CNN：中国共享单车热潮正变成一场泡沫（无评论） [美国媒体]

China's bike-sharing frenzy has turned into a bubble

中国共享单车热潮已然变成一场泡沫



China's bike-sharing companies have hit a roadblock.

中国的共享单车公司现在遇到了难题。

The industry boasted close to 60 startups as recently as 18 months ago, according to Yu Xue, an internet research analyst at IDC China. He predicts fewer than 10 will survive the next year.
The companies allow customers to unlock a bicycle using only a smartphone, ride it around town, and then leave it at their destination. The model works, but the industry has grown too big too fast.

根据咨询公司 IDC中国 互联网分析师薛雨介绍，18个月前共享单车行业还曾经号称有将近60家新兴企业。他预测估计仅有不到十家企业能熬过18年。所谓共享单车就是顾客可以仅用手机就打开自行车，然后在城市里骑行，最后把车子停靠在目的地。这种模式的确有效，但是这个行业发展的过于大过于快了。

The proof is scattered across China's urban sidewalks, where piles of underused bikes have been dumped. Complaints have even prompted authorities to limit the number of bikes in some cities.

中国城市的人行道上随处可以看到相关证据，大量的共享单车被抛弃在上面。一些城市甚至有人投诉，催促政府限制共享单车数量。

A cull is now underway, with several firms already having gone out of business. Others have been forced to merge as funding becomes scarce.
Xue said it's difficult to track the scale of the damage, because many of the startups close their doors quietly and without much warning.
"The growth rate of bike-sharing users is slowing down," said Zha Songcheng, vice president of Hellobike, which claims to be the third largest bike sharing company in China.

共享单车行业的优胜劣汰已经开始，几家公司已经被淘汰，由于资金紧张其他公司也开始被迫合并。薛雨说很难研究这些破坏波及的范围，因为许多企业在没有提前预警的情况下就悄悄的关门了。"共享单车用户的增长率正在下降。"号称中国第三大共享单车公司，哈罗单车副总裁查松成（？不知道什么名字）说。

Money has also largely dried up. Bluegogo, which claimed at its peak to have 20 million users and over 600,000 bikes, cited a lack of funding as one of the main reasons it handed over operations to a rival firm in November.

投入共享单车行业的资金也大幅减少。在顶峰时期曾经号称有2000万用户和60万单车的小蓝单车，在九月份将运营权转交给一家竞争对手时表示，缺少资金是主要的原因。

As companies fold, some customers have reported trouble getting their rental deposits back. 

随着共享单车公司的倒闭，许多用户表示他们的退还押金时遇到了问题。

Last week, Mingbike became the first Chinese bike-sharing firm to be sued over its failure to refund deposits, according to local media.

根据当地媒体报道，上周小鸣单车成为中国第一个因为不能退还押金而被诉诸法庭的共享单车公司。

China's Ministry of Transport announced last month that it would clamp down on the sector to "protect customers' interests and put the industry in a healthy and orderly track."

上个月中国交通部表示，他们会对这个行业施加管制，以"保护用户的利益并且把这个行业推向健康有序的轨道"。

Two firms have a major advantage over the rest: Mobike is backed by tech giant Tencent, and Ofo has e-commerce heavyweight Alibaba in its corner.

但是有两个公司相比其他公司有着巨大优势：科技巨头腾讯支持的摩拜单车，电商巨头阿里巴巴支持的ofo。

They control a combined 90% of the market, according to Xue. Both are valued at more than $1 billion, giving them war chests that smaller firms just don't have.

根据薛的介绍，这两个公司控制着90%的市场份额。二者市场估价都超过10亿美元，这使得他们比其他小公司有着更充裕的资金来进行市场竞争。