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Microsoft has bought LinkedIn for $26.2bn, as the Seattle-based software company seeks to expand its reach into professional networking.
微软(Microsoft)以262亿美元收购了领英(LinkedIn)，这家总部位于美国西雅图的软件公司寻求将触角伸至职业社交领域。
The deal is Microsoft’s biggest-ever acquisition, and follows a pattern of bold moves by chief executive Satya Nadella to reinvent the company that is known primarily as the maker of the Windows operating system.
这笔全现金交易是微软有史以来最大一笔收购，也是科技行业今年迄今最大的收购交易。它符合其首席执行官萨蒂亚·纳德拉(Satya Nadella)一连串大胆举措的模式，目的是再造这家主要以开发Windows操作系统闻名的公司。
The offer of $196 a share represents a 50 per cent premium to LinkedIn’s closing price on Friday and is inclusive of the professional networking website’s net cash.
每股196美元的收购价相对于领英上周五的收盘价有50%的溢价，且包括了该职业社交网站的净现金。
LinkedIn’s shares have fallen 40 per cent over the past year, and plummeted when the company lowered its outlook for professional subscription services revenues.
领英的股价在过去一年下跌了40%，在该公司下调职业订阅服务收入的预测后一度暴跌。
Chief executive Jeff Weiner will remain chief executive of LinkedIn, and founder Reid Hoffman will remain board chairman.
领英首席执行官杰夫·韦纳(Jeff Weiner)将留任原职，创始人雷德·霍夫曼(Reid Hoffman)也仍然任董事会主席。
A slump in tech stocks this year could lead to further consolidation in the sector, according to analysts. Twitter and Yahoo are also seen as possible acquisition targets.
据分析师称，今年科技股的低迷可能会引领该行业进一步整合。推特(Twitter)和雅虎(Yahoo)也被视为可能的收购目标。
The news sent LinkedIn’s shares up 50 per cent in pre-market trading. Microsoft shares fell 4 per cent.
这一消息令领英股价飙升了47%，而微软的股价下挫了2%。
In an email to staff, Mr Nadella said: “This deal brings together the world’s leading professional cloud with the world’s leading professional network … LinkedIn will retain its distinct brand and independence, as well as their culture which is very much aligned with ours.”
纳德拉在致全体员工的一份电邮中说：“这笔交易把全球顶尖的专业云端服务和全球顶尖的职业社交网络结合到一起……领英将保留其特有品牌和独立性，以及其企业文化——它跟我们的文化相当契合。”
Mr Nadella added that any staff not already using the network should “join up now and start using and learning more”.
纳德拉补充道，尚未开始使用领英网的员工应该“现在就加入，开始更多地使用和学习”。
Benedict Evans, partner at Andreessen Horowitz, tweeted that the deal was part of Microsoft’s attempts to recreate “the connective tissue for enterprises”. However, he said LinkedIn would “take a lot of fixing”.
风险投资公司Andreessen Horowitz的合伙人本尼迪克特·埃文斯(Benedict Evans)在Twitter上发帖称，这笔交易是微软重造“企业结缔组织”尝试的一部分。但他表示，领英将“需要很多修补工作”。
Mr Evans added that it helped that they could do this without the “media distraction” of shareholders.
埃文斯补充说，两家公司的股东未被“媒体分心”，这有助于他们达成这笔交易。
Ben Wood, an analyst at CCS Insight, said LinkedIn was a “valuable asset” that Microsoft could be deeply integrated with number of Microsoft products such as Office 365, Exchange and Outlook.
市场研究公司CCS Insight的分析师本·伍德(Ben Wood)说，领英是一项“有价值的资产”，可用于跟一系列微软产品进行深度整合，如Office 365、Exchange和Outlook。
LinkedIn’s stock was hit at the beginning of the year amid concerns that the company’s growth may be slowing and that the subscription service it sells to recruiters could be hit by a global economic slowdown.
领英的股价在年初受到打压，有担忧称该公司增长会放缓，而它向招聘者销售的订阅服务会受到全球经济放缓影响。
However, the network does have opportunities in China and India. It is the only major US social network to operate in China, where it has launched both the global network and a separate app tailored to the Chinese professional world.
然而，该网站在中国和印度都有机遇。它是在中国运营的唯一一家美国主流社交网络，它在中国推出了其全球网络和一个专为中国职场打造的app。
