Traveling Through the Tokyo Bubble Era

Chapter 1067 There is no technology that can solve everything once and for all.

In front of the towering glass facade of Elf Tower, Hideki Hanyu, who had just seen Joseph Stern off, was admiring the North American headquarters of Elf Entertainment through the one-way glass.

The morning sunlight shines down on the buildings and greenery, adorning the entire park, which resembles a dream world, making it a vibrant and lively place to look around.

The total cost of sourcing these plants from around the world alone exceeded 40 million US dollars.

That price would be enough to build a skyscraper in America today.

Just as Hideki Yuzuru was admiring the scene, a voice came from behind him.

"he's gone?"

It was a slightly languid, mature female voice.

Hideki Hanyu turned his head and looked in the direction from which the sound came.

A Caucasian woman in her early thirties walked slowly barefoot on the carpet. Her full, mature figure was clad only in a black lace camisole nightgown, making her look incredibly alluring and sexy.

The woman was none other than Olivia Hurley, who had inherited a private club in Washington, D.C.

Hideki Hanyu asked, "Mrs. Hurley, why don't you want to see Joseph?"

In fact, during the signing ceremony, Hideki Hanyu was informed by his subordinates that Olivia Hurley had arrived at Elf Entertainment's headquarters.

However, the other party declined the invitation to visit the signing ceremony, so Hideki Hanyu arranged for them to wait at the Elf Tower.

Unexpectedly, when Hideki Hanyu and Joseph Stern came to discuss Blockbuster's development plans, Olivia Hurley still avoided coming out.

Only now, after Joseph Stern has left, has the other party finally shown up.

Judging from the other party's reaction, it is clear that their initial refusal to attend the signing ceremony was likely due to their desire not to meet Joseph Stern.

Both men are figures in the Washington, D.C. circle, but Olivia Hurley doesn't want to meet Joseph Stern, so there must be some inside story behind it.

This piqued Hideki Yuzuru's curiosity.

"He once supported one of my enemies."

Olivia Hurley's explanation was simple, but Hideki Hanyu immediately guessed what it meant.

"Has he supported your husband's relatives?"

After Olivia Hurley's previous husband passed away, her reputation as the "Black Widow" grew on the East Coast, while her husband's relatives also began a battle for her inheritance.

The most fiercely contested of all was undoubtedly the Heli Private Club.

Although the investment from Karl Map's Hess Information Consulting has now deterred those vying for the inheritance.

But Olivia Hurley must have had a tough time before, so it's understandable that she harbors resentment towards Joseph Stern, who was once her adversary.

As expected, Hideki Hanyu guessed correctly, and Olivia Hurley quickly followed up with her reply.

"My ex-husband was a very good friend of mine before he passed away."

But after his death, he immediately joined forces with others to try and take the club from me.

It's no surprise to Hideki Hanyu that Mr. Hurley and Joseph Stern were good friends, given that they both invested in America Entertainment Investment Company.

As for why they would join forces with their friend's relatives to target his widow after his death, and why their relationship would develop to this point when both of them were connected to Karl Mape, it remains to be seen.

It can only be said that there are no permanent friends in this world, only permanent interests.

Those who can navigate high society circles shouldn't take "friendship" too seriously; otherwise, the saying "being sold out and still having to count the money for the other person" won't be a joke.

"It's passed."

Hideki Hanyu offered a word of comfort, then immediately asked, "Did you bring what I asked for?"

Seeing that Hideki Yuzuru had no reaction to her and went straight to the point, Olivia Hurley's eyes flashed with a barely perceptible resentment.

After all, her current appearance was carefully prepared for Hideki Yuzuru.

Olivia Hurley, who was extremely confident in her charm, originally thought that Hideki Hanyu, who worked as a womanizer, would immediately turn into a beast and devour her without hesitation.

Who would have thought that Hideki Hanyu would be so unmoved, behaving in a completely different way from what the public had described?

They were far more interested in her relationship with Joseph Stern and the things she had been asked to investigate than in her as a person.

However, Olivia Hurley was a smart woman and knew that this was not the time to dwell on such things.

She understood what Hideki Hanyu had his eye on, so she immediately turned back, retrieved what she had brought from Washington, and handed it to him.

This is a thick stack of documents, filled with information on various people, as well as their recent schedules and details.

If Karl Maples were here right now and saw the names on the file, he would realize that these people were actually his "friends" who were currently in Los Angeles.

Hideki Hanyu didn't immediately look through the documents. Instead, he walked to the sofa next to him, sat down, turned on the reading lamp beside him, and then began to read them carefully.

I don't know how much time passed after that.

Just then, the phone next to him rang. Hideki Yuzuru answered it and found that it was his assistant, Kaoru Chiba, calling.

Ask him where he wants to have lunch, whether back at Moon Lake Manor or at Elf Entertainment Headquarters.

