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Business.
商業(yè)。
Breaking up News Corp.
拆分新聞集團。
Murdoch does the splits.
默多克的"壯士斷腕"。
Investors like the idea of hiving off the group's newspaper arm.
投資者更贊成新聞集團能夠?qū)蠹垬I(yè)務(wù)剝離出去,與其電視娛樂業(yè)務(wù)分立開。
SHAKESPEARE mused that "It is beyond the power of man to bring love and wisdom to an union."
莎士比亞曾思索到，讓一個人兼具愛與智慧，乃其力所不及的。
News Corporation's shareholders have long agreed, arguing that Rupert Murdoch's abiding love for newsprint has clouded his judgment and tainted his media empire. The sluggish growth and the legal cases besetting News Corp's publishing arm set it in sharp contrast to the group's robust film and television assets, which account for three-quarters of revenues and almost all operating profit.
新聞集團的股東們一直認(rèn)為并辯稱魯伯特·默多克對新聞出版業(yè)的鐘情影響了他的決策判斷，從而拖累了他整個傳媒帝國。集團的出版業(yè)務(wù)增長緩慢，官司不斷，這使得該部門的資產(chǎn)與集團強勁的電影與電視部門相比相形見絀，后者為集團貢獻了四分之三的收入，以及幾乎所有的營業(yè)利潤。
After months of hinting that it may heed investors and separate the two parts, News Corp's board met on June 27th to approve a split, and was set to confirm its decision as The Economist went to press. (Update: The firm has since announced its plans for a split.)
新聞集團在數(shù)月來提及其可能會聽從投資者的建議將兩大業(yè)務(wù)分拆之后，6月27日，董事會批準(zhǔn)分拆計劃，并定于本刊出版之際確認(rèn)決議。（最新消息：新聞集團已經(jīng)對外宣布了分拆計劃）。
News that a split was under consideration sent News Corp's share price up by around 10%. At over $22, it is now at its highest since 2007. This bolstered the view that dividing the group will boost both companies and reward shareholders.
考慮分拆的消息將新聞集團的股價推高近10%，股價超過22美元，達到2007年來的最高點。股價的表現(xiàn)支持了這一觀點，即：分拆將同時促進兩家公司的發(fā)展，并且使股東得到更好的回報
After the phone-hacking scandal at News Corp's British newspaper arm-which is still being investigated by Lord Justice Leveson, a senior judge-the group had to drop its bid for full ownership of BSkyB, a profitable satellite broadcaster; it already owns 39%. Separating the publishing division and giving it a new boss may not be enough to overcome regulatory obstacles to News Corp taking full ownership of BSkyB. But it should help protect the entertainment businesses from the scandal's rising legal costs, and at least ward off pressure for News Corp to sell its existing stake.
在新聞集團英國的報業(yè)分支爆出竊聽門丑聞之后（該案件目前仍在接受上訴法院大法官萊維森的調(diào)查），該集團不得不放棄收購英國天空廣播公司（BSkyB）以實現(xiàn)完全控股（新聞集團目前已擁有該公司39%的股份）。盡管將新聞出版部分剝離出來并轉(zhuǎn)由新的老板管理尚不足以使得新聞集團克服監(jiān)管障礙，從而買下天空廣播公司，但它能幫助集團的娛樂業(yè)務(wù)免受竊聽門案件帶來的訴訟成本高漲的影響，至少消除新聞集團出售現(xiàn)有股份的壓力。
Besides closing the News of the World in the wake of the hacking scandal, News Corp has recently rid itself of another sour asset, MySpace (an ailing social-media site), and initiated a $10 billion share buy-back (which will have the side-effect of enlarging the Murdochs' 40% stake). Such moves have supported the group's share price and pleased shareholders. But splitting the company in two is the "ultimate dream" of investors, says Michael Nathanson of Nomura, a stockbroker.
除了在竊聽門事件之后關(guān)?！妒澜缧侣剤蟆?，新聞集團最近還甩賣了（一家每況愈下的社交網(wǎng)站）聚友網(wǎng)這一不良資產(chǎn)，并發(fā)起了一項100億美元的股票回購計劃（這將擴大默多克現(xiàn)在持有的40%的股份）。對于新聞集團來說，這些舉動提振了股價，取悅了股東。不過，在日本野村證券的股票經(jīng)理人邁克爾·納罕森看來，將新聞集團一分為二才是投資者的最終夢想。
Analysts worry that News Corp is still juggling too many minority stakes in smaller companies, such as Hulu (online video) and Tata Sky (Indian satellite television). Todd Juenger of Sanford C. Bernstein, an investment bank, also worries about the $11 billion of idle cash on News Corp's balance-sheet. However, Chase Carey, the group's chief operating officer, has been busy trying to sort out its tangle of holdings, selling some of its minority stakes at a profit and buying full control of other holdings. Investors seem prepared to cut Mr Carey some slack while he does so. Any reorganisation of the top table will probably keep him just below Rupert Murdoch, leaving his son James Murdoch, who gave up the chairmanship of News Corp's British newspaper arm after the scandal, out of the spotlight for now.
