Localization – Where Do You Start
And How Do You Go About It?
Yves Lang
Vice President, Sales and Marketing
CSO
ENLASO Corporation
ENLASO Webinar
February 2006

Preview Of The Presentation (1)
1. Introduction: Definitions
2. Brief History of the Localization Industry
3. Internationalization Overview
4. Localization:
- The Locale Concept
- Why Localize?
- The Good Reasons for Management
- Overview and Major Activities
- Localization Testing

Preview Of The Presentation (2)
5. Localization Vendors:
- Role
- Pricing Structure
- Vendor Selection
- Cost Control
6. Conclusion

In a Tokyo hotel: Is forbidden to steal hotel toweles please.
If you are not person to do such thing I please not to read this
notice.
On the menu of a Polish hotel: Salad a firm’s own make;
limpid red beet soup with cheesy dumplings in the form of a
finger; roasted duck let loose; beef rashers beaten up in the
country people’s fashion.
The Dairy Association’s huge success with the campaign “Got
Milk?” prompted them to expand advertising to Mexico. It was
soon brought to their attention the Spanish translation read
“Are you lactating?”.

Sign in a Moscow hotel: Ladies requested not to have
children in the bar.
A sign posted in Germany’s black forest: It is strictly
forbidden on our black forest camping site that people of
different sex, for instance, men and women, live together in
one tent unless they are married with each other for that
purpose.
A sign in a Swiss hotel: Because of the impropriety of
entertaining guests of the opposite sex in the bedroom, it is
suggested that the lobby be used for this purpose.

1. Introduction: Definitions

Some Definitions…
Locale
“Combination of language, cultural preferences, character set,
and other information that describes a particular target market
or audience.”
Translation
“Process of translating, editing and proofing text.”
Globalization (G11N)
“Combination of internationalization and localization, as well as
implementation of a global strategy from early product
development through localization.”

More Definitions…
Internationalization (I18N)
“Process of creating (or re-engineering) a system to support multiple
locales with a single set of source code. Usually a pre-requisite for
successful localization.”
Localization (L10N)
“Process of adapting a product for a particular locale. Usually
comes after internationalization in the shape of a package of
services.”

Pepsi’s “Come Alive With the Pepsi
Generation” was translated into “Pepsi
Brings Your Ancestors Back From The
Grave” in Chinese

2. Brief History of the
Localization Industry

The History in Four Bullets
• From “Mom and Pop” to the Giants
• Where did it come from?
• From partnerships to acquisitions and mergers
• The Players

How The Industry Evolved (1)
Alpnet
Sykes SDL
Trados
SDL
Mendez
Berlitz Bowne
Planet Leap
Bowne

How The Industry Evolved (2)
ILE
IC Lionbridge
Bowne
Lionbridge
Transperfect
eTranslate Translations.com
Translations.com
And others…

How The Industry Evolved (3)
Polyglot
Translingua RWS Group
RWS Group
ENLASO
Welocalize.com
Simultrans
Foreign Exchange
Etc.

At a new nightspot in Russia:
One of the longest bars in Moscow meets you a
floor above where over 800 sq. m. are at your
disposal for tet-a-tet dinner or weird dancing on the
cherry stained floor while posh ladies in vivid
dresses and immaculate men will be a pleasant
view for your eyes. Wait till after midnight the life
show will start with hot pop star invited to perform.

3. Internationalization
Overview

Different Degrees of I18N (1)
• Level 1 – Minimum level
- Application independent from any language/
character set encoding
- Application independent from any cultural
conventions
• Level 2 – User-visible text strings
- Hard-coded text
- Concatenations/Variables
- Use of Tools

Different Degrees of I18N (2)
• Level 3 – Support for non-western languages
- Unicode
- Essential to penetrate Asian market
• Level 4 – Highest level
- Multi-national products
- Support for processing and storing data
originating from different locales

Why Internationalize?
• Use of application in other locales
• Reduced time and cost for localization
• Higher revenues and profits from other
markets
• Single source code for all applications
• Simpler maintenance
• Improved quality and code architecture
• Reduced cost
• Adherence to important standards

In a Belgrade hotel elevator:
To more the cabin, push button for wishing
floor. If the cabin should enter more persons,
each one should press a number of wishing
floor. Driving is then going alphabetically by
national order.

