26 June 2015

LT CEO Summit & Industry Challenges

Background: @LeclercqEU, ex-McKinsey consultant, ex-EU official - Contact: fondateur@euractiv.com

Challenge 4: seeking partner(s) for media

translation and syndication platform

David Mekkaoui

Director Fondation EurActiv

Christophe Leclercq

Founder EurActiv

OUTLINE

1. Set-up: 2 media innovation projects

2. Specs: 4 challenges and 4 constraints

3. Early answers: your reactions

4. More Q&A: our specific questions

26 June 2015

LT CEO Summit & Industry Challenges

Challenge 4: seeking partner(s) for media

translation and syndication platform

• One filed already: Innovation4Media- Accompanying & coordination, Horizon2020

more media-driven

• One being considered : PressActiv- Translation and syndication platform, learning from

EurActiv, Presseurop.eu and national media needs

Informal contacts welcome!

2 RELEVANT HORIZON 2020 PROPOSALS

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1. SET-UP: MEDIA INNOVATION (1/4)

POLICY/

PROJECT

IDEAS

INNOVATION:

TECHNO &

OPERATIONS

Horizon 2020: 2014-2015OLD

……………………………………...R&D

Not media specific

Horizon 2020: 2016-2017NEW

……………………………………...Journalistic Media

Innovation

1. SET-UP: MEDIA INNOVATION (2/4)

• One filed already: Innovation4Media- Accompanying & coordination, Horizon2020

more media-driven

POLICY/

PROJECT

IDEAS

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1. SET-UP: MEDIA INNOVATION (3/4)

• One being considered : PressActiv- Translation and syndication platform, learning from

EurActiv, Presseurop.eu and national media needs

INNOVATION:

TECHNO &

OPERATIONS

PRESSACTIV

LINK

PressActivCURATION TRANSLATION SYNDICATION

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1. SET-UP: MEDIA INNOVATION (4/4)

TYPE OF PARTNERS REQUIRED?

(BUT OPEN TO YOUR IDEAS!)

• User orientation

• "EU Community"

lab

• Credentials

• Existingpublication & translation model

• Media contact

• EU media policy

• Language

technology expert

• EU experience

• Interface dev. &

training

• Media knowledge

• Sales force

• Producing/curating

relevant content

• Publishing from

others

WHO? WHO? WHO ELSE?

• One being considered : PressActiv- Translation and syndication platform, learning from

EurActiv, Presseurop.eu and national media needs

INNOVATION:

TECHNO &

OPERATIONS

MT@EC

Translationworkbench/post-editing

& CMS

software

integrator

mediaconsortium

others

2. SPECS: CHALLENGES (1/4)

MULTILINGUAL

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7.5 million yearly unique visitors*

22 million yearly page views*

12 LANGUAGES IN

12 EU CAPITALS

* Google Analytics 2014

Who thinks more media could be multilingual?

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News

Infographics

Video subtitles

2. SPECS: CHALLENGES (2/4)

MULTIMEDIA

Original

EurActiv content

News, LDs, Special

Reports, interviews,

infographics, video

reports, etc.

Curated content

1) Lightly edited: eg.: OpEds,

Reuters, AFP

2) Quick own production: written

interviews, video soundbytes, etc.

2) Not edited: Guardian, 20mn, etc.,

Automated contentToday: Blogs, comments, RSS feeds, Twitter boxes,

Jobs, Agenda, PR

Tomorrow: EurActory, PolicyLine

(with source curation and opt out moderation, chiefly external)

"Community of EU Actors"

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Who thinks media in future will only

feature original contents?

2. SPECS: CHALLENGES (3/4)

MULTISOURCE

"Content Value Pyramid"

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2. SPECS: CHALLENGES (4/4)

MULTIDESTINATION

1. Costs:– Translators’ fees vs. Machine Translation licence

2. Accuracy:– Access to official terminology database

– Efficient post-editing

3. Speed: – Newsletter in the morning

– News can become outdated/ updated11

2. SPECS: 4 CONSTRAINTS (1/2)

4. Project Terms and Conditions:

– Pilot for free (techno demonstration)

– Joint proposal to be submitted

• mainly EU (DG Connect, DG Research…)

• corporate sponsors

– Sustainable business model: media themselves12

2. SPECS: 4 CONSTRAINTS (2/2)

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• EurActiv partners focus on EU policy & national politics

and use translation memories

RELEVANT TERMINOLOGY: AVAILABLE

• EurActiv had early track-record of combining EU-version of MT (then

Systran) with EU co-funding (eContent)

RELEVANT EXPERIENCE: TO BE REFRESHED

• MT@EC about to open to public services, and considering pilots with EU

approved projects of public interest. *

RELEVANT MODEL: TO BE CONFIRMED

• DG CONNECT regroups media policy, considers media innovation projects.

