Speaking In Tongues
Larger markets in a smaller world mean big opportunities for translation services.
Despite the many advances in communications made during the past
20 years, mankind still lives in the shadow of the biblical Tower
of Babel. The overwhelming number of different languages and
cultures in the world can prevent understanding and hinder
cooperation, even as national economies become more and more
interdependent.
This increasing interdependence of the world's economies is
one factor behind the tremendous growth of translation services,
says Walter Bacak Jr., executive director of the American
Translators Association (ATA). "The pressure on U.S.
businesses to grow has driven them overseas to new markets,"
Bacak says. "At first, they were trying to market using
American knowledge, but they've discovered that to be
successful, you need to market in the local customs and
languages."
Worldwide expansion of the computer industry, and particularly
the Internet, has also contributed to the growing demand for
translation services. As people around the world gain access to the
Net, the need for multilingual documentation, manuals and Web sites
will increase dramatically. According to market research firm
Allied Business Intelligence Inc. in Oyster Bay, New York, the
worldwide market for translation services will reach $10.4 billion
by year-end and is projected to grow to $17.2 billion by 2003.
That's language any entrepreneur looking for a promising
opportunity can understand.
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While there are no statistics available on the number of
translation services based in the United States, for the first
time, the Census Bureau plans to publish the number of translation
services in the 2000 Census.
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