VOA慢速英语:Telecommunications Deal Gets Attention of US Lawmakers, Candidates(翻译)

The United States Senate plans to hold hearings next month on a plan to join two of the country’s largest media companies.
美国参议院计划在下个月就该国两大媒体公司合并一事举行听证会。

Senators want to hold hearings on AT&T’s proposal to buy Time Warner for more than $85 billion in cash and stock shares.
参议员想就美国电话电报公司以超过850亿美元现金和股票的形式计划收购时代华纳一事举行听证会。

AT&T has been one of the world’s leading companies in developing technology.Its roots go back to the invention of the telephone in the 19th century. Today, AT&T provides phone, television and internet services to Americans through the businesses it owns.
美国电话电报公司在技术开发方面是世界领先的公司之一。它最早要追溯到19世纪电话的发明。今天，美国电话电报公司为美国人提供电话、电视以及网络服务业务。

Time Warner is a major communications and entertainment company. It provides cable television services, cable stations and a film studio.
时代华纳是一家大型通讯和娱乐公司。该公司提供有线电视服务、有线电视台和电影制片业务。

The proposed deal raises concerns that the combined company will control too much of the American media industry. Federal and state governments have antitrust laws to guarantee competition and limit a company’s control of an industry or market.Senators Mike Lee of Utah and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota are members of the Senate antitrust committee.They say the deal would potentially raise antitrust issues.
很多人担心这项计划中的交易会使合并后的公司掌控美国媒体业的程度加深。联邦政府和州政府通过了反垄断法，以保证公平竞争，限制一家公司在该行业或市场内的控制水平。犹他州参议员麦克·李和明尼苏达州参议员艾米·克罗布歇是参议员反垄断委员会的成员。他们说这项交易可能会带来反垄断的问题。

The senators say they have “carefully examined consolidation in the cable and video content industries to ensure that it does not harm consumers.”
参议员们表示他们“仔细检查了这项在有线电视和视频内容产业方面的整合，确保这不会伤害到消费者”。

The two lawmakers are from opposing political parties.Lee belongs to the Republican Party, while Klobuchar is a Democrat.
这两位参议员来自对立的政党。李来自共和党，克罗布歇是民主党人。

The business deal would be the biggest in the world this year, according to the Reuters news agency.
据路透新闻社报道，这项商业交易可以说是今年世界最大的交易了。

The deal is already a campaign issue.A spokesman for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said there are many questions and concerns about the proposal.He said more information is needed.Her Republican opponent, Donald Trump, said Saturday he would block the deal if elected.“It’s too much concentration of power in the hands of too few,” said Trump.The U.S. Justice Department decides whether the federal government should block a business deal joining major businesses within an industry.
这项交易也成了选举的话题。民主党总统候选人希拉里·克林顿的发言人称，对于这项提议还有很多问题和疑虑。他说需要更多的信息以观后效。共和党总统侯选人唐纳德·特朗普周六表示一旦当选，他将封锁这项交易。“权力太过集中在少数人的手中了。”他说。美国司法部决定是否由联邦政府行使对同一行业内两家大公司合并案的封锁权。

AT&T is the second-largest wireless phone service company in the U.S.At the time the deal was announced, AT&T was offering more than the market price for shares of Time Warner stock. Shareholders were being offered a payment one-third higher than the market price.
美国电话电报公司是美国第二大无线电话服务公司。宣布这项交易的时候，美国电话电报公司的出价比时代华纳股票的市场价要高。股东可以得到比市场价高三分之一的收益。

Time Warner owns broadcaster cnn, cable channel HBO and Warner Brothers movie studio.The heads of both companies have praised the deal.In a statement, AT&T Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Randall Stephens said, “The new company would deliver what customers want.”AT&T said the combined company will save money while expanding the reach of its services.Jeff Bewkes, Time Warner’s chief, said combining with AT&T would speed up the company’s ability to provide information to its consumers.He added that it would create more chances to meet the growing demand for video.
时代华纳旗下有美国有线电视新闻网（cnn）、有线电视台HBO以及华纳兄弟电影公司。两家公司的高层都对这项交易表示了赞许。美国电话电报公司主席兼首席执行官兰德尔·斯蒂芬斯在一份声明中说，“新公司将会给消费者提供他们所需要的东西。”美国电话电报公司表示，新公司将在拓展新业务的同时节约开支。时代华纳总裁杰夫·比克斯说，与美国电话电报公司的合并将加速该公司向消费者提供信息的能力。他补充说，新公司将创造更多机会以适应对视频需要的增长。

The board of directors of both companies have already approved the deal.
两家公司的董事会成员已经批准了这项交易。

Shareholders of Time Warner will be asked to vote on the offer for their stock.
时代华纳股东将被要求投票决定他们的持股份额。

I’m Mario Ritter.
马里奥·里特为您报道。