an interactive compendium, a complete guide on accessibility in Italy that provides a simplified and synthetic navigation of the regulation.
It is important to emphasize that this compendium does not intend to replace the official documents and resources of the European Union (reported in the bibliography of the compendium itself), but proposes itself as a practical tool to navigate the regulatory requirements and understand their practical implications for digital development in Italy.
Cherry on top: the guide is also a virtuous example of a 100% accessible site.
The time to act is now. Companies that will wait until 2025 to start thinking about website accessibility will find themselves not only chasing regulatory compliance but having lost an important opportunity for differentiation and innovation.
The question is no longer "if" to implement accessibility, but "how" to do it strategically to maximize its benefits, using a structured web accessibility guide and verifiable WCAG 2.1 AA checklist.
Contact us to discuss how your organization can transform the regulatory obligation of the EAA into a concrete opportunity for business and innovation. Do you already have a plan for 2025?