2016年3月31日 星期四

More No-Frills Fares on the Horizon/3家美國老牌航空 也推廉價機票


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2016/04/01 第113期 訂閱/退訂看歷史報份
 
 
紐時周報精選 More No-Frills Fares on the Horizon/3家美國老牌航空 也推廉價機票
A Malaise in Tech Spreads/新創光環不再? 科技業的不安蔓延中
紐時周報精選
 
More No-Frills Fares on the Horizon/3家美國老牌航空 也推廉價機票
Stephanie Rosenbloom
田思怡譯

Rock-bottom fares once unique to low-cost carriers like Spirit and Frontier may, in the coming months, be offered by all three of the nation's legacy airlines, American, United and Delta.

Great news for you and your wallet, right? The answer isn't so clear-cut.

超低價機票過去是精神航空公司和邊疆航空公司這類廉價航空公司的專利,也許在未來幾個月裡,美國的三家老牌航空公司美利堅航空、聯合航空和達美航空也會提供。

對你和你的荷包而言這可是大好消息,對吧?答案不是那麼明確。

Spirit Airlines cemented its no-frills reputation a couple of years ago when it declared itself the "home of the bare fare": a ticket that doesn't include a seat assignment, a checked bag, even water. Frontier also offers bargain fares that don't include seat assignments, in-flight entertainment and checked or carry-on bags as well as a slightly more costly package called "the works," with privileges such as being able to choose your seat and bring a carry-on bag. Unwilling to lose customers in certain markets where the low-cost airlines fly, major domestic airlines are rolling out their own no-frills fares.

精神航空公司幾年前鞏固了它在陽春飛航市場的名聲,自稱為「裸票價之家」:機票不包含預先劃位、托運行李,甚至飲水。邊疆航空也提供折價票價,不包含預先劃位、機上娛樂和托運或手提行李,另並推出稍微貴一點的套裝票,稱為「全套」,有一些特權,例如能選你的座位和帶一件手提行李。美國各大國內線航空公司不願意在廉價航空飛的某些市場流失顧客,正推出它們自己的陽春票價。

Delta was the first to take the plunge, introducing "basic economy" fares on routes where it wanted to compete with discount carriers. Basic economy tickets do not include advance seat assignments. They cannot be changed or refunded (after a one-day grace period). And there are no free upgrades for anyone.

達美率先決定冒險一試,在它想要與廉價航空競爭的那些航線推出「基礎經濟」票價。基礎經濟票不包含預先劃位,也不能更改或退票(在一天的寬限期之後)。而且任何使用人都不能免費升等。

Last year Delta put a number of changes to the fare rules into effect and announced that basic economy had spread to more than 450 markets since its introduction in 2012. Now the other big domestic carriers plan to follow suit. United said during its quarterly earnings call in January that it plans to introduce an entry-level fare "that will appeal to the purely price sensitive customer" in the second half of this year. American Airlines said during its quarterly call that it will roll out the first phase of a basic economy product in the same time frame.

去年達美把一些票價規則的變更付諸實施,並宣布基礎經濟票價自2012年推出以來,已擴展到450多個市場。現在,國內線的其他大咖航空公司也計畫跟進。聯合航空在1月的每季財報視訊會議中表示,計畫在今年下半年推出入門級票價,「將迎合只在乎票價的顧客」。美利堅航空在季財報視訊會議中表示,將在同一時期推出第一階段的基礎經濟產品。

For the most cost-conscious travelers, no-frills fares allow them to afford certain trips that they might not otherwise have been able to take. And, of course, no-frills fares are good for the airlines.

對那些最在意花費的旅客來說,陽春票價讓他們負擔得起某些原本可能無法成行的旅行。而且,當然,陽春票價對航空公司也有好處。

 
A Malaise in Tech Spreads/新創光環不再? 科技業的不安蔓延中
Mark Scott
李京倫譯

At the offices of Deliveroo, a food delivery startup with headquarters in an upmarket neighborhood here, signs of activity are everywhere. The communal kitchen hums with 20-something developers. A gold-painted scooter, which co-founder William Shu once used to make deliveries, stands in the center of the office as people bustle about.

The frenetic pace belies a more cautious approach that Shu, 36, a former Morgan Stanley investment banker, has recently started taking at the startup.

在餐點外送新創事業Deliveroo位於這高級社區的總部辦公室裡,處處展現著活力。公用廚房裡有許多20來歲的軟體開發者,顯得熱鬧非凡,共同創辦人William Shu曾用來送餐、漆成金色的速克達,就放在辦公室中央人來人往的地方。

忙亂的步調讓人看不出Shu最近開始對這新創事業採取更審慎作法。Shu現年36歲,曾是美國國際金融服務公司摩根士丹利的投資銀行家。

Over the last year, Shu has urged colleagues to be more circumspect with growth plans, forgoing rapid expansion in competitive markets like the United States to focus on places where Deliveroo already has a loyal following. And while the startup has raised almost $200 million, employs roughly 400 people worldwide and operates in 12 countries, Shu says profitability — and not just aggressive growth to beat rivals to new markets — is increasingly important as the company moves beyond its British roots.

"We need to make the economics work," he said. "We have to understand that every round of funding must be treated as our last."

過去這一年來,Shu要求同事對擴張計畫更謹慎,放棄在美國等競爭激烈的市場快速擴張,而專注在Deliveroo已有忠實客戶的地方。雖然Deliveroo已募到近2億美元資金,在全球雇用約400人,並在12國營運,但Shu說,當公司向母國英國以外的地方發展時,不只要積極擴張、比對手先打進新市場,獲利狀況也日益重要。

他說:「我們得發揮經濟學精神,必須了解到務必把每回募資當成最後一次。」

The focus at Deliveroo is symptomatic of a change across many European startups. Just as in Silicon Valley, where a number of privately held tech companies have been stung by lower valuations and investor questions about their sustainability, that same unease has now reached Europe's tech community, in a sign that a move away from soaring boom times in startups is going global.

Deliveroo關心的重點是個徵兆,顯示歐洲各地新創事業的改變。美國矽谷許多未上市科技公司因市值遭低估並被投資人質疑能否長存而受打擊,歐洲科技業現在也感受到同樣的不安,顯示新創事業告別急速成長時期已逐漸變成全球現象。

Driving the pullback are some of the same forces that have caused a change in Silicon Valley's startup scene. Tech stocks are gyrating because of fears of a global economic slowdown — exacerbated in Europe by the region's migrant crisis and persistent financial problems. Valuations of some startups worldwide got ahead of themselves. As a result, venture capitalists in Europe and farther afield are becoming more cautious about funding local startups that do not have proven business ideas.

"When Silicon Valley sneezes, the rest of the world catches a cold," said Fred Destin, a partner at the London office of Accel Partners, a venture capital firm.

讓新創事業變謹慎的因素,部分與改變矽谷新創事業風貌的因素相同。科技股股價因為投資人擔心全球經濟成長趨緩而劇烈波動,在歐洲,股價波動現象因移民危機與長期財政問題而更嚴重。世界各地都有一些新創事業的市值被高估。所以,歐洲與更遠處其他地方的創投家對資助商業點子未獲市場證明可行的地方性新創事業,變得更為審慎。

創投公司Accel Partners倫敦辦公室合夥人戴斯汀說:「矽谷打噴嚏,全球就感冒。」

 
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