ABSTRACT
COST 219ter is a European action group within the COST European Framework and is made up of scientific and technical researchers from over 30 countries across Europe and the rest of the world. Its main objective is to increase the accessibility of next generation telecommunication network services and equipment. It is aiming to achieve this by design or, alternatively, by adaptation when required. Royal National Institute of the Blind has been involved in this action for several years and has been particularly important due to knowledge of user trials and performing evaluations on products but specifically on mobile devices. Although there are hundreds of different types of handset available to the end user, generally speaking, the designers of these handsets have designed them for aesthetic values rather than their practicality. Once an expert evaluation phase has been completed it should be followed by an end user phase.
