[nfbmi-talk] Fw: releant suit on kiosk access

Tue Jan 27 19:33:28 UTC 2015

----- Original Message ----- 
From: joe harcz Comcast 
To: terry Eagle 
Cc: David Robinson NFB MI ; Mary Ann Robinson NFB MI ; Mark Eagle 
Sent: Tuesday, January 27, 2015 11:51 AM
Subject: releant suit on kiosk access

NOTICE OF PROPOSED SETTLEMENT OF CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT 

 ATTENTION: ALL LEGALLY BLIND INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE ATTEMPTED TO 

ACCESS THE DVD, BLU-RAY AND/OR VIDEO GAME RENTAL SERVICES 

AVAILABLE AT REDBOX KIOSKS IN CALIFORNIA SINCE JANUARY 12, 2010 OR 

WHO HAVE BEEN DETERRED FROM DOING SO DUE TO THE LACK OF 

FEATURES FOR BLIND USERS AT REDBOX KIOSKS SINCE JANUARY 12, 2010 

 YOU MAY HAVE A CLAIM UNDER THE SETTLEMENT DESCRIBED BELOW 

READ THIS NOTICE AND INSTRUCTIONS CAREFULLY 

This notice is to inform you about the proposed settlement that would resolve the class 

action lawsuit Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired, et al. v. Redbox Automated Retail, 

LLC, et al., Case No. 12-cv-00195-PJH (N.D. Cal.). The lawsuit alleges that Redbox Automated 

Retail, LLC (“Redbox”) violated federal and California law by offering video rental services at 

self-service, touchscreen kiosks that blind persons cannot independently access because the 

kiosks utilize an exclusively visual user interface. Save Mart Supermarkets (“Save Mart”) is also 

a defendant in this case. Redbox and Save Mart deny all liability in the case. The settlement, 

which must be approved by the Court, would resolve the lawsuit. 

 I. SUMMARY OF THE PROPOSED SETTLEMENT 

 Under the settlement agreement, Redbox will modify all of its kiosks in California so that 

legally blind customers will be able to independently browse, select, pay for, and return media 

(including DVDs, Blu-ray discs, and video games) at the kiosks. The modifications will include 

the addition of a standard headphone jack, a tactile keypad, and text-to-speech output that will 

read the text and commands on the touchscreen aloud. Redbox will complete these modifications 

at all Redbox kiosks in California within thirty months of final approval of this settlement 

agreement or within eighteen months of the resolution of any appeals. Under the agreement, 

Redbox will also make accessibility improvements to redbox.com within eighteen months of 

final approval of the settlement to ensure that blind individuals using screen reading technology 

can browse available movies, browse kiosk locations, reserve movies for pick up, and register 

their email addresses on Redbox.com independently. 

 At this time, Redbox is providing a customer service phone line to remotely assist legally 

blind customers with browsing, renting, paying for, and returning movies or other media from 

Redbox kiosks, and Redbox will continue to provide this customer service phone line until the 

accessibility modifications to the kiosks are complete. Once Redbox completes the accessibility 

modifications to Redbox kiosks, the Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired 

(“Lighthouse”) will maintain, for the remainder of the term of this settlement, a toll-free 

telephone number that will allow legally blind individuals to report questions, concerns, or 

complaints regarding the nonvisual user interfaces on Redbox kiosks in California. 

 In addition, the settlement includes a $1.2 million ($1,200,000) fund to pay valid claims 

submitted by eligible members of the class. Eligible members of the settlement class include 

legally blind persons who, between January 12, 2010 and the end of the claims period, attempted 

to access the services at a Redbox kiosk in California but were unable to do so due to the visual 

user interface, or who were aware that Redbox kiosks use an exclusively visual interface and, as 

a result, were deterred from accessing the services of a Redbox kiosk in California on a 

particular occasion. Each eligible member of the class will be entitled to make one claim, which 

in no event will be worth more than $4,000. Class members will receive less than $4,000 if the 

total value of valid claims exceeds the value of the settlement fund (that is, if there are over 300 

claimants), in which case the value of all claims will be shared on a pro rata basis. If there is 

money left over after payment of all valid claims, the left-over funds will be donated to the Paul 

Longmore Institute at San Francisco State University. 

 The settlement also provides that the five named plaintiffs who served as class 

representatives will receive payments of $10,000 each. Finally, Disability Rights Advocates and 

the Law Offices of Jay Koslofsky (“Class Counsel”), the attorneys who represent the class, will 

be paid $690,000 in attorneys’ fees for their work on the case, $35,000 in costs, and $75,000 for 

their future work monitoring compliance with the settlement and enforcing the agreement. Class 

Counsels’ motion for attorneys’ fees will be available at www.lighthouseredboxsettlement.com by October 29, 2014 or can be requested from Class Counsel (contact information below) after 

October 29, 2014. Please note that, although the parties have agreed upon the amount of 

attorneys’ fees and costs to be paid to Class Counsel, such amounts will still need to be approved 

by the Court at the final approval hearing.  II. THE EFFECT OF THE SETTLEMENT ON THE RIGHTS OF CLASS 

MEMBERS 

 All class members will be bound by the terms of the settlement relating to the 

accessibility of Redbox kiosks in California if the settlement is approved by the Court. In other 

words, once the settlement is approved, all class members will release and forever discharge 

claims related to the accessibility of the kiosks or redbox.com for people who are legally blind or 

visually-impaired. However, class members may opt out of the monetary portion of the 

settlement. Class members who opt out of the monetary portion of the settlement will retain the 

right to file their own claims for damages against Redbox or Save Mart arising from access 

barriers they have faced at Redbox kiosks due to the visual interface. Class members who do not 

opt out of the monetary portion of the settlement may utilize the claims procedure described in 

Section IV below to submit claims for monetary damages. 

