The COVID-19 disaster will have many losers，but it already has one clear winner：big tech．The large digital platforms，including Alphabet and Facebook，will come out of the crisis even stronger．They should use this good chance to reset their sometimes tense relations with their users．Otherwise the government is likely to do it for them．
   Demand for online services has exploded and the infrastructure behind the internet has proved to be admirably reliable．Newcomers such as Slack and Zoom，which help businesses operate remotely，have become household names．Facebook has said that messaging activity has increased by 50% in those countries hit hard by the virus．Amazon is planning to hire 100，000 new staff to keep up with higher e-commerce．
   Just as the big firms are standing even taller，many of the tech industry's younger，smaller firms are being crushed since the dotcom crash 20 years ago．Even before the coronavirus hit，trouble was starting to develop．Among many firms catering to consumers，the strategy of growing at all costs had turned out to be problematic．Some firms had already started laying off people．All this will make it easier for the big firms to hire the best talent．
   Ifthat happens，it is likely that regulators will do little or nothing to stop a round of expansion．In America antitrust（反壟斷） investigations against Alphabet，Google's parent，and Facebook have essentially been put on hold，as officials deal with other priorities during a crisis．A new federal privacy law seems further away than ever．Even tech skeptics in the European Union want to rethink their approach to regulating artificial intelligence（AI）．In an abrupt twist，big tech's business practice is essential to deal with the virus．Yet before COVID-19，such activity would have caused howls of great anger over privacy and prejudice．
   In fact，more than ever it is clear that big tech firms play vital roles．There lies the trap，because almost everywhere other big firms，such as water or electricity，are heavily regulated and have their prices and profits capped（規(guī)定限額）．Once this crisis passes，concerned citizens and governments could make a push for the state to have similar control over big tech．
   The companies seem to sense this danger．Their best defence is to propose a new deal to the citizens of the world．That means clear rules on how they publish and moderate content，helping users own，control and profit from their own data，as well as fair treatment of competitors that use their platforms．This approach may even be more profitable in the long run．Today the most valuable firm in America is Microsoft，which has been more successful by building a reputation for being trustworthy．

（1）The writer suggests the big techs use the outbreak of COVID-19 to

B

B

．
A．escape from the crisis of large digital platforms
B．improve their relationship with their users
C．a(chǎn)sk for help from the government
D．demand more online services and reliable infrastructure
（2）What has led big tech firms' business to increase rapidly？

D

D

A．The crush of the tech industry．
B．The strategy of growing at all costs．
C．The stricter antitrust investigations．
D．The loosened government regulations．
（3）What does "that" in Paragraph 4 refer to？

A

A

A．The easier access of best tech talents to big tech firms．
B．The severe unemployment rate in companies．
C．The fast spread of the coronavirus．
D．A new round of expansion of big firms．
（4）In Paragraph 6，Microsoft is used as an example of

A

A

．
A．benefiting from good relations with its users
B．catering to consumers whatever they want
C．sensing danger from other big firms in time
D．being heavily regulated by the government