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New Zealand software company Straker Interactive has secured several large overseas contracts and hopes they will help it become a major player in the global $18 billion translation market.
The Auckland-based firm has recently signed six figure contracts with the likes of the European Commission and Canadian financial giant Sun Life - projects it hopes will lend integrity to its flagship product ShadoCMS.
The web content management system enables companies to build their web presence in multiple languages, with less ongoing management costs. Chief executive Grant Straker hopes this will propel the company into the major leagues globally.
He said the potential for ShadoCMS was enormous, but its New Zealand origins had seen interested parties shy away at the final tendering stages in favour of more established European companies.
But contracts such as the European Commission project - converting a 10,000 page site of its research division across 22 languages - would give it trust and credibility in future bids.
The company has also signed deals with Bass Pro and Tracker Marine - the largest outdoor sporting goods and boating manufacturer - and the Malaysian Government. Several other Malaysian Government projects are in the pipeline for next year.
Straker viewed Europe and Asia as its key markets, and the company has partnered with German-based translation specialists Across Systems, giving its presence in Europe a boost. The company was also on the verge of partnership deals with two large Asian translation specialists.
Straker said having a web presence in multiple languages enabled companies to better market their products globally.
"Marketers are starting to understand that the web is not just in English."
Straker said the interest in their product had picked up over the last 18 months, and the company launched a sales office in Killarney, Ireland, to help tap into the burgeoning European market.
