I know I live in Switzerland, but I still want to use your website in English

Complaints Corner
1
It really irritates me when I'm trying to use large international companies' websites. A company ships worldwide from a single distribution chain. They have their website translated into 20+ different languages. But they insist that if you live in a particular country you are not allowed to use any other language for their website. It must really irritate Italian speaking Swiss when these companies decide that the only legitimate languages are French and German, but why not let you chose your language independently from location?

2
Same in Spain and in Turkey

3
get google translate plugin for your browser

4
Many websites, companies and online-tools are not developed with multilingual people or globalization migrants in mind. They aim first at the majority of users but also at blocking off any possibilities to go around legal restrictions. The language barrier seems to be also used to keep people when they want them to be, it be for legal reasons or commercial reasons.

Definite : the difficulty to buy online books in other languages than the local ones. It's far worse with so called small languages.

5
+1.

This drives me crazy.

6

I feel the same. I recently bought the video game Kingdoms of Amalur while on a visit to the UK. Come home, install and activate the game in English, but when I decide to have a look at the downloadable content packs to see if I want to buy any the only language choices so I can proceed into the shop are French, German and Italian. If they are going to include all the languages anyway, why not just let you choose the one you want. As it is I’m nervous of taking the process any further in case the downloads are only available in F, G or I as well, given my location. So they have lost a potential customer. Good work, guys!

Mind you, I get quite annoyed with companies in the German part of Switzerland for not including another official language on their sites. The French side nearly always have French and German, but German have only German. Yes, some say you can ring up and talk to someone in French (or English sometimes), but that’s not the point. I want to look at what’s on offer on the site first and then I might want to talk to someone. I can’t do that if it’s German only as I only know French and that’s basic. Again, losing customers because they can’t read how wonderful your company/products are.

7
Related ( dated ) threads:

keeping websites in english??

Language school websites - why no English?

Coop and Migros Home Delivery in English please read

8
The fact that such large web sites have content in let's say in Italian or English doesn't mean that what is described there applies to other countries where other people may also speak those languages. For instance, the French version could contain useful contact addresses in Paris, which is not what a user from the Romandie needs.

9
It's not just the language, I hate the fact Tripadvisor throws you to local websites when you ask for a hotel price comparison.

10
and the worst culprit of all is :::

Apple

No choice but having 100 pages of terms and conditions in German. Have written to Apple hundreds of times, pointing out that Switzerland isn't a German-speaking country. About 30% of the population isn't German speaking. They don't understand.

And of course you're doomed to the App Store in German.

11
but the joke is on them when annoying ads (like spotify) are in German - I can't understand them so I'm not going to buy anything from you!!!

12
I pointed this out to British Airways when I lived in Germany - I didn't get a reply, but not long after that I discovered they had changed their website so you could select language separately from location. May have been a coincidence of course - or maybe they listened

13
The comparison is wrong. If you use GOOGLE you can choose your language between German, French, Italian, English and Rumantsch. Swiss Federal WEBsites are in these five languages also.

Take a different approach. Get into a search WEBsite like GOOGLE, chose English and then trace for your favourite WEBsite. I am fairly confident that you then will have it in English.

************************************************** ******************

Most WEBsites of larger companies have at least three languages. And only small companies are German-language-only. Alright, just checked the WEBsite of our IT consultant. Indeed German language only. But I much doubt whether he has any customers west of the Aare-Reuss line of south of the San Gottardo. He however may well have customers in Jestetten and Hohentengen and Büsingen

************************************************** *************************

Well, here

COOP home delivery in English

http://www.coopathome.ch/b2c_coop/b2...FYrP3wod7hYATg

some limited information of Migros Klubschule in English here

http://www.klubschule.ch/Services/~/link.aspx?_id=2C7BD631C0514FF78745D814DD993669&_z= z

and here the English section of the WEBsite of AKAD, clearly a leading institute in its field

http://www.akad.ch/Portrait/Standort...?sc_lang=en-GB

and here the VBZ in Englsh

http://www.stadt-zuerich.ch/vbz/en/index.html

************************************************** ******

Access them via

http://www.apple.com/uk/

and, ehmmm, do you know what MIES means in German ?

************************************************** ****************

14
Because the best apple policy "We are the Cult, we don't give a shit about the users" my ex company back in the time issued its software only in english. We've prepared multilingual versions but for example - english version only UK and US, french only in France and parts of Africa, for Switzerland only german was allowed.

I'm working with apps development and still can't believe that people allow that company to treat them like s*&t.

15
It won't work unless you have a UK credit card registered at a UK address you cant buy from the UK site.

I have UK cards redistered in CH & I cant access the English site.

I have a French card registered in France so I have to use the French site. Cant download loads of appy I want either from UK or Swiss site!

16
The Apple site including the store is in German or French. iTunes is different because hardly any of the apps come in French, I just keep in on the US app store. That's not Apple's fault. It's the developers.

http://store.apple.com/ch-fr

Blogger is really annoying. No matter where in the world the blog is they will translate it to German! Not even giving any option to change to French or German. PayPal is bad too.

The other day I was on a discount airfare site which only allowed you to check for flights out of Zurich! There was no way to change this. Don't even remember the name of that PoC site.

It gets really boring to hear all the "mac cult" crap. I like it. It's easier than android FOR me and has nothing to do with me being "cultish". If you like something else. Great. I won't assume you cant' think for yourself. The fact that developers don't make apps in other languages isn't Apples fault.

ALL systems have their drawbacks. I use my own assessment to find the one that works for me. And I expect you to do the same.

17
And another thing, this site, it's only available in bloody English! WTF?

18
Maybe, just maybe, it's done to try to motivate immigrants to learn at least one of the official languages of whatever country you have chosen to live in...

I think you'll all find that if you do, you'll find that speaking the native language has many many more uses than looking at big commercial websites or ordering books online...

just sayin y'all

19
I speak two of the official languages and so often the sites are just in German. That's fine. If those companies just want to cater to the German part of the country I'll find another place to do business with.

But I doubt that's the motivation behind "large international companies" limiting your language choices.

20
Looks as if I overestimated common sense of that company ! So sorry