ATA-TCD Mid-Year Conference identifies threats facing translation companies

Few weeks ago ATA-TCD Mid-Year Conference gathered more than 100 attendees. This is an industry event especially tailored for translation company owners and senior managers.

Highlights of the show included presentations on sustaining high growth, trends in machine translation, technology planning, and quality standards, along with a look at how to protect language workers from harm and retaliation by advocacy organization Red T. Common Sense Advisory participated in a formal debate on how LSPs should approach technology strategy. The bookend talks served to illustrate the topics and tenor of the meeting.

The opening keynote by Jost Zetzsche identified four perceived threats facing translation companies:

Crowdsourcing

While crowdsourcing remains a hot topic, the speaker noted that crowdsourcing only works in specific areas and its overall impact on the industry will be limited – despite several high-profile cases. He suggests that company owners should recognize the benefits buyers seek from crowdsourcing and develop services with those characteristics.

Machine translation

About the second threat, machine translation (MT), Zetzsche made the observation that generic (including free) translation will always be sub-par but that customized engines in association with memories in fact represent a useful technology appropriate for many applications.

Data sharing

Thirdly, he observed that only larger, sophisticated organizations can take advantage of data sharing today. Moving forward, smaller agencies and even freelancers need to learn how to unlock value from shared assets rather than be mere bystanders.

“Ecosystems”

The last threat he discussed was the notion that “ecosystems” are being created by Lionbridge and SDL through technology and partnership programs, the inference being that smaller agencies, by choice or by accident, are either on the inside or on the outside of those respective business networks.

The message behind all of Zetzsche’s points was that each threat also represents an opportunity for service innovation.

Source: http://www.globalwatchtower.com/