US regulators have thrown a new roadblock in the path of Comcast’s $45bn takeover of Time Warner Cable, rewriting their definition of broadband to paint the largest US cable company as a more dominant force in high-speed internet access.
美国监管机构更改了对宽带的定义。按照新的定义，美国康卡斯特(Comcast)公司在高速互联网接入领域的主导地位更大了，这为美国最大有线电视公司收购时代华纳有线(Time Warner Cable, 简称TWC)的450亿美元交易设置了新的路障。
The US communications watchdog voted 3-2 yesterday to define broadband as an internet service with download speeds of at least 25 megabits per second, compared with its previous definition of 4 Mbps.
昨天，美国通信监管机构——联邦通信委员会(Federal Communication Commission，简称FCC)以3比2的票数，将宽带定义为下载速度至少达到每秒25兆比特的互联网服务。相比之下，此前宽带的定义为每秒4兆比特。

The Federal Communication Commission’s decision has big implications for Comcast’s bid for TWC because it dramatically changes the competitive landscape for broadband — a central consideration for regulators deciding whether to approve the deal.
该委员会的决定对康卡斯特收购TWC的交易会产生巨大影响，原因是这一定义极大地改变了宽带行业的竞争格局，而竞争格局是监管机构决定是否批准该交易的核心要素。
The change means the number of US families who have no choice in their broadband services provider will climb from 19 per cent to more than half. In most cases, that provider will be one of the big cable companies, which have fiercely resisted the change.
这一改变意味着，在美国家庭中，无法选择宽带服务提供商的家庭将从19%增加至半数以上。多数情况下，宽带提供商将是几大有线电视公司之一，这些公司一直在强烈抵制这一改变。
The National Cable & Telecommunications Association, an industry lobby group, said the decision was “arbitrary” and “a clear effort to justify and expand the bounds of the FCC’s own authority”.
行业游说团体——全国有线电视电信协会(National Cable & Telecommunications Association)表示，这一决定“十分武断”，“其目的明显是为了树立和扩大FCC自身权威”。
The FCC split along party lines, with the three Democrats saying the proliferation of mobile devices, video streaming and the “internet of things” meant consumers needed superior internet speeds and Republicans saying 10Mb download speeds were sufficient.
FCC内部存在沿着党派界线的分歧。三位民主党成员表示，移动设备、视频流服务和“物联网”的激增，意味着消费者需要超高网速。而共和党成员表示，10兆比特的下载速度足够了。
The Department of Justice must decide whether the Comcast-TWC deal is anti-competitive while the FCC will rule on whether it is in the public interest. Both agencies are taking longer than expected to assess the transaction. Comcast had hoped to complete the deal by the end of last year, but yesterday it extended its merger agreement with TWC by six months to August 12.
美国司法部(DoJ)必须裁定康卡斯特收购TWC的交易是否会导致垄断，而FCC则要裁定该交易是否符合公共利益。两家机构评估该交易所花的时间都超出了预期。康卡斯特原本希望在2014年底完成这一收购，昨天该公司却将与TWC的并购协议延长了6个月，延至8月12日。