There is value and incredible potential in this area.
I own numerous .com and .net in Italian, German, Arabic, French, and other languages.
One is on auction at sedo this moment. It happens to be French.
Quit thinking about this being English words in another language. Flat out, IT IS another language. Look for keywords and terms that are popular IN THAT LANGUAGE, not necessarily its English counterpart.
Yes, this will take a great deal of time but can be rewarding. I have many that bring in decent, not stellar, but decent revenue and PPC.
As with the value of anything, the value is what someone else is willing to pay for it.