滬江小編：對(duì)于商界精英們來說，閱讀《金融時(shí)報(bào)》（Financial Times）幾乎成了每天的必修課。FT文章以分析為主，邏輯嚴(yán)密，經(jīng)常被各類考試用作考題。非常適合學(xué)習(xí)BEC、TOEIC、GRE、GMAT的考生來閱讀、練習(xí)。滬江小編精選FT上的雙語文章，配上獨(dú)家的學(xué)習(xí)指南，從詞匯、短語、句式、文化、翻譯等多方面來解讀，長(zhǎng)期堅(jiān)持，相信會(huì)對(duì)英語學(xué)習(xí)有所幫助。

原文閱讀：名人效應(yīng)成手機(jī)應(yīng)用新出路

Geeks and celebrities make unlikely bedfellows but mobile app developers are increasingly looking to pair up with the likes of reality TV star Kim Kardashian as they look for new ways to stand out in an overcrowded marketplace.

Since Apple’s App Store launched in 2008, many of the most popular apps for the iPhone or Google’s Android smartphones have been new franchises such as Angry Birds, Candy Crush Saga or Clash of Clans.

But the recent success of games and utilities to which celebrities have lent their name, combined with the growing challenge of getting noticed in the App Store, is prompting more developers to seek new tie-ups with stars.

Glu Mobile said last month that its celebrity tie-in game Kim Kardashian: Hollywood had made $1.6m in its first five days on sale. Would-be starlets can buy virtual haircuts, makeovers or kittens as they make their way up the celebrity rankings, with Ms Kardashian acting as their guide to life in the limelight. The game is currently fifth in the iPhone’s US chart of top-grossing apps.

This week, actor Tom Hanks released a typewriter-style word-processing app for the iPad that immediately shot to the top of the App Store charts in the US.

Hanx Writer recreates on a touchscreen the sounds of a manual typewriter.

Forrest Gump, the hapless character that brought Mr Hanks an Oscar, has found a new lease of life 20 years on, in a running game developed by Genera Mobile which is currently in the top 50 most popular US apps.

Mobile industry analysts and advisers say these are just the first in a coming flood of celebrity-endorsed and Hollywood-branded apps, as stars look to extend their franchises into the digital world. In a market overwhelmed with millions of apps, many small developers are looking to famous names to help their titles gain a following.

“If you have a licensed brand or intellectual property, that can really help” with getting downloads, says Mark Wilcox, analyst at Vision Mobile, at a time when many new apps go largely ignored.

“In the future, every movie, movie star and brand will have their own messaging apps just like they have their own websites now,” says Nico Sell, chief executive of secure messaging app Wickr. She is working with “numerous celebrities” and advisors from talent agencies IMG and ICM to develop branded apps.

Last week, Candy Crush Saga’s developer King cited the popularity of Ms Kardashian’s game as a reason for lower spending on its top-selling app.

In a note entitled, “Kim Kardashian, the King Slayer”, Deutsche Bank analyst Lloyd Walmsley downgraded his rating on King from “buy” to “hold” last week, citing “intense” competition as with the apps “going after the same demographics”.

However, King’s chief executive Riccardo Zacconi told the Financial Times that the company was unlikely to respond to this growing competition with a celebrity app of its own, as he was unwilling to pay the required royalties.

Smaller developers, trying to build an audience, have no such reservations. Until recently, Hollywood agents or content studios were reluctant to hand over control of their properties to technologists. But alongside perfumes and clothing lines, these brands are now more willing to license their properties to app makers, too.

Tero Kuittinen, managing director at Magid Associates, a consultancy, says that while a few years ago a celebrity manager or rights holder might have demanded a $1m fee before the game even went on sale, today some are open to “five-figure” upfront fees or straight revenue splits that reduce the financial risks for developers.

“You can see a lot of licence holders are changing their attitude to mobile games,” Mr Kuittinen says. “The hope in the [mobile] industry is that if you see a game affiliated with a star or a movie, the fact that it is familiar to you may pique your curiosity.”

However, celebrity endorsements do not always lead to overnight success. Last year, Justin Bieber invested in Shots, a photo app dedicated to selfies. Use of his image in its App Store listing has not prevented Shots from dropping quickly out of the top download charts.

