New translation software to assist foreign visitors in Japan
TOKYO,
Japan - In preparation for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, there is a
growing movement to welcome foreign tourists in various languages at commercial
facilities and sightseeing spots.
Since
foreign tourists are key to raising the nation's consumption, public and
private sectors are making efforts to extend "omotenashi"
Japanese-style hospitality by, for example, using interpretation software that
handles 27 languages.
At the
National Institute of Information and Communications Technology, an independent
administrative institution based in Tokyo, an employee spoke into a tablet
computer in Chinese saying, "I forgot my suitcase," which was
interpreted into fluent Japanese audio.
Eiichiro
Sumita, head of the institute's multilingual translation laboratory, proudly
said: "It has a score of about 600 on the TOEIC [the Test of English for
International Communication].
"It's
good enough for practical use in sightseeing."
Dubbed
"VoiceTra4U," the institute developed the translation software in
2010 and distributes it online for free to promote its widespread use. The
software can interpret 14 languages including English, Chinese, Korean,
Indonesian and Thai as audio information, and can handle 27 languages in text
form.
According
to the Japan National Tourism Organisation, the number of foreign tourists
visiting the nation this year is expected to reach about 13 million,
significantly exceeding the 10.36 million seen last year. More tourists from
Southeast Asian nations are expected after tourist visa requirements were
relaxed last year, so the government has set a goal of increasing the number of
foreign visitors to 20 million by 2020.
Keikyu
Corp., a railway company, started using the software in July at Haneda Airport
International Terminal Station. A worker at the company said: "The number
of arrival and departure slots for international flights was increased, so
people are visiting from various countries. The software is helpful because there's
only so much the staff can handle."
Thoughtful
service After the scope of tax-free items for foreigners visiting Japan was
expanded to include cosmetics, medicine and other items in October, there has
been a sharp rise in foreign tourists visiting the nation for shopping.
In this
respect, foreign tourists are essential these days in marketing strategies at
commercial facilities. Recently, busloads of tourists from China and South
Korea are constantly arriving at VenusFort shopping mall in Tokyo's Odaiba
district, which is only about a 15-minute bus ride from Haneda Airport. They
descend on the shopping mall to snap up cosmetics and home appliances. Many of
them spend more than ¥100,000 (S$1,100) to buy items in bulk.
The
operator of the shopping mall began hiring attendant staff in 2003, and now
four to six attendants who speak English, Chinese or Korean are regularly
working there. An appealing skill of the attendants is "courteous
service," including guiding customers to their desired sections. They can
also explain the ingredients of cosmetics. Sales by foreign tourists account
for, at times, 30 per cent of monthly sales at the shopping mall. This prompted
the hiring of more shop staff with good command of foreign languages.
In
Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo, 15 retailers including department stores and home
appliance stores cooperated to publish a guidebook in August that comes in five
languages including English, Chinese and Korean. The group of retailers is
studying whether to publish the guidebook in other languages.
"Amid
shrinking domestic consumption, foreign tourists will be a quick remedy to
revitalize consumption. Such small hospitality, including offering [restaurant]
menus with photos, will certainly attract more foreign tourists," said
Shinichi Shimizu, a part-time lecturer at Rikkyo University who specializes in
tourism.
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