However, according to a recent report, the indirect economic benefits of the language industry are not always measured.

A major report commissioned by the European Union shows the size and growth of the language industry in Europe. And when I say major, I mean major: the document, “Studies on translation and multilingualism,” is 426 pages long.

In the summary alone, we learn that the language industry in European Member States had an estimated value of 8.4 billion euros, or about 10.3 billion dollars, in 2008. The figure includes language services such as translation, interpreting and localization, but also such fields as language teaching and linguistic consulting.

The report explains that the industry growth rate is expected to be at least 10% over the next few years, with the possibility of doubling by 2015.

One of the document’s main conclusions, though, is that “the impact of multilingual competence on economic productivity should be analysed systematically in order to arrive at a percentage of the value generated by the language industry on the economic output of European countries.”

In other words, the language service industry is a major economic player in and of itself, but also contributes indirectly to economic performance by helping companies better succeed in a global environment. The authors emphasize that failures on the international market are often blamed on faulty management, whereas the real culprit can be “target language related failures.”

Don’t miss out on important markets because of “language-related failures.” At Language Translation, Inc., we offer translation, interpreting and localization services in over 40 languages. Don’t hesitate to contact us for a free quote.

Betty Carlson

See Also

• Language Translation, Inc.
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