學(xué)習(xí)指南：

1. Word of the day

pique: 1. v. If something piques your interest or curiosity, it makes you interested or curious. 激起……

ex: This phenomenon piqued Dr Morris' interest.
例句：這一現(xiàn)象激起了莫里斯醫(yī)生的興趣。

2. n. Pique is the feeling of annoyance you have when you think someone has not treated you properly. （因遭人怠慢而感到的）惱怒，慍怒

ex: Mimi had gotten over her pique at Susan's refusal to accept the job.
例句：米米已不再為蘇姍拒絕接受這份工作的事生氣了。

小編注：“pique” 作名詞常用在固定搭配"in a fit of pique"?中，表示“一怒之下”。如 Lawrence, in a fit of pique, left the Army and took up a career in the City. 勞倫斯一氣之下離開了陸軍，在倫敦金融城開始了工作。

2. Phrase of the day
a new lease of life: If?something has a new lease of life, it is changed or repaired so that it can continue; If someone has a new lease of life, they become healthy, active, or happy again after weak, ill, or tired. (物)延續(xù)使用壽命；（人）重獲健康幸福

ex: The operation has given me a new lease of life.
例句：手術(shù)使我重獲新生。

小編注：這個(gè)短語常在英式英語中使用，在美式英語中，一般用?a new lease on life?來代替。

3. Sentence of the day

Geeks and celebrities make unlikely bedfellows but mobile app developers are increasingly looking to pair up with the likes of reality TV star Kim Kardashian as they look for new ways to stand out in an overcrowded marketplace.
電腦極客和明星好像是八竿子打不著的兩類人，但是手機(jī)應(yīng)用開發(fā)商越來越喜歡和諸如電視明星金·卡戴珊一流合作，以期找到在過分擁擠的市場(chǎng)中脫穎而出的新方法。

小編注：這一句中的“make unlikely bedfellows”，“bedfellows”指兩個(gè)或兩個(gè)以上的人或觀點(diǎn)出乎意料地聯(lián)系在一起，形成了奇怪的組合。也就是漢語中常說的把八竿子都打不到一塊的東西拼到了一塊。"the likes of"?中的"like"?作名詞，和"someone"?連用，指像某人一樣的人，也可以表示為“sb's like”,較為正式。

4. Cultural point of the day

franchise（ 特許經(jīng)營(yíng)）：是指特許經(jīng)營(yíng)權(quán)擁有者以合同約定的形式，允許被特許經(jīng)營(yíng)者有償使用其名稱、商標(biāo)、專有技術(shù)、產(chǎn)品及運(yùn)作管理經(jīng)驗(yàn)等從事經(jīng)營(yíng)活動(dòng)的商業(yè)經(jīng)營(yíng)模式。特許經(jīng)營(yíng)最早起源于美國(guó)，1851年Singer縫紉機(jī)公司為了推展其縫紉機(jī)業(yè)務(wù)，開始授予縫紉機(jī)的經(jīng)銷權(quán)，在美國(guó)各地設(shè)置加盟店，撰寫了第一份標(biāo)準(zhǔn)的特許經(jīng)營(yíng)合同書，在業(yè)界被公認(rèn)為是現(xiàn)代意義上的商業(yè)特許經(jīng)營(yíng)起源。

5.Translation of the day

Mobile industry analysts and advisers say these are just the first in a coming flood of celebrity-endorsed and Hollywood-branded apps, as stars look to extend their franchises into the digital world.
手機(jī)行業(yè)的分析人士和咨詢師稱這些只是小試牛刀，隨著明星希望將自己的特許經(jīng)營(yíng)權(quán)拓展進(jìn)數(shù)碼世界，將會(huì)涌現(xiàn)大量名人代言和好萊塢冠名的應(yīng)用。

小編注：這句話中，“these are the first in a coming flood of celebrity-endorsed and Hollywood-branded apps”?是翻譯難點(diǎn)，整句話作為間接引語出現(xiàn)，"the first "?作為簡(jiǎn)單詞卻不能直接翻譯成第一，由于后面的介詞短語較長(zhǎng)，建議斷成兩句話翻譯，意譯為“這些只是打頭陣”或“只是小試牛刀”。

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