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MyGengo Raises $1 Million To “Own” Translation

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Re: MyGengo Raises $1 Million To “Own” Translation

#4
Robert,

Just want to say congratulations! I've heard only great things about what you're doing, and I hope you can improve the quality of web translations in Japan.

I've been involved in a number of multi-lingual Japanese sites, and I wonder how you feel about competition from Japanese companies.

As I'm sure you know, translation is one of those things that every large company knows they need, but doesn't want to spend a lot of time and or money on. Accessing an API and getting translations seems to be well beyond what most web companies here are capable of, and so you see companies like J-Service[1] which gives their 1-click solution to site translations. I've seen a number of sites (usually 市役所s or 観光協会s) that have used J-Service as a quick-fix for their translation needs.

While services like J-Service have a number of failings (SEO being the big one), their ease of deployment makes them a low-hanging fruit for a lot of sites.

Do you find yourself tempted to go in a similar route with MyGengo, or are you more focused on a global strategy with your API at the forefront?

Keep up the great work!

[1]http://www10.j-server.com/pro/

Re: MyGengo Raises $1 Million To “Own” Translation

#6

Disclosure: My company. Factual note: Not actually a Series A, was a conv. note.

Just FYI: claiming you're going to "own" translation makes you sound idiotic, and I'll never use your services because of this. :)

Good luck, though.

Re: MyGengo Raises $1 Million To “Own” Translation

#7

Disclosure: My company. Factual note: Not actually a Series A, was a conv. note.

Just FYI: claiming you're going to "own" translation makes you sound idiotic, and I'll never use your services because of this. :) Good luck, though.

Guess you could use our services for a different reason instead. But we'll live.

Re: MyGengo Raises $1 Million To “Own” Translation

#8

Disclosure: My company. Factual note: Not actually a Series A, was a conv. note.

Just FYI: claiming you're going to "own" translation makes you sound idiotic, and I'll never use your services because of this. :) Good luck, though.

Right, because it's always a mistake to talk about your personal exciting vision for where you see your business going.

You've come off as either making a very bad joke, or a customer that any company would be happy to lose.

Re: MyGengo Raises $1 Million To “Own” Translation

#9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just FYI: claiming you're going to "own" translation makes you sound idiotic, and I'll never use your services because of this. :) Good luck, though.

Guess you could use our services for a different reason instead. But we'll live.

That's the point: you won't with that attitude.

I can name 3 online translation services that are much bigger than you. How are you going to "own" a space that already has much bigger players?

I was a fan of your service (mainly because of our large Japanese user base) up until this point. But you know what, I'll live without your service. :)

Re: MyGengo Raises $1 Million To “Own” Translation

#10
Re: comments about much bigger players, as a developer at a compay (moo.com) whos revenue is a _rounding error_ on our competitors balance sheets, I can say from experience that you don't need to be bigger to provide an awesome product, amazing customer service and make a ton of money doing it.

"Owning" translation doesn't have to mean being bigger than the competition, it just means being better.

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