DG TRAD ready to ccoperate (and invited EurActiv as keynote).

EP will want media initiatives complementing Digital Single Market.

RELEVANT CONTEXT: TO BE ANSWERED* Fondation EurActiv is non profit, granted "utilité publique" by Royal decree

3. EARLY ANSWERS: (1/2)MT@EC AND EU FUNDING RELEVANT

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AT THE START

(2003)

e-Content project

- Machine

translation

SYSTRAN

+ post-editing

- Localisation

network

NOW

Low Tech

- Use of translation

memories (TM)

with Wordfast

- localization by

journalists in the

capitals (not BXL)

NEAR FUTURE

More software again!

- Translation &

SYNDICATION

platform

- Joint projects:

PressActiv?

MT@EC +post-editing?

Others?

3. EARLY ANSWERS: (2/2)EURACTIV TRANSLATION EVOLUTION

1. EU related institutions & federations & NGO’s use less

languages than before. Who thinks we could counter

this trend ?

2. How to leverage automated translation intelligently?

3. Who has worked with MT@EC? What is your

experience? - post-Editing add-on

- CMS plug-in

4. Which translation workbench -free for pilot?

-cost after EU funding?

5. Which CMS/software integrator -free for pilot?

-cost after EU funding?

4 CHALLENGES

1. Multilingual

2. Multimedia

3. Multisource

4. Multidestination

4 CONSTRAINTS

1. Costs

2. Accuracy

3. Speed

4. Terms

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4. MORE QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

BACK-UPS

TRANSLATIONS @EURACTIV

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• 1600+ articles, interviews, linksdossiers per year

= avg of 2 texts / translator / day

+ video subtitles, infographics & marketing materials

• EN<>FR & EN<>DE + also from ES & IT

• Translation tools

with Translation Memories in EN, DE, FR, ES & IT

• Strong points: direct access to authors; integrated

team of translator, even over different locations

1. What are the best tricks to enhance machine translation

results (preparation, correction and validation)?

2. What hope for community-source post-editing after

machine translation?

3. How to develop the language ecosystem?

4 CHALLENGES

1. Multilingual

2. Multimedia

3. Multisource

4. Multidestination

4 CONSTRAINTS

1. Costs

2. Accuracy

3. Speed

4. Terms

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4. MORE QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

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CHALLENGE 3: MULTISOURCE (2/2)

EXAMPLE OF AN APPLICATION: POLICLINE

EXPERT SOURCING + ASSISTED CURATION = DATAJOURNALISM

OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS(Commission, Council, Parliament, Member States, Regions…)

STAKEHOLDER POSITIONS(NGO’s, Industries...)

MEDIA LINKS(EurActiv & other sources)

Review

Implementation

Decision

Debates

Drafts

Policy debate

Public debate

Grouped opinions,

influential contributors...

Steps in Process

Write a comment,

participate in a survey...

Breaking news,

policy analysis...

Interview, live coverage,

infographics, cartoons...

Position papers,

press releases...

Tweets, blogs...

Event highlight clips,

advocacy videos...

Amendments

White Paper &

Green Paper

Expert comments,

citizen-friendly...

Context and perspective,

citizen polls...

PROPOSED OPTIONS

Proposal 1

Proposal 2

Proposal 3

Speeches, videos...

Commission draft

Fact-Checking,

VoteWatch, open data...

• Multilingual environment- Publication in 12 languages

- International staff : 106 total (51 editorial) & 23 nationalities

• Process- translation (EN-FR-DE)

- localization by journalists in the capitals (not BXL)

• Integration EN/DE/FR // translation

MULTILINGUALISM CHALLENGES

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2. EUROPEAN MEDIA : CRISIS→ CHANGE?

• Example media about “Europe”

- Many attempts in the past

- Just in EN or in 1 national language (eg. TheGuardian, Le Monde, FAZ, etc.)

Exceptions: Euronews, Cafébabel, EurActiv

+ some specialized newsletters (but not largest EU languages)

• Effect of crisis

- Presseurop.eu , EuroparlTV?

