Technologies to suit all needs

Deutsch Telekom's aim is to design even the most advanced technologies in such a way that they are easy to use and thus accessible to as many people as possible. This, of course, includes customers with special needs.

Physical disabilities and the symptoms of old age, lack of routine in handling them and even language barriers can all make it difficult to use information and communication technologies (ICT). The answer is to tailor products and services to the specific requirements of these users.

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The Sinus A201 fixed phone has been designed to satisfy the wishes and needs of the 50+ generation.

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The Sinus A201 fixed phone has been designed to satisfy the wishes and needs of the 50+ generation.

ICT without barriers
Cosmote in Greece has been supporting the development of an innovative mobile navigation device for the blind and visually disabled since the year 2005. Audio and voice signals supply users with information about their environment, which a small portable computer determines via GPS. In doing so, "SmartEyes" helps blind people move around independently and safely even in unfamiliar environments. The project has won a total of five awards, including the innovation prize at the "Global Telecom Business Innovation Awards" in London and the public's award at the "European Market Place on CSR" in Brussels.

Age-appropriate telephony
Deutsche Telekom develops phones to suit the needs of older people with age disabilities. One example is the Sinus A201 device from T-Home. During the development phase for the fixed-network telephone at Deutsche Telekom Laboratories, people from the over-50 generation were asked what they wanted and needed. The result is a cordless phone with a clearly legible display, featuring ease of use and improved acoustics that can also be handled by hearing-aid users. For telephony on the move, a group of senior citizens tested the Emporia LIFEplus mobile handset from T-Mobile at T-City Friedrichshafen in 2008. This is another device made to fulfill the requirements of older users. It has an emergency call button added on the rear, which can be assigned any call number and used to fetch help fast and easily in an emergency.

Service without language barriers
Deutsche Telekom intends to use multilingual hotlines to guarantee optimal service for all customers, even if they do not speak the language of the country involved. In Germany, service staff are available who can speak to customers in English, Russian and Turkish. In the U.S., where around 15 percent of the population has Latin American roots, T-Mobile publishes many of its product and information brochures in Spanish.

Special rates
Special rates for low-income and severely disabled customers have a long tradition at Deutsche Telekom. Over 1 million customers benefit from this service in Germany each year. In Croatia, the Deutsche Telekom subsidiary T-Hrvatski offers subsidized rates to give people with low incomes access to modern information and communication technologies.