VOA慢速英语2010年-Technology Report - Broadband Subscrib

This is the VOA Special English Technology Report.

Representatives from some of the world's leading broadband service providers and equipment manufacturers met in San Diego, California last week. They talked about the future of broadband and the Internet Protocols¹ that govern it. Broadband is a high data rate connection to the Internet.

A group called Broadband Forum³ organized the meeting. It was the group's fourth meeting this year. The Broadband Forum has almost two hundred members from around the world. They work to develop broadband network standards across the industry.

Laurie Adams Gonzalez is the marketing⁴ director for Broadband Forum. She says the group has been helping⁵ service providers move to the newest Internet Protocol², known as IPv6. Mrs. Gonzalez says the current version of the Internet, known as IPv4, could soon run out of space.

LAURIE ADAMS GONZALEZ: "There is only eight percent of the IPv4 numbers left in the world and so there has been a very time sensitive need for service providers to be able to support a whole new numbering scheme."

Broadband is one of the fastest growing areas of the telecommunications industry. A report from the Broadband Forum says the number of broadband subscribers reached four hundred ninety-eight million worldwide in June. By the third week of July it had passed five hundred million. That represents one in five homes worldwide. Mrs. Gonzalez says much of the growth has come from an unexpected source.

LAURIE ADAMS GONZALEZ: "One of the things that we're really seeing with broadband is that there are markets opening up, especially for emerging and developing countries that they would have never had an audience for."

Asia represents almost forty-one percent of the total broadband subscriptions⁷. More than one hundred twenty million of those subscribers are in China.

The report from the Broadband Forum also looked at Internet Protocol Television, or IPTV. IPTV is one of the main developments leading the growth in broadband.

IPTV uses fast broadband connections to bring television programs into homes. It normally requires a subscription⁶ and a special box on top of the television.

The Forum report said IPTV subscriptions had grown to more than thirty-eight million by the end of June. France has the highest number of IPTV subscribers at more than nine million. China and the United States are next, with an average of more than six million subscribers each.

The Broadband Forum will release its latest usage report sometime this month. More growth is expected for both broadband and IPTV.

And that's the VOA Special English Technology Report, written by June Simms. I'm Steve Ember.

1 protocols   

n.礼仪( protocol的名词复数 )；（外交条约的）草案；（数据传递的）协议；科学实验报告（或计划）

参考例句：

• There are also protocols on the testing of nuclear weapons. 也有关于核武器试验的协议。 来自辞典例句
• Hardware components and software design of network transport protocols are separately introduced. 介绍系统硬件组成及网络传输协议的软件设计。 来自互联网

2 protocol   

n.议定书，草约，会谈记录，外交礼节

参考例句：

• We must observe the correct protocol.我们必须遵守应有的礼仪。
• The statesmen signed a protocol.那些政治家签了议定书。

3 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

4 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

5 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

6 subscription   

n.预订，预订费，亲笔签名，调配法，下标（处方）

参考例句：

• We paid a subscription of 5 pounds yearly.我们按年度缴纳5英镑的订阅费。
• Subscription selling bloomed splendidly.订阅销售量激增。

7 subscriptions   

n.（报刊等的）订阅费( subscription的名词复数 )；捐款；（俱乐部的）会员费；捐助

参考例句：

• Subscriptions to these magazines can be paid in at the post office. 这些杂志的订阅费可以在邮局缴纳。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Payment of subscriptions should be made to the club secretary. 会费应交给俱乐部秘书。 来自《简明英汉词典》