 III. OBJECTING TO THE SETTLEMENT 

 You can ask the Court to deny approval of this settlement by filing an objection with the 

Court. You can't ask the Court to order a larger or different settlement; the Court can only 

approve or deny the proposed settlement. If the Court denies approval, no settlement payments 

will be sent out and the lawsuit will continue. If that is what you want to happen, you must 

object. 

 You may object to the proposed settlement in writing. You must send written objections 

only to the Court. The Court must receive your objection by November 12, 2014 for it to be 

considered. All written objections and supporting papers must clearly identify the following case 

name and number: Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired, et al. v. Redbox Automated 

Retail, LLC, et al., 12-cv-00195-PJH (N.D. Cal.). You may file the objection in person or mail it 

to the Court at: 

 Class Action Clerk of the U.S. District Court 

Northern District of California 

 Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building 

1301 Clay Street, Suite 400 S 

Oakland, CA 94612 

 If you file an objection, you may also appear at the final approval hearing which will 

address the settlement’s fairness. You may appear at the hearing either in person or through your 

own attorney. If you appear through your own attorney, you are responsible for paying that 

attorney. The hearing is scheduled for December 17, 2014 at 9 a.m., before Judge Phyllis 

Hamilton at the Oakland Federal Courthouse, Courtroom 3, Third Floor, 1301 Clay Street, 

Oakland, CA 94612. The date of the final approval hearing may change without further notice to 

the class. You should check the settlement website at www.lighthouseredboxsettlement.com, or 

the U.S. Court’s Public Access website at PACER.gov to get the most current information 

concerning the date of the final approval hearing. To be heard at the hearing, you must include 

notice of your intent to appear at the hearing with your written objection.  IV. SUBMITTING A CLAIM FOR MONEY DAMAGES 

 You may be eligible for monetary relief under the settlement if you are legally blind and 

you attempted but were unable to access the goods and services available at Redbox kiosks in 

California on or after January 12, 2010 due to the kiosks’ visual user interface, or if you were 

aware that Redbox kiosks in California utilize a visual user interface, and, as a result, were 

deterred from accessing the goods and services of a Redbox kiosk in California on a particular 

occasion on or after January 12, 2010. There is a damages fund of $1.2 million available for all 

claimants. No claimant can receive more than $4,000, and each eligible claimant’s portion will 

be shared on a pro-rata basis if the number of eligible claimants exceeds three hundred (300). 

Therefore, you may receive less than $4,000. 

 You must submit a valid claim form to recover monetary compensation under this 

settlement. You may complete and submit a claim form on the settlement website at www.lighthouseredboxsettlement.com or by requesting a claim form from KCC LLC, the claims 

administrator, by phone, letter, fax, or email at:  Lighthouse v. Redbox Claims Administrator 

P.O. Box 43034 

Providence, RI 02940-3034 

Phone: (866) 277-4261 

Fax: (866) 508-1036 

RedboxSettlement at kccllc.com  All claims submitted online must be submitted by November 12, 2014. All claims 

submitted by mail must be postmarked no later than November 12, 2014. 

V. OPTING OUT OF THE DAMAGES PORTION OF THE SETTLEMENT 

 You have the right to opt out of the damages portion of the settlement. If you opt out, you 

will not receive any monetary compensation from this settlement. Class members who opt out of 

the monetary portion of the settlement, however, will retain the right to file their own claims for 

damages against Redbox or Save Mart arising from access barriers they have faced at Redbox 

kiosks in California due to the visual interface. Opt-out forms containing the required language 

for opting out are available on the settlement website at www.lighthouseredboxsettlement.com. 

You may either complete and submit the opt out form on the settlement website itself or you may 

print out the form, complete it, and mail it to the claims administrator at: Lighthouse v. Redbox 

Claims Administrator, P.O. Box 43034, Providence, RI 02940-3034.  All requests to opt out must be made by November 12, 2014. Please note that if the 

settlement is approved, all members of the class who do not properly opt out will be bound by 

the monetary damages portion of the settlement. 

 VI. FURTHER INFORMATION 

 This notice summarizes the proposed settlement. For the precise terms and conditions of 

the settlement, please see the settlement agreement available at www.lighthouseredboxsettlement.com, contact class counsel using the information below, access 

the Court docket in this case through the Court’s Public Access to Court Electronic Records 

(PACER) system at https://ecf.cand.uscourts.gov, or visit the office of the Clerk of the Court for 

the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, 1301 Clay Street, Suite 

400 S, Oakland, CA 94612, between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding 

Court holidays.  To obtain a copy of this notice in alternate accessible formats, contact Class Counsel 

using the information below. 

 VII. CONTACT INFORMATION 

 Please do not contact the Court, the Court clerk’s office, or Defense Counsel with 

questions about this settlement or the claims process. Any questions must be directed to class 

counsel at (510) 665-8644, or the address below. 

 Class Counsel: 

Michael Nunez, Esq. 

Disability Rights Advocates 

2001 Center Street, Fourth Floor 

Berkeley, CA 94704 

  Defend ants’ Counsel : 

Sue J. Stott, Esq. 

Perkins Coie LLP 

Four Embarcadero Center, Suite 2400 

San Francisco, CA 94111-4131 

Amanda J. Beane, Esq. 

Perkins Coie LLP 

1201 Third Avenue, Suite 4900 

Seattle, WA 98101