打车软件市场重新洗牌

 　　BEIJING, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- After a year of bitter rivalry¹, a merger² between two Chinese major taxi hailing apps on Valentine's Day was the day's biggest surprise.

　　Didi Dache and Kuaidi Dache, both start ups, announced that they would put their differences aside and explore the sector³ together.

　　Didi CEO Cheng Wei said the deal was the largest merger in China's internet history and the combined entity⁴ would find its way on to the list of the top 10 Chinese Internet-based companies.

　　The newly founded company, which is yet to announce its official name, has been valued at 6 billion U.S. dollars.

　　Xinhua Insight: Chinese taxi app merger to reshuffle market

　　CHANGING WINDS

　　Industrial experts say that taxi-hailing apps will challenge established companies.

　　While passengers will reap the benefits of convenience and cheaper fares from the new merger, established taxi giants will not be so fortunate.

　　One of the most lucrative⁵ businesses in China, taxis reap considerable profits each year from exclusive government deals, but offer little in return for the end users.

　　The sector was untouched by the economic downturn as passengers had no other alternative, and most cab drivers' operation licenses⁶ were linked to companies.

　　However, after Kuaidi and Didi both launched ride-on-demand services last year, clients left traditional companies for better service and a more comfortable ride.

　　The apps generally provide two types of service: A taxi-hailing service, which is welcomed by cab drivers and ensures passengers are picked up by licensed⁷ cabs; or the more expensive ride-on-demand service, which offers higher quality vehicles that are owned by car-rental companies.

　　In east China's Hangzhou City, where Kuaidi's headquarters are located, its ride-on-demand service has 4,000 cars, accounting⁸ for nearly 40 percent of all licensed cabs. Cab drivers, already plagued by high contract fees, responded by striking for three days in August over falling passengers numbers, which they blamed on the apps.

　　Zhang Xu from Analysis International described the apps as a breath of fresh air in the rigid⁹ sector.

　　Industrial experts believe the merger will compel taxi firms to restructure.

　　"Taxi companies should have a sense of urgency," director of the Shanghai Municipal Transportation Commission, Sun Jianping said.

　　A VIEW TO PROFIT

　　Didi and Kuaidi invested heavily to secure a market share last year, awarding both passengers and taxi drivers huge subsidies¹⁰. But neither managed to discover a feasible way to make profits, resulting in the unexpected merger.

　　In the first six months of 2014, Alibaba-backed Kuaidi's subsidies amounted to 1 billion yuan (around 163 million U.S. dollars), while Didi, supported by another Internet giant Tencent, subsidizes cost it 1.4 billion yuan.

　　Understandably, the firms gradually reduced their subsidies in the second half of the year.

　　Kuaidi CEO Lyu Chuanwei said the deal was partly influenced by the sustainability of subsidies.

　　The merger will allow the newly established company to accelerate expansion in other areas, Lyu said.

　　A business insider said that even an initial public offering (IPO) would be on the agenda soon; which was an unattainable goal last year.

　　"The battle escalated¹¹ last year as both financial backers fought to attract more mobile payment users," iiMedia Research CEO Zhang Yi said.

　　There were 172 million taxi-hailing app users by Dec. 2014, 99.8 percent of which used the two apps.

　　Liu Qing, president-to-be of the new company, is upbeat that the new company has a future beyond just taxis.

　　"When you open the app, it can tell you when the next bus is due or whether you should take the subway to avoid traffic or even help you order a car," she said outlining her vision for the next five years.

1 rivalry   

n.竞争，竞赛，对抗

参考例句：

• The quarrel originated in rivalry between the two families.这次争吵是两家不和引起的。
• He had a lot of rivalry with his brothers and sisters.他和兄弟姐妹间经常较劲。

2 merger   

n.企业合并，并吞

参考例句：

• Acceptance of the offer is the first step to a merger.对这项提议的赞同是合并的第一步。
• Shareholders will be voting on the merger of the companies.股东们将投票表决公司合并问题。

3 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

4 entity   

n.实体，独立存在体，实际存在物

参考例句：

• The country is no longer one political entity.这个国家不再是一个统一的政治实体了。
• As a separate legal entity,the corporation must pay taxes.作为一个独立的法律实体，公司必须纳税。

5 lucrative   

adj.赚钱的，可获利的

参考例句：

• He decided to turn his hobby into a lucrative sideline.他决定把自己的爱好变成赚钱的副业。
• It was not a lucrative profession.那是一个没有多少油水的职业。

6 licenses   

n.执照( license的名词复数 )v.批准，许可，颁发执照( license的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Drivers have ten days' grace to renew their licenses. 驾驶员更换执照有10天的宽限期。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Jewish firms couldn't get import or export licenses or raw materials. 犹太人的企业得不到进出口许可证或原料。 来自辞典例句

7 licensed   

adj.得到许可的v.许可，颁发执照(license的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The new drug has not yet been licensed in the US. 这种新药尚未在美国获得许可。
• Is that gun licensed? 那支枪有持枪执照吗？

8 accounting   

n.会计，会计学，借贷对照表

参考例句：

• A job fell vacant in the accounting department.财会部出现了一个空缺。
• There's an accounting error in this entry.这笔账目里有差错。

9 rigid   

adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的

参考例句：

• She became as rigid as adamant.她变得如顽石般的固执。
• The examination was so rigid that nearly all aspirants were ruled out.考试很严，几乎所有的考生都被淘汰了。

10 subsidies   

n.补贴，津贴，补助金( subsidy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• European agriculture ministers failed to break the deadlock over farm subsidies. 欧洲各国农业部长在农业补贴问题上未能打破僵局。
• Agricultural subsidies absorb about half the EU's income. 农业补贴占去了欧盟收入的大约一半。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 escalated   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The fighting escalated into a full-scale war. 这场交战逐步扩大为全面战争。
• The demonstration escalated into a pitched battle with the police. 示威逐步升级，演变成了一场同警察的混战。