Background
A generation ago, on July 26, 1990, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law, bringing new recognition and protection of the civil rights of individuals with disabilities. The ADA provides protection from discrimination on the basis of disability and broadly protects the rights of individuals with respect to employment, access to state and local government services, transportation, places of public accommodation and other aspects of everyday life.
However, the ADA was enacted before the internet age, before the advent of the digital economy and before a substantial portion of this country's economy went online. As of 2018, the internet economy was estimated to account for approximately $2.1 trillion of the U.S. economy, or about 10% of the nation's gross domestic product, and continues to expand. See David Shepardson, "Internet sector contributes $2.1 trillion to U.S. economy: industry group," Reuters Technology News (Sept. 26, 2019). With most of U.S. business moving online in 2020 to address COVID-19 limitations, this share is likely to increase.
Impact of COVID-19
On April 7, 2020, Business Wire released the results of its review of the impact of COVID-19 on e-commerce. An analysis by ACI Worldwide, which encompassed a review of hundreds of millions of transactions from global online retailers, reported that "transaction volumes in most retail sectors have seen a 74% rise in March compared with the same period last year, while online gaming has seen a staggering increase of 97%."
Key findings in year-over-year volume in March 2020 showed that online transactions in home products and furnishings were up 97%, "Do it Yourself" products were up 136%, garden essentials were up 163% and electronics were up 26.6%. Other reports show similar gains. A recent "Global Shopping Index" report published by Salesforce "indicated that the number of unique digital shoppers rose 40% year-over-year." Capgemini found "that consumers' appetite for online shopping and convenience will continue to grow once lockdowns are eased," finding that "59% of consumers worldwide had high levels of interaction with physical stores before COVID-19, but now only 24% expect to return to that level." These reports support the expectation that e-commerce and the use of the internet as the "public space for commerce" will continue to grow, putting more of a focus on website compliance.
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