Tethras Technologies , the new app localisation company based at NovaUCD, was today launched into the US market at Macworld 2011 in San Francisco. The company was established in 2010 to assist mobile app developers with publishing their apps in multiple languages.

The launch of Tethras and its specialised app localisation service is good news for US developers looking to take their apps global. The cost and time associated with localizing an app can now be substantially reduced using Tethras’ novel service. Developers can now reach lucrative foreign markets without leaving their desks.

Brian Farrell, CEO, Tethras Technologies

The global apps industry has experienced massive growth in recent years and is estimated to be worth $4.4 billion by the end of 2011. According to Distimo, an App Store analytics company, Apple alone had more than 350,000 downloads of paid apps each day in December 2010.

Application downloads in the Asia-Pacific region are expected to grow to 2.4 billion by 2013. China, Japan and Korea are already strong sources of growth and expansion in these regions and this is expected to continue. Downloads in Europe are also strong with France, Germany and Spain leading the charge.

The vast majority of apps are developed in the US and published mainly in English. Tethras, identifying a gap in the market, has developed an innovative cloud-based, localisation as a service (LaaS), to allow app developers easily publish their content in multiple languages. This will enable developers to access major non-English speaking growth regions around the world.

Tethras Technologies was founded in 2010 by Irish duo Brian Farrell and Brendan Clavin. Tethras currently employs 10 people between its US office in Mountain View, California and its headquarters in NovaUCD, the Innovation and Technology Transfer Center at University College Dublin.

Speaking in San Francisco at Macworld 2011, Brian Farrell, CEO, Tethras, said, “Over the past year we have taken a fresh look at the app localisation process. We discovered that the service offered by traditional localisation companies was time consuming, manual, and cost prohibitive for the majority of developers.” He added, “Tethras’ groundbreaking service has stripped away all of the unnecessary layers of the existing process and automated the remaining steps, thereby making app localisation significantly less complicated.”

The company launched a beta version of its service in Q4 2010, and feedback from developers has been extremely positive. According to Brendan Clavin, CTO, Tethras, “We have worked closely with our customers while developing the service and managed to get invaluable feedback from them.” He added, “We have developed a service that is a better fit with the needs of the iOS developer community.”

Tethras has incorporated a number of ground breaking features into their localisation service which empower developers to manage and localize their apps from within their development environment. By offering a fully automated end-to-end service, and connecting app developers with an extensive network of professional translators, Tethras has transformed the localisation workflow.

Tethras has already had significant success with a number of high profile apps. Most notably, with 3D4Medical’s Heart Pro, a highly specialised, iPad medical app, which, until recently, was only available in English. Using Tethras’ service Heart Pro is now a multilingual app, also available in Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Korean and Spanish.

The Heart Pro App is currently featured in Apple’s latest iPad TV ad campaign.

According to John Moore, CEO, 3D4Medical, “Within 10 days of releasing Heart Pro in Japanese, Chinese and French, we jumped into the Top Ten ranked medical apps in each of these regions.” He added, “Tethras’ Localisation as a Service is revolutionary and app localisation is now within easy reach of even the smallest development teams.”

Tethras is showcasing its new service in the Mobile Apps Showcase at Macworld 2011, booth 818, kiosk 30. This event is one of the largest gatherings of mobile app developers under one roof and features the latest innovations for Apple products. During the show, Tethras will be offering free French localisation for one app to all developers who sign up for an account. The Expo is taking place from 27-29 January in the Moscone Center, San Francisco.

ENDS

27 January 2011

For further information contact Brendan Clavin, CTO, e: bclavin@tethras.com, t: +1 650 209 4253, Brian Farrell, CEO, Tethras, e: bfarrell@tethras.com, t: +353 86 375 8669 or Micéal Whelan, NovaUCD, e: miceal.whelan@ucd.ie, t: +353 1 716 3712.                      

Editors Notes

Tethras Technologies Ltd was founded in 2010 by Brian Farrell and Brendan Clavin to provide a complete localisation service specifically for mobile application developers. Tethras’ service localises Apps into all languages supported by iOS and has an extensive network of specialist translators around the world. The company, which currently employs 10 people, is headquartered in NovaUCD, the Innovation and Technology Transfer Centre, Dublin with its US headquarters located in Mountain View, California.

NovaUCD, the Innovation and Technology Transfer Centre, is the hub of knowledge transfer activities at University College Dublin. NovaUCD is responsible for the commercialisation of intellectual property arising from UCD research and for the development of co-operation with industry and business. NovaUCD as a purpose-built centre also nurtures new technology and knowledge-intensive enterprises such as Tethras Technologies. NovaUCD has been funded through a unique public-private partnership that includes AIB Bank, Arthur Cox, Deloitte, Enterprise Ireland, Ericsson, Goodbody Stockbrokers, UCD and Xilinx.