中英文 高级产业经济学翻译作业.doc

Why Does Movie Popcorn Cost So Much? STANFORD GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS—Movie theaters are notorious for charging consumers top dollar for concession items such as popcorn, soda, and candy. Are moviegoers just being gouged? 为什么电影院里的爆米花卖的那么贵？ 斯坦福商学研究生院——电影院因在爆米花、饮料和糖果这样的特许项目上向消费者收取高价而被人诟病，那么影迷们到底是不是被“敲诈”了呢？ New research from Stanford and the University of California, Santa Cruz suggests that there is a method to theaters’ madness—and one that in fact benefits the viewing public. By charging high prices on concessions, exhibition houses are able to keep ticket prices lower, which allows more people to enjoy the silver-screen experience. 来自斯坦福大学的Santa Cruz做了一项新研究，研究表明电影院收取高价行为有一定的合理性——事实上，这对观众是有利的。通过在特许商品上收取高价，电影院能够维持一个低的票价，这样能使更多的人在影院享受电影。 The findings empirically answer the age-old question of whether it’s better to charge more for a primary product (in this case, the movie ticket) or a secondary product (the popcorn). Putting the premium on the “frill” items, it turns out, indeed opens up the possibility for price-sensitive people to see films. That means more customers coming to theaters in general, and a nice profit from those who are willing to fork it over for the Gummy Bears. 实证的结果回答了这个古老的问题，那就是对主要产品（本例中的电影票）或次要产品（爆米花）收更高的价格哪一个更好。事实证明，将费用加在“花边”项目上，即使是价格敏感的人还是有可能去看电影。这意味着会有更多的顾客去电影院，由此带来高利润，主要来自于那些愿意为橡皮糖买单的人。 Indeed, movie exhibition houses rely on concession sales to keep their businesses viable. Although concessions account for only about 20 percent of gross revenues, they represent some 40 percent of theaters’ profits. That’s because while ticket revenues must be shared with movie distributors, 100 percent of concessions go straight into an exhibitor’s coffers. 事实上，电影院依靠特许产品销售来维持经营。尽管特许产品的收入只占总收入的20%，但是其利润却占总利润的40%。那是因为票价收入必须与电影发行商共享，而特许商品的收入则全部归电影院所有。 Looking at detailed revenue data for a chain of movie theaters in Spain, Wesley Hartmann, associate professor of marketing at the Graduate School of Business, and Ricard Gil, assistant professor in economics