M-Enabling Summit 2011 to showcase Global Emerging Market for Mobile Apps and Services for Seniors and Persons with Disabilities

ATLANTA, Oct. 27, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The M-Enabling Summit 2011 will bring together leaders in the global emerging mobile accessibility eco-system to foster discussion and decision-making among mobile technology, aging and disability experts, and policy professionals in the United States and abroad.  

The Summit will be held in Washington D.C. from December 5-6, 2011 at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center at National Harbor. The Summit's Inaugural Briefing Session, hosted by the FCC will cover the latest legislative and regulatory steps taken by the United States and other countries on mobile accessibility.

The event is presented by the Global Initiative for Inclusive Information and Communication Technologies (G3ict) and E.J. Krause & Associates (EJK), in cooperation with the ITU - International Telecommunication Union and the FCC.

"More than 5.4 billion mobile phones are in service today while, according to the latest WHO-World Bank Report on Disability, 1 billion persons live with disabilities - 54 million in the United States alone - including a large proportion of seniors," said conference co-organizer Axel Leblois, Executive Director of G3ict. "The M-Enabling Summit will be the first opportunity for all stakeholders involved to participate in a groundbreaking sharing of experience among mobile industry, private sector leaders, senior and disability organizations, IT professionals, operators, apps developers, government, and accessibility experts." 

With more than 60 speakers invited and high-caliber participants such as AT&T, Verizon, Research in Motion, Code Factory, Deque Systems, LucyTech, CTIA Association, W3C, DAISY Consortium, Coalition of Organizations for Accessible Technology, American Association of People with Disabilities, American Federation for the Blind, Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and more, the M-Enabling Summit will cover topics relevant to all aspects of mobile accessibility. Key speakers include FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, ITU Secretary-General, Dr. HamadounToure, United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Inaugural Chairperson, Mohammed Al-Tarawneh.

Key tracks will highlight new innovations addressing the specific needs of users living with different types of disability, as well as major emerging market opportunities, such as applications for travel and tourism, cloud-based assistive technologies, and solutions for special education and emergency response.  Also, of interest to many mobile stakeholders, dedicated sessions will present cutting-edge design methodologies for accessible mobile apps and mobile websites and how to leverage the know-how and experience of persons with disabilities in designing accessible and assistive mobile products and services which benefit all users.

"Bringing the core mobile industry eco-system to adopt and promote accessible and assistive solutions and services for seniors and persons with disabilities is essential to their success," said Ned Krause, CEO of EJK. "We will contribute our many years of experience in the mobile industry to ensure that developers, service providers, handset manufacturers, assistive and accessible technology experts from all horizons can further expand their opportunities by interacting with a global audience of motivated decision makers."

M-Enabling Summit 2011 will be held in parallel with  mHealth Summit 2011 organized by the Foundation of National Institutes for Health. The Gaylord Convention Center, which offers state-of-the-art accessible conference and exhibit facilities, will host both events in contiguous spaces. Participants to the mHealth Summit and the M-Enabling Summit will have full access to each other exhibits and to jointly-promoted sessions.