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Television - Cable ties
電視——有線電視
As Americans cut the cord, Europeans sign up for more pay-TV
美國人切斷了有線電視，而歐洲人卻簽約了更多付費電視
The biggest television drama of the past decade has been the story of how people watch it.
過去十年中最重大的電視劇就是人們如何觀看電視的故事。
Ten years ago nearly nine out of ten American households subscribed to cable or satellite.
十年前，幾乎90%的美國家庭訂閱有線電視或衛星電視。
Today little more than half do.
如今，這個數字只有一半多一點。
The collapse of pay-TV, amid the advance of online streaming, has upended the television industry and forced Hollywood giants like Disney to rethink their business model.
隨著在線流媒體的發展，付費電視的崩潰顛覆了電視行業，迫使迪士尼等好萊塢巨頭重新思考他們的商業模式。
And the pace at which consumers are “cutting the cord” from cable providers is only increasing.
而且，消費者與有線電視供應商“斷線”的步伐只會越來越快。
But not everywhere.
但并不是所有地方都如此。
On the other side of the Atlantic, cord-cutters are outnumbered by cord-knotters.
在大西洋的另一邊，接線者的數量超過了斷線者。
As Americans tear up their contracts, Europeans are signing up for cable and satellite in greater numbers than ever.
當美國人撕毀他們的合同時，歐洲人簽約有線電視和衛星電視的數量比以往任何時候都要多。
Pay-TV penetration in Britain will overtake that in America this year, according to Ampere Analysis, a research firm.
根據安培分析研究公司的調查，英國付費電視的滲透率今年將超過美國。
In France and Germany it already has.
這一點法國和德國已經做到了。
Why has American media’s mega-trend missed Europe?
為什么美國媒體的大趨勢沒有波及歐洲？
One reason is price.
其中一個原因是價格。
America’s cable industry may look competitive: the largest player, Comcast, has only a quarter of the market.
美國有線電視產業可能看起來競爭激烈：最大的運營商康卡斯特只有四分之一的市場份額。
But it is highly regionalised, so most homes have few options, says Richard Broughton of Ampere.
但因為它是高度區域化的，所以大多數家庭幾乎沒有選擇，安培公司的理查德·布勞頓如是說。
The result is an average monthly cable bill of nearly $100.
其結果是，平均每月的有線電視費用接近100美元。
British homes pay less than half as much.
英國家庭支付的費用還不到這個數字的一半。
Tax loopholes have made pay-TV an even better deal in parts of Europe.
稅收漏洞使付費電視在歐洲部分地區變得更加劃算。
Take-up in France rocketed from 30% to 90% between 2004 and 2014, after the government imposed a lower rate of VAT on television services than on telecoms, unintentionally giving phone firms an incentive to throw in a cheap TV package and pay the lower rate of tax.
在政府對電視服務征收比電信服務更低的增值稅后，法國的付費率在2004年至2014年間從30%飆升至90%，無意中激勵了電話公司提供廉價的電視套餐，并支付更低的稅率。
The loophole has been closed, but subscriptions remain high.
這個漏洞已經被堵住了，但訂閱量仍然很高。
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