Missing Accessibility Considerations section

[realArcherL]

The issue was found during the request review: w3c/security-request#48
The Spec reviewed: https://www.w3.org/TR/autoplay-detection/

Note this is very close to #48 BUT I am filling it separately to highlight a bigger issue i.e., having a Accessibility Considerations section.

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1. What/where exactly the spec says this

The Introduction (Section 1):

"if a user agent only blocks audible autoplay, then web developers can
replace audible media with inaudible media to keep media playing, instead
of showing a blocked media which looks like a still image to users."

autoplay/index.bs

Lines 56 to 60 in 052da0a

	is not allowed to autoplay. For instance, if a user agent only blocks audible
	autoplay, then web developers can replace audible media with inaudible media
	to keep media playing, instead of showing a blocked media which looks like a
	still image to users. If the user agent does not allow any autoplay media,
	then web developers could stop loading media resources and related tasks to

Section 3 Example 1 demonstrates:

if (navigator.getAutoplayPolicy("mediaelement") === "allowed-muted") {
  // Create a new media element, and play it in muted.
}

Section 4 (Security and Privacy Considerations) contains no mention of accessibility implications. There is no Accessibility Considerations section.

2. What correction we're suggesting and why

WCAG 2.2.2 Pause, Stop, Hide (Level A) requires that any moving content which

1. starts automatically,
2. Lasts more than five seconds, and
3. is presented in parallel with other content must have a mechanism to pause, stop, or hide it.

The Understanding document states:

"Some people with cognitive disabilities and attention deficits are distracted by continuous movement."

And clarifies that 2.2.2 covers visual motion specifically:

"This Success Criterion is specifically concerned with moving, blinking, scrolling, and auto-updating visual content."

A muted auto-playing video meets all three conditions. The spec recommends this exact pattern as the correct developer response to "allowed-muted": and frames the alternative (a still image) as an inferior outcome. It never discloses that this pattern triggers a Level A WCAG obligation.

Additionally, WSG 2.12 requires a stop/opt-out mechanism before animation begins, and WSG STAR UX11-3 requires users remain in control of when media begins transmitting.

The spec currently has no Accessibility Considerations section. The W3C Security & Privacy Questionnaire §2.16 states that specifications should have dedicated considerations sections. The same principle applies to accessibility.

3. How it can be fixed

Add to Section 4, or create a new Accessibility Considerations section:

"When using the allowed-muted result to autoplay muted video content, authors should be aware that auto-playing video presented alongside other content may need to meet the requirements of WCAG Success Criterion 2.2.2 Pause, Stop, Hide, which requires a mechanism for users to pause, stop, or hide moving content that starts automatically and lasts more than five seconds. Authors are encouraged to provide visible media controls and respect the prefers-reduced-motion media query."

This is non-normative guidance to content authors — appropriate because WCAG 2.2.2 is an author obligation, not a UA obligation. The spec can't mandate pause buttons, but it should disclose that the pattern it recommends comes with accessibility requirements it currently doesn't mention.