Localisation Consultants Ltd. Adapt 1 Reinhard Schäler, ADAPT Localisation Consultants Ltd. New Media Localisation

1 Localisation Consultants Ltd.Adapt

Reinhard Schäler, ADAPT Localisation Consultants Ltd.

New Media Localisation


Overview

Background

Findings

Recommendations


Background

• EU’s IST Programme

• From Language Engineering (LE) to Human Language Technologies (HLT)

• A mandate (by industry) for the European Commission (EC)

CALL Centres Advanced Communications E-Commerce Localisation


The LingLink Study

• Interviews - research - feedbackLISA GA Madrid

• Executive round table review and validation of preliminary resultsSLIG ‘98

• Micro study phase and review• Presentation / Publication

Launch of IST Programme

August ‘98

8 October ‘98

December ‘98

Identify business areas that are promising for LE R&D over the next five years, to pave the way for calls for proposals

in the Fifth Framework Programme.


The study• A strategic assessment of the localisation

industry– not a market survey

• Needs and potential– in relation to HLT and the IST Programme

• Focus– digital content and multimedia applications

• Client– European Commission

• Source– analysis of 3rd party research and – interviews with industry leaders


The localisation industry isthe catalyst for the inclusive,

multilingual information society.

“Any language that is not captured in this electronic world

will soon become obsolete.”David Brooks, Director International Product Strategy, Microsoft


Human Language Technologies (HLT)

Multilingual Software = Multilingual Information Society

Preservation oflinguistic diversitycultural heritage

Development ofbusiness growth

competitive advantage

Inclusionof all countries and sections of society

in the Global Village

Political focus Business focus


Report overview

• Clarification of concepts• Aspects of localisation

• origins• main players• business models and trends• rationale

• A tidal wave of change• Recommendations


Concepts

If one day software applications were truly internationalised, localisation could be reduced to a

simple, straighforward translation job.

Localisation fixes problems.Localisation fixes problems.

A business strategy addressing issues such as world-wide

marketing, sales and support.


Aspects of Aspects of localisationlocalisation

origins

main players

business models and trends

rationaleWhat we see is just the tip of the iceberg.


The world-wide IT Market

$317B42%USA

$127B16%

Japan

$106B14%ROW

$210B28%

Europe

Source: NSD


Who is localising?

Everyone is localising nowadays - a simple translation is not good enough anymore.

Pictograms and textual representations are coming more to

the fore.Software companies are the pioneers,but everyone will have to come this way

eventually.Geoffrey Kingscott (1998)


The business of computing (hardware, software,

services), communications (telephony, cable, satellite), and

content (publishing, entertainment, advertising)are collapsing to create a new industry sector.

This new media industry is the engine

of the new economy and will be critical to leading a

successful transition. The rise of this new sector and

the transformation of corresponding markets is

forcing every company to rethink its very existence...Don Tapscott


Media Telecom Computer

transportnetwork operators

enduser technologieshardware/software

ConvergenceConvergence

Media

Telecommunications

Computer

Media Industry

content productioncontent packaging

Source:The content challenge


L10NL10NITITFramework for convergence

Multilingual aspects of convergence


LocalisationVectors of scalability and Vectors of scalability and

growthgrowth

Content

Europe

Documents

Manuals

Asia

Global

CD-ROM

Online

Pure Internet-based

GeneralTechnical

AnyContent

Idea: Roger Jeantry, IC

Geography / Languages

Medium of delivery


LocalisationThe provision of services and technologiesfor the management of multilingualityacross the global information flow.


RecommendationRecommendationss

StrategicTactical


RecommendationRecommendationss

Strategic


The problem withThe problem withcollaborativecollaborative

EC-funded R&DEC-funded R&D

Industrydoes not always see the relevance and pay-off

Universities and researchersare not market driven

European citizenshave not noticed what is going on ...


The underlying reason ?

• Collaborativemission critical and core technologies are highly confidential

• ECbureaucracies cannot respond adequately to fast changing needs and requirements

• Funded European R&DHeterogenous consortia spend much time on achieving consensus, high overheads, many projects-low budgets

Changes are imperative.Changes are imperative.


A solution: building the R&D support infrastructure

HLT in EuropeBusiness and EC-funded HLT

Driving innovation & providing an infrastructure

Linguistic resourcesWorkflowClimate

Education & training

Core product developmentLeading edge technologies

Competitive advantageBuy-in

The inclusive information society


Solution: building an R&D support infrastructure

HLT and Localisation

European Linguistic Resources

Workflows

Climatic change

Training and education


RecommendationRecommendationssTactical


ActionActionProcesses and workflows

Cultural issues

Working globally

Tools access & adaptation

Linguistic resources

Internationalisation

Standards and formats

Voice translation

Internet

Electronic content


Machine translationMachine translation

Human translationHuman translation

The futureuse of translation technology

Value of information Type of information

High

Medium

Low

Either mission critical or creativeTo be read or referenced

Accuracy and presentationBrochures, user interface etc.

Mass volume of materialBetter than gisting: it has to be accurate

Manuals, EC laws and regulationsCADCAM documents

Non-mission criticalInformation glot, gisting market

‘Article on Picasso written in Japanese’

Information that wantsInformation that wantsto be translatedto be translated

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Move 1: Tools moving to higher value translation.Move 2: More information that wants to be translated.


Web Localisation

ContentsVolume

VarietyDynamism

StrategyPricing

Branding

Channels

ToolsCurrencyTax

Management

Multilingual search engines

Translation

Culture

Europe’s leading edge


…the need to handle, control and translate large amounts of text into a variety of languages within a time limit, within a tight budget and according to strict quality guidelines as well as the need to adapt - not just to translate - products to the culture and locale of the target market.

IT provides the framework for the convergence of these activities. The localisation industry provides the framework for the convergence of the multilingual aspects of these activities. Localisation is becoming the catalyst for electronic multilingual production and publishing.

On the background of these developments, the concept of localisation is being redefined as the provision of services and technologies for the management of multilinguality “across the global information flow”.

Timely and cost-effective delivery of high quality digital content to the global market place has become a major growth area for the localisation industry, which has opened this relatively narrow industry to a wider range of players.

Conclusions


Contacts

WEB SITESLRC http://lrc.ucd.ie

HLT Central http://www.linglink.lu/

Adapt Localisation Consultants Ltd., Roebuck CastleUCD, Belfield, Dublin 4, IRELAND

Tel +353-1-7067898, Fax +353-1-2830669email [email protected]

Reinhard Schäler