AT&T is hoping that as baby boomers age they will be able to forego many of the assistive devices that their parents needed. The company is finding new opportunities to replace specialized consumer electronics with smartphones and tablets.
“When you walk into a room of blind people and ask how many have a smartphone, it is a huge percentage, which is not what you would think with a touchscreen,” said Susan Mazrui, director of global public policy for AT&T Services. Mazrui is blind and now uses smartphone apps to accomplish many tasks for which she once needed expensive purpose-built technology. Her smartphone can read to her, identify and pay bills, identify colors and prescriptions, and control her home appliances. She says that mobile technology is also saving thousands of dollars for people with other kinds of disabilities.
“Environmental controls for lights and heating used to cost tens of thousands of dollars for someone who was paraplegic or quadriplegic,” said Mazrui. “But now through the mobile devices … people can use commercially offered products and services, and it is so much cheaper. You don’t need specialized repair people, you don’t need anything special, you just live your life like everyone else and there’s an incredible sense of freedom with that.”
Mazrui has successfully combined her personal experience with her professional life by helping to put AT&T at the forefront of corporate accessibility and inclusion issues. The company has pioneered the establishment of employee resource groups for disabled employees and for workers who are caregivers to disabled people. This culture of inclusion has helped the company recognize and address important new markets.
Market opportunity
AT&T is keenly aware that more Americans join the disabled population each day as the baby boomers age. Solutions that make life easier for this population represent a significant opportunity. Mazrui notes that research shows people with disabilities control more than $220 billion a year in disposable income. When the addressable market is expanded to include the aging population, annual spending multiplies tenfold to $2.9 trillion.
“With an aging market, you have a greater prevalence of disabilities,” said Mazrui. “Somebody may not say ‘I have a disability.’ They may say ‘I have difficulty walking or seeing or hearing.’ It’s very common. Currently today we have 1 out of 5 people in the U.S. with a disability. 73% of people with disabilities are heads of households.”
“When we look at the disability and aging market, this has a result for the bottom line,” Mazrui continued. “If you can look at your market you can capture some of what’s available out there by [targeting] people with disabilities.”
Specific solutions
AT&T turned to an external advisory panel on access and aging for help in developing its EverThere mobile personal safety device. Medical professionals, teachers and advocates for the disabled population are all part of the panel.
EverThere provides one-button connection to a monitored call center, and includes advanced fall detection and hands-free connection to the call center.
AT&T’s Digital Life home automation and security system will support both caregivers and people with disabilities. Digital Life can help people with disabilities with daily activities by directing them to different parts of the home by turning on lights. Motion sensors can be installed under beds to alert caregivers if someone gets out of bed at night and contact sensors on a refrigerator can tell caregivers if a loved one has not opened the refrigerator for a period of time.
“You’re really limited only by your imagination as to how you can use automation controls and programs,” said Lee Mabie, director of product marketing management for AT&T Mobility. “With Digital Life Care, the thinking is to offer out-of-the-box solutions and to simplify solutions for caregivers, to allow the loved one to stay in their home for a period of time, under the care of someone remotely, rather than going to an assisted living facility.”
Hear more from Lee Mabie, Susan Mazrui, and AT&T’s Heather Sadler, who leads the company’s IDEAL employee resource group program. All three were guests on the AT&T Access and Inclusion Webinar on RCR Wireless News.
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