Intent to Ship: Manifest Localization

[Alexander Kyereboah]

Contact emails

akyer...@microsoft.com

Specification

https://www.w3.org/TR/appmanifest/#x_localized-members

Summary

Supports localization of manifest members so apps can adapt their names, descriptions, icons, and shortcuts to the user’s language and region. Developers provide localized values in the web app manifest, and the browser automatically selects the appropriate resources based on the user’s language settings, introducing language support across different markets.

Blink component

Blink>AppManifest

Web Feature ID

manifest-localization

Motivation

PWAs are used worldwide, but the web app manifest only supports a single language. This limits developers who want their apps to feel native and accessible to users across different regions. By allowing localization of manifest fields, developers can present app names, descriptions, icons, and shortcuts in the user’s preferred language, making web apps more accessible and inclusive.

Initial public proposal

No information provided

TAG review

TAG review is not necessary because this feature implements behavior that is already fully specified in the Web App Manifest specification (*_localized members), with the architecture and localization model designed and reviewed in W3C (primarily via the Internationalization Working Group). Although Chromium may be an early or first implementation, this work does not introduce new web‑exposed capabilities, new architectural design choices, or new security or privacy properties. Given the lack of remaining architectural design space for TAG feedback to influence, TAG review would not add meaningful additional signal for this feature.

TAG review status

Not applicable

Risks

Interoperability and Compatibility

No information provided

Gecko: N/A (https://github.com/mozilla/standards-positions/issues/1366)

WebKit: Positive (https://github.com/w3c/manifest/pull/1101) Support from @marcoscaceres on localization issue. 
WebKit Bug:  276463 – Web App Manifest: localized member support

Web developers: Positive (https://github.com/w3c/manifest/pull/1101) @christianliebel filed the request as a web dev, with positive upvotes.

Other signals:

WebView application risks

Does this intent deprecate or change behavior of existing APIs, such that it has potentially high risk for Android WebView-based applications?

No information provided

Debuggability

Localized fields show up in the Application manifest, in line with existing manifest viewing capabilities.

Will this feature be supported on all six Blink platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux, ChromeOS, Android, and Android WebView)?

Yes

Is this feature fully tested by web-platform-tests?

Yes
PWA installation can't be automatically tested by WPT, manual WPT created at the following: https://wpt.live/appmanifest/icons_localized-member/
https://wpt.live/appmanifest/name_localized-member/
https://wpt.live/appmanifest/short_name_localized-member/
https://wpt.live/appmanifest/shortcuts_localized-member/ 
Automated unit tests at: https://source.chromium.org/chromium/chromium/src/+/main:third_party/blink/renderer/modules/manifest/manifest_parser_unittest.cc 
https://source.chromium.org/chromium/chromium/src/+/main:chrome/browser/web_applications/jobs/manifest_to_web_app_install_info_job_unittest.cc

Flag name on about://flags

No information provided

Finch feature name

WebAppManifestLocalization

Rollout plan

Will ship enabled for all users

Requires code in //chrome?

False

Tracking bug

https://issues.chromium.org/issues/380491647

Estimated milestones

Shipping on desktop
147

Anticipated spec changes

Open questions about a feature may be a source of future web compat or interop issues. Please list open issues (e.g. links to known github issues in the project for the feature specification) whose resolution may introduce web compat/interop risk (e.g., changing to naming or structure of the API in a non-backward-compatible way).

No information provided

Link to entry on the Chrome Platform Status

https://chromestatus.com/feature/5090807862394880?gate=4864426712891392

Links to previous Intent discussions

Intent to Prototype: https://groups.google.com/a/chromium.org/d/msgid/blink-dev/17f99c87-4953-4c9e-a767-f0fb2f7617ban%40chromium.org

This intent message was generated by Chrome Platform Status.