Economist Crowdsourced Translation:

Volunteer translators are translating the web. Is ‘crowdsourcing’ the answer to all translation issues?

The Economist is being translated into Chinese by Chinese volunteers. Because China is not very well-known for freedom of the press these translators censor the content by not translating certain topics. Everybody should ask the following questions: How does the Economist ensure a consistent quality of translation? Who guarantees that the content being published in China is the same that is initially published by the Economist?

Here’s another example:

Facebook is facing a very human problem right now. They had their content translated by volunteers, with overwhelming success - French and Spanish were done in less than one day. But some minor languages were started and left unfinished because nobody has volunteered to complete the job. The only way to avoid workers abandoning their project is to reward them somehow. When you always try to go for the cheapest solution it will most likely fail. The web is full of evidence of this! So better think twice before you let an unqualified person translate something. It could cost you your reputation, money and in the end – your job.

You can avoid such uncertainty: Simply use a professional translation company! Only professional, paid translators can ensure consistent quality and completion of the whole project.