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IT firms bet on language apps for mobile users
By siliconindia
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Thursday, 03 December 2009, 22:04 IST
Bangalore: The technology that helps mobile users to send an SMS in their mother tongue is creating a buzz among niche software firms, while even industry bodies are looking to popularize the concept.
Language translation software or transliteration technology has been used over the web and is more or less a commoditized product, reports Economic Times. However, a similar software on the mobile phones has seen few small Indian firms concentrating on this segment. Sharad Sharma, Member, Indian Angel Network and also on industry body Nasscom, says there is a market need for providing such language translation software for cellphones.
The growing number of mobile subscribers is expected to see rapid addition, opening the space for providing software, which will enable users to send an SMS in their mother tongue on a predominantly English keypad. For example, Tachyon Technologies' branded software, Quillpad, has been in existence for the last three years and till now is being largely used by various websites. Tachyon isn't alone though with firms like Revarie and Panini also engaged in language transliteration technologies.
Ram Prakash H, CEO, Tachyon Technologies, says they have developed the software which can understand the patterns of various languages giving instant translation without much flaws. For now, Quillpad mobile has been launched only in Hindi and plans are to extend to other languages. Prakash claimed that their technology would not require any user to follow any particular pattern during translation adding that Quillpad also works on Korean language.
However, a big challenge for these technology firms is to bundle this software with the handsets which, in turn, require a tie-up with the cell manufacturers. Tachyon has got an alliance with LG to bundle their software. Sharad Sharma says steps are already being taken by industry bodies like Nasscom and the Centre of Excellence in Wireless Technology (CEWIT) to bring in standardization that will ease incorporation of such language translation software.
