An Analysis of Website Design and Localization in Saudi Arabia: The Case of Apple and Huawei
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14456/bej.2023.4Keywords:
localization, Apple, Huawei, translation, internationalization, globalizationAbstract
To date, studies that investigate and analyze the localization of tech companies’ websites are still scant. Therefore, this study aims at investigating the levels of localization in Apple’s and Huawei’s websites on the basis of the five levels of localization proposed by Singh & Pereira (2005). In order to carry out such investigation, three external raters were asked to assess the localization of the designated websites using the said model. All of these raters have at least 12 years of experience in translation. The findings shows that Apple’s Saudi website is in the highly localized level whereas Huawei’s website is in the semi-localized level. It is evident from the results of this study that localization is necessary and it is locally-targeted, and thus it emphasizes the importance of creating culturally suitable websites that attract and appeal to target users' needs and expectations.
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