FW: talk on next generation localisation

[Forwarded, since the original hasn't made it to the archive yet.]

From: Josef van Genabith [mailto:josef@computing.dcu.ie] 
Sent: 21 September 2010 19:11
To: public-mlw-workshop@w3.org
Cc: Josef van Genabith; Richard Ishida; Nicoletta Calzolari; Monica
Monachini
Subject: talk on next generation localisation


Speaker: Prof. Josef van Genabith, Director, Centre for Next Generation 
Localisation (CNGL), School of Computing, Dublin City University, Ireland

Talk Title: Next Generation Localisation

Talk Overview:

Localisation is the process of adapting digital content to culture, 
locale and linguistic environment. Localisation takes products and 
services to markets that are otherwise inaccessible. Because of this, 
localisation is a core multiplier and value-adding component of the 
global software, services, manufacturing and content distribution industry.

Currently, there are three global challenges facing localisation:

Volume: the amount of content that needs to be localised into ever more 
languages is growing steadily and massively outstrips current 
translation and localisation capacities. As a consequence, only a 
fraction of the content that needs to be localised is localised and 
usually only into a limited set of languages. Many business 
opportunities are missed and, what is more, lack of localisation 
contributes to the digital divide, with essential (e.g. health and 
hygiene) information, products and services unavailable in languages 
which currently do not promise ROI on localisation costs.

Access: traditionally, localisation assumes print or full screen- and 
keyboard-based access to content. More recently however, new and 
evolving generations of small devices (smart phones and PDAs) support 
on-the-move and instant access to digital content. Novel interaction 
modalities such as speech-enabled access are not supported by current 
localisation technologies. Furthermore, traditional localisation 
workflows assume predictable, stable, corporate content and localisation 
is viewed as a well-managed, large-scale, off-line process. Today, 
however, much digital content is perishable with frequent updates and 
rapidly increasing volumes of user-generated content (user fora, blogs 
etc.). Instant access to on-line content requires a new breed of fully 
automated on-line localisation technologies.

Personalisation: traditionally, localisation is coarse-grained according 
to generic notions of locales and linguistic environments. What is 
localised is information. Information is most valuable if adapted to 
personal requirements including task at hand, level of expertise, 
age-group and personal preferences and expectations. Traditional 
localisation needs to be overlaid and integrated with fine-grained 
personal information cutting across traditional notions of locale and 
linguistic environment: the person is the ultimate locale.

In the talk, I will outline the main challenges facing the localisation 
industry and approaches to overcome them in Next Generation Localisation.



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