Monthly brandtech blend - July 2025

The European Accessibility Act Takes Effect

The European Accessibility Act officially came into effect on June 28. This legislation requires that critical services (including the European emergency number 112, banking facilities, and public transport systems) be accessible to the 100 million individuals with disabilities living in the EU. For instance, the EAA mandates that emergency services accommodate communication difficulties through various means, including voice, text, and video. Additionally, ATMs must feature multi-sensory interfaces and adhere to height requirements to ensure usability for individuals with vision impairments and/or using wheelchairs.

As for public transport operators, they are obligated to report on the accessibility of their services, and all related digital platforms must now comply with accessibility standards. The EAA also applies to computers, smartphones, and e-commerce platforms, requiring that they are usable by everyone. To support the implementation of this legislation, service providers must undergo mandatory training in accessibility and dealing with disabilities. fifty-five will host a webinar with Frugrr on the topic on July 31 (in French) – sign up here if you’d like to attend!

Find more details at EUREPORTER.

Cloudflare Now Blocks AI Web Crawlers by Default

Cloudflare, a major internet infrastructure provider, announced it will now block known AI web crawlers by default to prevent unauthorized access to content. This new policy aims to protect content creators from AI firms scraping their work without permission or compensation. Cloudflare will also introduce a "Pay Per Crawl" program, allowing publishers to set fees for AI scrapers accessing their content. Initially only available to a select group of publishers, this system is designed to ensure that AI companies use content responsibly and fairly.

Several major publishers, including The Associated Press, The Atlantic, and Quora, support Cloudflare's new restrictions. Cloudflare is also working with AI companies to verify their crawlers and clarify their purposes, allowing website owners to decide which crawlers to permit.

The move has been praised by industry leaders such as Roger Lynch of Condé Nast, who called it a "game-changer" for publishers. However, experts argue that stronger legal protections are still needed to fully safeguard content creators' rights. Cloudflare's CEO, Matthew Prince, has publicly emphasized the importance of protecting original content and creating a fair economic model for the internet in the age of AI.

More info at the BBC and The Verge.

Google Launches Offerwall for Publishers and Releases Veo 3 to the Public

Google has introduced Offerwall, a new tool designed to help publishers monetize their content through various methods beyond impression-based advertising: micropayments, surveys, newsletter sign-ups,  short advertisements… This feature aims to support diverse content availability and has been tested with 1,000 publishers over the past year. Now available for free in Google Ad Manager, Offerwall is meant to benefit the smaller publishers who lack the resources needed to establish diverse revenue streams. Google claims that publishers using Offerwall have seen an average revenue increase of 9%.

The launch of Offerwall comes as many publishers experience a significant drop in website traffic due to Google's Gemini AI summaries appearing atop search results. While Google promotes Offerwall as a boon for publishers of all sizes, larger publishers may be less enthusiastic, as micropayments have historically been less effective with readers compared to recurring revenue from subscriptions.

Another notable launch for Google: the release of its video-generation model Veo 3 across 159 countries. Available to Google’s AI-Pro paying subscribers only and capped at 3 videos per day, the model allows users to generate videos up to eight seconds long.

Read Fortune and TechCrunch for more details.

X Introduces AI “Writers” for its Community Notes

X is adding to its Community Notes fact-checking initiative by introducing "AI Note Writers," automated bots capable of creating Community Notes. These AI-generated notes will be evaluated by human contributors for accuracy and helpfulness. Developers can now build bots to provide precise answers within specific niches, responding to user requests for Community Notes on posts and offering contextual information and references.

According to X, this new approach aims to accelerate the speed and scale of Community Notes, leveraging community feedback to improve the accuracy and impartiality of AI-generated information. While AI bots can reference key data sources and provide concise explanations, human oversight will still be required to validate the information before it is displayed to users.

The introduction of AI Note Writers is seen by some as a logical step given the increasing reliance on AI tools for information, yet concerns remain about potential biases, especially in light of recent comments by X's owner, Elon Musk, about the sources used by AI bots. Musk has repeatedly expressed his desire to align AI outputs with his own perspectives, raising questions about the impartiality of the fact-checking process.

Despite these concerns, X is moving forward with a pilot program for its Community Notes AI initiative, with plans to expand it over time.

More info at Social Media Today.