Cisco Makes Webex Go Global With Real-Time Translation Support for 100 Languages

San Jose-based IT and networking leader Cisco is rolling out real-time language translation support for its video conferencing platform Webex. The feature will enable Cisco’s 600 million quarterly active users to avail translations from English to over a hundred other languages and seamlessly overcome language barriers. 

Cisco claims its translation serviceOpens a new window , which previously supported only nine languages, can deliver an experience that is 10x better than in-person interaction. The feature will be available on Webex as a preview starting this month and will officially roll out in May.

The service will enable users to overcome the language barrier and will offer real-time in-meeting captions in more than 100 languages, including Spanish, French, German, Mandarin, Portuguese, Arabic, Russian, Dutch, Japanese, and more.

“The inclusive features of Webex help create a level playing field for users, regardless of factors like language or geography,” said Jeetu Patel, senior vice president, and general manager of security and applications. “Enabling global real-time translations is another step toward powering an Inclusive Future, and an important component of driving better communication and collaboration across teams.”

Learn More: WebexOne: Cisco Revives Its Collaboration Game With the All New Webex

Cisco has invested more than $1 billion in AI-powered capabilities over the past few years to offer “an inclusive future for all.” In 2019, it acquiredOpens a new window voice-focussed AI company Voicea to gain access to its specialized tools that combine AI and Automated Speech Recognition (ASR) to support meeting transcription, voice search, and meeting action items. Patel also highlighted the exciting breakthrough rates its accurate real-time transcription service has achieved, powered by its acquisition of BabbleLabs and Accompany.

With Webex, Cisco marks a shift away from geography-based hiring, offering a seat to everyone worldwide. A recent report from Metrigy Opens a new window on intelligent virtual assistants found that nearly 24% of participants have meetings that include non-English native speakers. Of these, more than half have been using third-party services to translate meetings, costing an average of $172 per session.

With the new capabilities, Webex will offer seamless collaboration, smart hybrid work, and intelligent customer experience, thereby enabling organizations to adapt to the evolving workplace efficiently.

Back in December, Cisco also unveiled several other features to improve Webex as an advanced video conferencing service and strengthen its position as a direct competitor to Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet.

The revamped Webex has interesting updates that match up to the promises Cisco made last year. The platform now boasts a customizable meeting layout, offering participants options beyond gallery or speaker view. Apart from the highly awaited real-time translation and transcription services, users will also host meetings beyond traditional 30-minute sessions, and enjoy higher quality video, benefits of noise cancellation, speech enhancement, and immersive sharing capabilities.

Learn More: Microsoft Teams, Cisco Webex Tout Unprecedented User Growth Amid Outbreak

To make meetings more interactive and realistic, Webex also offers in-meeting gestures that can be powered by body movement recognition. Users will also be able to host up to 100,000 active participants when live-streaming Webex Events.

During the pandemic, usage of videoconferencing and cloud collaboration tools like Google Meet and Microsoft Teams surged exponentially. Webex also grew the number of its quarterly average users to nearly 600 million and connects more than 6 billion calls every month worldwide. 

In December, Cisco also unveiled several other features to improve the Webex experience and strengthen its position as a direct competitor to collaboration heavyweights Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet. It also launched supporting hardware like Webex Desk Camera, Webex Desk Hub, and Webex Desk to improve the overall meeting experience.

Meanwhile, Google Meet has been offering real-time translation services to users since January through Otter’s AI-powered transcription tool. Skype also offers real-time translations through Microsoft Translator, even though the service is presently not available in Microsoft Teams. 

Will the new language translation service help Webex eclipse Google Meet and Microsoft Teams in the coming days? Comment below or let us know on  LinkedInOpens a new window , TwitterOpens a new window , or FacebookOpens a new window . We’d love to hear from you!