4. Localization

The Locale Concept
• Formatting requirements (time, date,
numbers, currency)
• Writing system and language:
- Word order - Word delimiters
- Sort order - Capitalization
- Hyphenation - Spelling and grammar
- Punctuation - Character sets
- Cultural context - Standards and laws

Why Localize?
• Remember that L10N is the process of adapting a
product to a specific locale
• Overview of the corporate L10N strategy
• The impact of the Internet age
• What to localize?
• Satisfaction of corporate goals
• User’s country/region requirements must be met
as well

The Good Reasons for
Management
• Importance of international software market
• Vehicle for growth in revenues, profits, and market
share
• Freedom of exchange
• Opportunities for international sales
• Regulatory requirements
• Cost of localization

Localization Overview
Applications can be localized to different degrees:
• Localization level 1
- addresses differences in superficial conventions
- no real translation
• Localization level 2
- builds on prior level
- addresses the localization of all user visible strings
- also covers documentation
• Localization level 3
- full localization requiring major rewrite

Major Localization Activities
• Translation (along with editing and proofing)
• Addition of locale specific features
• Adjustment of objects due to expansion
• Management of changes
• Testing
• Involvement of key groups: translation team,
engineering, desktop publishing, project
management

Localization testing
• It is very important to test your application before
market release
• The cost of correcting a problem increases over
time
• Testing is not limited to software
• Cost of testing
• How much testing is too much?

Letter from a hotel manager, France:
Dear guest,
You make a verbal – farverbal, written, possibly
through mediation of a third one, RESERVATION
of a room in our hotel. You can depend on our
assent, we keep the room free for You from the
minute of the entrance of Your room order; we do
this even gladly. But the fact of the ORDER and
the ASSENT is OBLIGATORY for BOTH!

5. Localization Vendors

Introduction (1)
35%
30%
25% Translation
20% Testing
15% Engineering
10% Project
Management
5%
0%
35% 30% 20% 15%

Introduction (2)
• Let’s help Company ABC in the selection of a
vendor and obtain a better understanding of the
major issues:
- What is the role of the localization vendor?
- Pricing structure
- Vendor selection
- Cost control

What is the Role of the Vendor?
• To deliver translated, re-formatted, and linguistically
reviewed hard copy technical documentation
• To deliver translated, re-formatted, and linguistically
reviewed and tested online technical documentation
(also referred to as online help)
• To deliver translated, re-formatted, and linguistically
reviewed hard copy collateral materials
• To deliver translated, resized, and linguistically
reviewed and UI tested software

It is not the Role of the Vendor
to…
• Internationalize English source materials
• Determine localized information
• Select and approve terminology
• Provide functional testing of the software

Pricing Structure (1)
Project level Price
Project management Typically 10-15% of total
costs
Documentation Price
Translation Per word or per page
Editing Per word or per hour
Proofreading Per word or per hour
Glossary/terminology development Per hour or per term (entry)
Desktop publishing Per hour or per page
Output (PDF/film/other deliverable) Per hour or per page
Quality assurance/format proof Per hour or per page
Graphics and screen captures Per hour or per object

Pricing Structure (2)
Software, Web sites & Price
Online help
Translation/edit/proof Same as for documentation
Glossary/terminology development Same as for documentation
Engineering Per hour
Graphics and screen captures Per hour or per object
Testing (verification) Per hour
Translation memory administration Per hour
New words Per word
Fuzzy match 60-80% of per word rate
Exact match/repetition 20-40% of per word rate

Vendor Selection (1)
• Locate potential vendors
• Begin discussions and test responsiveness
• RFI or RFP?
• Comparing apples to apples
• Road to disaster or careful selection based on
select criteria, requirements, and research
• Interview the candidates: what are the key
questions to ask?

Vendor Selection (2) –
Key Criteria
• Technical Competence
• Experience with comparable projects - references
• Total commitment to quality and customer service
• Communication processes
• Reliability and proven follow up
• Willingness to develop long-term relationship
• Resource availability
• Absolute clarity on price – should be within 10-
15% of median price

Cost Control – Influencing
Factors
• Incomplete or late localization setup
• Incomplete and/or incorrect enabling
• Scope changes
• Incomplete and poorly documented processes
• Incomplete and poor quality training
• Incomplete and poorly distributed information
• Amount of changes to English source files after project
start
• Smaller deltas

Cost Controlling Techniques (1)
• Insist on proper enabling
• Train all staff involved
• Respect the timing of all phases
• Train the localization vendor
• Invest in your localization partner
• Don’t underestimate the importance of
terminology
• Invest in CAT tools

Cost Controlling Techniques (2)
• Try to resist any scope changes
• Start as late as possible with localization
• Plan for potential cost increases
• Train all parties involved on the impact of changes
• Work with your localization vendor
• Always be reasonable!

From a letter in response to an inquiry about
Chinese lodging:
“Dear Madam: I am honorable to accept your
impossible request. Unhappy it is, I have not
bedroom with bath. A bathroom with bed I have. I
can though give you a washing, with pleasure, in a
most clean spring with no one to see. I insist that
you will like this.”

6. Conclusion

Conclusion
• Constant evolution of the industry
• True multilingual environments
• New standards
• Streamlining of the localization process
• “Best of breed” practices

Thank you!
Any questions?

Japan’s second-largest tourist agency was
mystified when it entered English-speaking
markets and began receiving requests for
unusual romantic tours. Upon finding out
why, the owners of Kinki Nippon Tourist
Company changed its name.

Contacts
• Yves Lang (303) 516-0857 x102
ylang@translate.com
• Chris Raulf (303) 516-0857 x103
craulf@translate.com