- More anglo-saxon domination? (e.g. FT, Reuters, Politico?)

- Or more cooperation? (e.g. LENA, with El Pais, Figaro, Die Welt, Repubblica, etc.)

• Questions - Who thinks more media could be multilingual?

- Should this be a focus of Horizon 2020 projects?

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• Not feasible to translate all documents in all

languages filters needed

– Prioritizing

– Using tools

– Decentralizing

– Syndication

• Questions:

– Who thinks media in future will only feature original

contents?

– Who thinks translation & syndication is a big part of

the answer?

2. EUROPEAN MEDIA : MULTILINGUALISM & FILTERS

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• How to leverage automated translation

intelligently?

• What hope for community-source post-editing

after machine translation?

• Who thinks we should decentralize EU translation

for communication purposes?

• How to develop the language ecosystem?

MORE QUESTIONS ?

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• Use of translation software & other tools

1.EURACTIV - TRANSLATION TOOLS

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Base terminologique

multilingue de l’UE UNTERM:

Base terminologique des Nations uniesOutil d’aide à la traduction

Portail regroupant la législation de l’UE

Base terminologique canadienne

1. EurActiv Network

- Multilingualism

- Translation: evolution, multimedia

- Filling some gaps

- Major constraints: costs, accuracy, speed

2. European Media

- Crisis change & innovation

- Translation & Syndication

- Innovation4Media & PressActiv projects

MULTILINGUALISM IN EUROPE(AN MEDIA)

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“ For media to innovate with digital for languages,

cooperation required ”ABSTRACT : For the media sector in a dual technology & revenue crisis, on top of

digital transformation, translation and syndication represents innovation opportunities. This

requires better cooperation across borders, supported by stronger public-private

partnerships, and a shift from horizontal research programmes to sector-specific innovation

projects. With and without the already-multilingual EurActiv, several relevant initiatives are

underway, or considered.

OUTLINE :

« C’est la grenouille qui conseille le bœuf ? » Librement inspiré du Grec Esope, traduit en latin puis « localisé » par Jean de la Fontaine

Automation ?

Langues! € ↘#Translating Europe

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• Translation workshops (internally + DGT)

– Master students in translation: Translation in the

European Affairs

– Civil society: Best practices in translation

(series discontinued in 2013: open for more!)

– EU Community "R&D project", FP7 language extension

EURACTIV FOUNDATION

HELPING ON SOME GAPS IN THE LANGUAGE

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MULTILINGUALISM & INSTITUTIONS – GOING WITH THE FLOW?

• Going with the flow?

– Dominance EN vs. promoting multilingualism:

• EN source documents: 45% in 1997 72,5% in 2008

– Aim: close to citizens, communicating Europe

– Questions:

• Who thinks we should reduce the number of languages

altogether?

• Who thinks it is possible to have synergies between

languages and communication in one portfolio?

(open to future "national" projects: FR-DE, Flemish – Walloon, Swiss)28

Source: European Commission

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Filter &

Automated translation

+ post-edit

Keep

centralized

Decentralisation

& localisation

MULTILINGUALISM & INSTITUTIONS – DIFFERENTIATION?

Translation in the European Commission

• Effects of the crisis on EU translation sector?

– Reducing costs:

• Outsourcing from DGT: 16% in 1997 30% in 2012

• Machine translation: translator editor

• Using different approaches:

– Human translation with translation memory / Machine

translation + post-edit

– More radical, outside EU texts: automated at source,

automated at reader, crowdsourcing?

• Human related budget + Automated technology

EUROPEAN MEDIA & INSTITUTIONS – CRISIS?

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• (De)centralised translation?

– Decentralisation: European house = translators +

journalists + communication heads

– Field offices in the EU: 1.4% in 2013

EurActiv: all local

– Localisation vs. legal texts• Need to adapt content

- Need to link translation with communication

• Adapt profiles? (e.g. multilingual journalists)

• Question: most EU translators in BXL, LUX or in

the capitals?

EUROPEAN MEDIA & INSTITUTIONS – DECENTRALISATION

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EUROPEAN MEDIA & INSTITUTIONS - RECOMMANDATIONS

• Crowdsourcing: Cafébabel

• Translate less documents but increase the speed,

therefore impact

• Sharing terminology & best practice

• Extend the "relevant market" for more

translations in at least 3 to 6 languages

→ Community of 500 000 "EU Actors "as sources"

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