The multilingual web (MLW) project. A collaborative approach and a challenge for translation studies

This chapter emphasizes the need for best practices and quality standards in the design, management and localization of multilingual web content. Valdés outlines the contribution of the EU-funded MultilingualWeb project and maintains that multilingual websites pose a challenge to Translation Studies from a quantitative as well as a qualitative point of view. Regarding the former, the challenges lie in the vast amount of web content that requires translation and in the recent role of users as producers, and also translators, of such content. As for the latter, Valdés posits the idea that interdisciplinary collaboration and standards represent the way forward as far as enhancing the quality, accessibility and usability of the multi-lingual web is concerned. In line with the rest of the contributions in this section, this chapter argues that user and cultural variables are key aspects, and that reaching each target audience adequately is essential to make the World Wide Web fully international.