Common Sense Advisory’s research on the Indian language services market from a couple of years ago showed that though translation was a nascent industry in the country, much of the market was still immature. Our subsequent research and interactions with industry leaders and buy-side clients has made us believe that while the market promises huge potential, Indian language service providers still face major challenges.

First, the good news: The potential for India’s language services market goes beyond its obvious multilingualism. As with IT companies, language service providers (LSPs) in India have grown to the point that they can today position themselves as capable localization partners. They are also attractive to multi-language vendors in Europe and North America looking to outsource some business either to cut costs or extend coverage.

However, the challenges mostly spring from the immaturity of Indian buyers, although there are other hurdles related to macroeconomic factors such as a plunging rupee and a slowing economy. LSPs constantly ask Common Sense Advisory for advice on how they can surmount these challenges and play at the global level. They talk of buyers trying to “procure” language services as they would purchase a commodity like office supplies. Indian LSPs say they struggle to make clients aware of the value of translation. In India, the challenge gets compounded because of the expectations of “low cost” and the current inflation rates and weak rupee. More.