MeAC – Measuring Progress of eAccessibility in Europe

Legislation/regulations

The EU Framework Directive (2002/21/EC) and the EU Universal Service Directive (2002/22/EC) have been transposed into Greek law (Law 3431/3-2-2006). The law imposes obligations on telecommunications operators to provide accessible services for disabled users. This includes:

• Access to emergency services
• Access to public telephones by wheelchair users
• Equal access in relation to price, quality and choice
• An undertaking that text phone users will not be charged more for the additional time it takes them to use the telephone

Law 2867/2000 on Provisions to the Disabled by the Telecom Operators calls on the operators to:

• install accessible public phones (reachable by wheelchair users);
• sell text phones to hearing impaired people at reduced prices; and
• to provide telephony services for free or at reduced prices to disabled people

Other initiatives

The national telecoms service provider provides a special telephone helpline (a text telephone relay service) that services people with hearing impairments and helps them to book an appointment with doctors or pass messages to friends, other people related to the person with hearing impairments.

In an initiative undertaken by mobile telephone operators, a service allows all people with hearing impairments to send SMS at reduced rates.

The mobile phone operator COSMOTE provides a service that allows people with visual impairments as well as upper limb impairments to send and receive emails using their voice through their mobile phone. This is a service that can be used by any COSMOTE subscriber at low costs or for free, depending on the degree of disability.

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