新聞集團在太多相對小型的公司（如在線視頻網(wǎng)站葫蘆網(wǎng)以及印度衛(wèi)星電視塔塔天空）都持有一小部分股份（言外之意是持股太分散了），分析人士對此表示擔(dān)憂。托德·喬根，是來自一家名為桑福德·伯恩斯坦（Sanford C. Bernstein）投資銀行。他對新聞集團資產(chǎn)債務(wù)表上110億美元的閑置現(xiàn)金表示擔(dān)心。然而，新聞集團的COO（首席運營官）切絲·凱里則忙于整理混亂的持股，獲利出售一部分新聞集團占少數(shù)股權(quán)公司的股份，同時收購一些股份以實現(xiàn)占大股份公司的全部控股。盡管他如此做，但投資者看似準(zhǔn)備放過凱里一馬（參考譯法：投資者似乎準(zhǔn)備助其一臂之力）。高層的任何重組都很有可能使得凱里的地位僅次于魯伯特·默多克，從而讓默多克的兒子詹姆士·默多克暫時脫身于公眾聚焦。竊聽門丑聞發(fā)生后，詹姆士·默多克辭去了新聞集團英國報業(yè)執(zhí)行主席一職。
The fastest-growing parts of the company are its television and cable businesses. News Corp was shrewd in understanding the market for conservative political TV in America: the core audience of Fox News creates a stable cashflow. The company has also made wise investments in sports broadcasting, which viewers still prefer to watch live (making it more attractive to advertisers). BSkyB owns the lion's share of Britain's football rights, Fox has American football, and its cable network hosts NASCAR races. The company is expanding its holdings in Australia and Latin America, and is considering a new national sports network in America to rival ESPN.
電視及有線業(yè)務(wù)是新聞集團增長最快的部分。新聞集團深諳政治上偏保守的電視節(jié)目在美國的市場，憑借福克斯新聞籠絡(luò)一批核心觀眾，創(chuàng)造了一個穩(wěn)定的收入。同時，集團還對體育賽事播報進行投資，因為觀眾還是更喜歡看現(xiàn)場直播（這對于廣告商來說更具吸引力），此舉非常英明。天空廣播公司擁有英國足球賽事的最大份額轉(zhuǎn)播權(quán)，?？怂箵碛忻绹闱虻牟シ艡?quán)，以及?？怂褂芯€電視網(wǎng)絡(luò)舉辦的納斯卡賽車比賽。公司正在澳大利亞及拉丁美洲擴大其持股，并考慮在美開辦一個新的全國體育廣播網(wǎng)與ESPN競爭。
The portfolio of newspapers in News Corp's publishing arm (which also includes HarperCollins, a big book publisher) encompasses loss-makers like the London Times and the New York Post, as well as the Wall Street Journal, which Mr Murdoch paid too much for but which at least is in profit, and the Sun, a populist cash-cow. The newspaper business may not be growing, but it generates enough cashflow to sustain itself, says Jeff Logsdon of BMO Capital Markets. It is unlikely that the company will try to offload its British papers while Mr Murdoch is still alive, in part because the phone-hacking trials could go on for years.
相比之下，新聞集團的出版業(yè)務(wù)（包括哈珀柯林斯，一個大型圖書出版社）則涵蓋倫敦的《泰晤士報》，《紐約郵報》以及《華爾街日報》，這些默多克傾注最多但盈利卻最少的包袱，及《太陽報》這樣的大眾化報紙，它的盈利還是可觀的。蒙特利爾銀行（BMO）資本市場部的杰夫·羅格斯登說："報紙業(yè)務(wù)也許并不會增長，但它帶來的現(xiàn)金流足以維系自身運轉(zhuǎn)。"在默多克的有生之年，公司不大可能將英國的報紙業(yè)務(wù)甩掉，這其中部分也因竊聽門審理可能會持續(xù)數(shù)年。
The ideal outcome for investors may be a repeat of what happened when Viacom, a film and cable giant, spun off its broadcast arm, CBS, in 2005. Sumner Redstone remained chairman of both sides but Leslie Moonves, given the job of running the supposedly sluggish CBS part, showed that it could be revived-since when the shares of both businesses have risen.
對于投資者而言，最理想的結(jié)果可能是重演2005年維亞康姆（Viacom）拆出其電視業(yè)務(wù)CBS一幕。維亞康姆是一家以電影及電視網(wǎng)為主的傳媒巨頭。維亞康姆分拆后，薩默·雷思東（Viacom的董事長兼CEO）仍然兼任兩個公司的董事長，萊斯利·穆恩維斯(CBS的總裁)則負(fù)責(zé)運營被認(rèn)為蕭條的哥倫利比亞廣播公司（CBS），他們認(rèn)為分拆后CBS能夠復(fù)興。果如其所料，維亞康姆自分拆為二上市后，其兩家公司股票都出現(xiàn)上漲。
