IBM to help ‘baby boom’ generation use technology

Eyeing the growing number of graying PC users, IBM will re-use technology it developed for the disabled to target the aging, especially 'baby boomers' rapidly entering their 50s and 60s.

With seven percent of the world's population over 65 and with 76 million born during the 'baby boom' between 1946 and 1964, the upside is vast for IBM if it can tap into the needs of older computer users.

"The braille keyboards available to visually impaired users a generation ago have evolved into hands-free technology, something that anyone who uses a cell phone while driving a car can appreciate. All of us benefit as computers and technology become easier to use," said Ralph Martino, vice president of strategy and marketing for IBM Global Services in a statement.

IBM Global Services, a division of global computing giant IBM, will create eight new services and a team of 140 services professionals who will work on such every day tasks as making it easier to read a Web page or listen to a Web cast.

When asked if IBM would bring these services into Asia, an IBM spokesman in Singapore said that although the services are created to help baby boomers or persons with disabilities, the key driver for these services in the US market is largely US federal legislation.

"It would be simplistic to say that we will have these services if the population in Asia ages," she added.

Pervasive computing, wireless communications, speech and voice-activated applications, better tracking devices, subtitles, on-screen keyboards, and alternative input-output devices are among the areas that have evolved from work with persons with disabilities, said IBM in a statement.

Such products are helping meet the demand of aging boomers who now need reading glasses to see or whose hearing is diminished. Also, the products help companies comply with standards laid by governments in the US, Europe and Japan aimed at helping the disabled.

Among the services on offer include Home Page Reader, which uses text-to-speech technology to "read" Web pages for the blind, and the IBM Easy Web tool, which changes colours and text on Web pages so that those with poor vision can more easily view them.

Another set of tools allows business users to customise the audio, text and slides of a presentation to aid users with poor hearing and sight, while another set does the same for media used in online learning.

In addition, IBM will offer specialised support services for companies with older employees so that they can more easily use corporate hardware and software. IBM will also make available its Netscribe technology, which can automatically caption presentations. The firm currently has joint study agreements with 10 universities worldwide, which are using Netscribe to automatically create captioning for lectures.