Online courses, tutorials, and e-training platforms are quickly becoming the standard of today and the norm of the future. Their reach is absolutely global, and barriers such as distance, time zones, commute times, and transportation/accommodation costs disappear because all you need is a computer and an internet connection.

Producing an online course is very expensive, so you have recuperate your investment as soon as possible. And here is where subtitles come in: add closed captions, SDH or same language subtitles to your videos and you instantly can add to your potential trainees the deaf and hard-of-hearing community (which accounts to 360 million people, more than 5% of the world’s population) and individuals who speak English as a second language or are learning it; add subtitles in another language and you will reach every corner of the globe.

English

It is the most widely learned second language and is an official language of the United Nations, of the European Union, and of many other world and regional international organizations. When combining native and non-native speakers it is the most commonly spoken language in the world.

Spanish

Spanish is the official language in 20 countries. There are an estimated 470 million Spanish speakers with native competence and 559 million Spanish speakers as a first or second language, and more than 21 million students of Spanish as a foreign language. In the European Union, Spanish is the mother tongue of 8% of the population, with an additional 7% speaking it as a second language. Spanish is the most popular second language learned in the United States. In 2011 it was estimated by the American Community Survey that of the 55 million Hispanic United States residents, 38 million speak Spanish at home. It is estimated that the combined total number of Spanish speakers is between 470 and 500 million, making it the second most widely spoken language in terms of native speakers. Spanish is the second most spoken language by total number of speakers (after Mandarin). Internet usage statistics for 2007 show Spanish as the third most commonly used language on the Internet, after English and Mandarin.

Portuguese

It is the third-most spoken European language in the world in terms of native speakers, and a major language of the Southern Hemisphere. It is also the most spoken language in South America and the second-most spoken in Latin America after Spanish, and is an official language in 9 countries. According to estimates by UNESCO, Portuguese is the fastest-growing European language after English and the language has the highest potential for growth as an international language in southern Africa and South America. The Portuguese-speaking African countries are expected to have a combined population of 83 million, and Brazil 350 million by 2050. In total, the Portuguese-speaking countries will have about 433 million people by the same year. Portuguese is truly a globalized language spoken officially in 5 continents, and as a second language by millions worldwide.