Accessibility Statement for RTÉ's Digital Services
RTÉ is committed to ensuring digital accessibility for all users across its websites, mobile apps, and supported big-screen TV platforms, in accordance with European Union Accessibility Act and its enactment in Irish Statute, SI636.
This Accessibility Statement applies to:
The RTÉ website (https://www.rte.ie)
RTÉ Player (https://www.rte.ie /player/)Mobile iOS and Android apps Supported Web Clients
Set Top Boxes
Smart TV apps
Scope and Exclusions
This statement covers current content published on the platforms listed above. It does not cover archived or legacy content, including:
PDF documents published before 23 September 2018
Videos or audio published before 23 September 2020
Archived or historical content not currently being updated
News and Audio apps are currently undergoing redevelopment with consideration for enhanced accessibility, aiming for WCAG 2.1 Level AA compliance.
Compliance Status
All RTÉ's digital products are currently partially compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA, due to some identified accessibility issues. We are actively working to resolve these and aim to address key access functionality issues, where technically feasible. Some device-level limitations may require a longer timeframe due to third-party constraints.
Known Limitations
The following issues may affect users on our website, mobile, or Smart TV platforms:
Keyboard Navigation: Some focusable UI elements may not be correctly mapped, which could lead to occasional difficulties when navigating the interface using only the keyboard.
Mobile Menu Accessibility: Some secondary navigation menu items on mobile devices may pose challenges for screen reader users.
Images: Not all images include appropriate alternative text or metadata descriptions.
Subtitles & Audio Descriptions: Not all live or on-demand video/audio content includes subtitles or audio descriptions.
Unsupported Devices: Some Smart TVs or set-top boxes do not support built-in screen readers or accessibility features.
Unique Landmarks: On some pages of the application, landmark regions may not be uniquely defined. This can create challenges for users navigating the content with assistive technologies, as repeated or ambiguous
Archived Content: Older articles or media may contain inaccessible elements. We do not intend to make retrospective changes to archive content unless essential.
ARIA Attributes: On some pages of the application, Aria attributes or roles maybe improperly applied to certain elements, which may result in a reduced navigational experience.
This is not an exhaustive list of limitations.
Our platforms are designed and tested for compatibility with the following:
Supported Desktop Browsers:
Chrome
Firefox
Safari
Edge
Supported Assistive Technologies:
NVDA (Windows)
JAWS (Windows)
Microsoft Narrator
Screen Reading technology on the MAC
Native assistive technology on (macOS, iOS, tvOS)
TalkBack (Android and Android TV)
Built-in accessibility features on WEBOS, Tizen, and compatible Set-Top Boxes
Planned Improvements
We are committed to ongoing improvements including:
Ensuring all links have meaningful text
Expanding availability of subtitles and image descriptions for audio, video, and visual content
Replacing PDFs with accessible HTML wherever possible
Conducting regular spot checks on image descriptions and accessibility standards
How We Test the Site
We use the WCAG Level 2.1 AA guidelines to test the accessibility of our products. We conduct user testing on the site and will continue to do so, addressing any non-compliant issues identified. For testing we use the above listed assistive technologies, and tools such as Stark.
Feedback and Contact Information
If you have feedback or wish to report a barrier, please contact:
Email: accessfeedback@rte.ie or playerfeedback@rte.ie
Phone: 01 208 3434
If you are not satisfied with our response, you may escalate your complaint to the Office of the Ombudsman.
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