Question

Group buying is one of the fastest growing trends in South Africa today. Industry leaders are confident the growth potential remains strong since group buying is location-specific. Start-up costs are low and profit room remains high, so many sites continue to receive invested money despite widespread criticism and Facebook’s decision to phase out of deal business due to privacy concerns.

In the early stages of all industries, some companied fail because they cannot compete with stronger companies in difficult economic conditions. To deal with difficult conditions, an alarming number of businesses are developing group buying websites in places like China and India, so the increase of group buying in South Africa is nothing more than a natural progression into the international mainstream.

The group buying concept is fairly new and consumers have accepted this concept because they can now make full use of the rich information available on the Internet. Group buying is convenient and easy so it works. Anyone can view a site, join a mailing list, subscribe to RSS or print out a coupon(优惠券). The current group buying structure offered by the industry leaders works although there are still challenges to overcome.

Perhaps, the future of group buying is tied to the joining together of social media and mobile devices. Mobile devices are with us wherever we go and almost everyone is using some type of social media site like Facebook or Twitter to stay informed. Using GPS and social media technology to provide real time location-specific promotions would be beneficial to every consumer looking for the best deals in town.

Pause for a moment and think about it! What is better than signing on to your phone while having fun in town and you receive a real time information that your favorite shop across the street is offering a killer dial?

The future of the group buying in South Africa is bright and we can expect to see more advanced approaches to this concept in the future. In addition to the technological advances consumers will see the range of promotions expand to include new products and services.

1.What does the underlined phrase “phase out of” mean in the passage?

A．Gradually stop

B．Gradually increase

C．Begin to develop

D．Continue to enlarge

2.The author sets China and India as examples to show that      .

A．China and India are powerful countries

B．China and India are in difficult economic conditions

C．group buying is successful worldwide

D．group buying is an international trend

3. Which of the following is true according to the passage?

A．People have accepted group buying because it’s a new concept

B．Social media and mobile devices have been joined

C．GPS and social media technology will be helpful in group buying

D．Shops usually offer a killer deal when their customers are having fun

4.The author’s attitude towards the future of group buying is     .

A．pessimistic

B．optimistic

C．objective

D．subjective

5.What does the passage mainly tell us?

A．The history of group buying

B．Group buying in South Africa

C．The feature of group buying

D．The group buying concept

Answer

1.A

2.D

3.C

4.B

5.B

【解析】

试题分析：

1.A 推理题。根据本句so many sites continue to receive invested money despite widespread criticism and Facebook’s decision to phase out of deal business due to privacy concerns.说明尽管由于对个人隐私的担心导致广泛的批评以及Facebook决定停止这个生意，但是很多网站还是决定继续接受投资。说明该短语指慢慢停止。故A正确。

2.D 推理题。根据第二段2,3行To deal with difficult conditions, an alarming number of businesses are developing group buying websites in places like China and India说明为了应付目前的困难情况，在中国和印度的很多行业都发展了团购。举这个例子就是想说明团购现在正在成为一种趋势。故D正确。

3.C 推理题。根据第四段第一行Perhaps, the future of group buying is tied to the joining together of social media and mobile devices.说明本段是关于团购是与GPS等移动装置的迅速发展有很大的关系的。，也就是说这样的装置对于团购是很有帮助的，故C正确。

4.B 推理题。根据文章最后一段第一句The future of the group buying in South Africa is bright and we can expect to see more advanced approaches to this concept in the future.说明作者认为团购的未来很光明，故B正确。

5.B 主旨大意题。文章讨论的就是在南非出现的团购的新的流行趋势，并分析了前景与未来。故B正确。

考点：考查新闻报告类短文阅读