Hideki Hanyu casually instructed, "I still have some things to do at headquarters. Have the chef prepare my meal and bring it here. I want to eat..."

After ordering, Hideki Hanyu continued to look through the documents.

He quickly finished reading the last page.

Olivia Hurley, who was sitting next to him with her legs crossed, asked curiously.

"You're asking me to investigate them? Do you think there's something wrong with the cooperation?"

Hideki Hanyu smiled and put down the documents. "I was just being cautious. Judging from the results, although they had some ulterior motives, they weren't targeting me."

Olivia Hurley then asked, "Then why not ask Karl Map for help, or even investigate his connections with these people? Don't you even trust Karl Map?"

"I am willing to trust all my friends."

Hideki Hanyu answered with a smile, but then changed his tone.

"But I believe even more in one principle: if you don't want to be betrayed, don't give others the opportunity to betray you."

Seeing that Olivia Hurley seemed to want to ask something more, Hideki Hanyu decided not to continue the conversation.

"Lunch is Chinese cuisine, I hope you like it."

Upon hearing this, Olivia Hurley understood that Hideki Hanyu meant it was time to stop.

The woman suddenly revealed a mature and charming smile, leaned towards Hideki Yuzuru, and answered in a seductive tone.

"I'd rather eat something else than lunch."

The seasoned scumbag sensed the sudden ambiguous atmosphere and instantly understood Olivia Hurley's unspoken meaning. He leaned back on the sofa.

Then he gestured for her to make herself at home and said, "Mrs. Hurley, please make yourself at home."

Olivia Hurley leaned closer. "May I not call you Mrs. Hurley?"

Hideki Yuzuru pinched the beautiful face that had come close to him and gave an answer in a flippant tone.

"No."

"why?"

"Because I like this name, it makes me feel more excited."

"Humph……"

Olivia Hurley gave a seductive hum, broke free from Hideki Hanyu's grasp, and began to savor the "dessert" before lunch.

As for what specific dessert it is, you'll have to use your imagination.

……

Noon passed quickly.

After dealing with Olivia Hurley and having lunch, Hideki Hanyu didn't linger at Elf Entertainment's headquarters. Having come all the way to Silicon Valley, he naturally wanted to visit other companies.

First, Don Valentine went to Cisco, where he learned about Cisco's development through an introduction by CEO John Chambers.

The result was naturally that everything went smoothly, and things developed even better than in the previous life.

But behind all the beauty, there are also hidden dangers.

The biggest problem is that Cisco's original funding and current revenue are no longer sufficient to support John Chambers' expansion plans and Cisco's growth and expansion needs.

Ironically, even if Hideki Hanyu were willing to continue investing, the other Cisco board members, led by Don Valentine, were unwilling to see Hanyu's shareholding continue to increase.

After using the acquisition of Qualcomm to "oust" founders Leonard Bosack and Santy Lerner, Hideki Hanyu's stake in Cisco was diluted, but he remains Cisco's largest single investor, holding a full 31 percent of the company.

Given that Cisco CEO John Chambers was recommended by Hideki Hanyu, if Cisco continues to raise funds from Hanyu, it should become Hanyu's private company.

Therefore, even if John Chambers supports it, the Cisco board of directors will not agree.

Therefore, taking Cisco public seems to be the only option.

However, how to go public and how much financing to raise were real concerns for Cisco's board of directors.

After all, Cisco's development in this timeline is incomparable to that of another timeline.

Another Cisco company went public in 1990, raising just over $60 million.

In this timeline, if it were just for this amount of money, it would obviously not be worth Cisco going to such lengths to go public; the board might as well just approach Hideki Hanyu for funding.

In short, this matter still needs to be discussed, and we will definitely need to contact the underwriters on Wall Street for their opinions.

Hideki Hanyu simply doesn't intend to get involved; he'll just wait for the outcome.

Anyway, I hope there are dedicated reviewers for angel investments, and I will report the latest information to them at any time.

Even if Don Valentine and other investors agreed to let him continue investing, he probably wouldn't agree.

After all, companies like Cisco are the most cutting-edge technology companies in America's next phase of developing the "Internet Superhighway" plan.

What's more, in this timeline, because of his shady dealings, he even acquired Qualcomm, a giant that hadn't yet risen to prominence.

His hope that angel investors holding so many shares was too conspicuous, and he couldn't wait for Cisco to go public so he could use various means to dilute and transfer the shares.

After Cisco's efforts, it was already evening when Hideki Yuzuru returned to Moon Lake Estate.

When he returned, Olivia Hurley, who was playing in the Moon Lake Circular Pool, was already impatiently waiting for him.

Without even changing his clothes, he dragged Hideki Hanyu into the bedroom while still wearing his swimsuit.

Clearly, this mature beauty hadn't eaten her fill at noon on the Elf Tower.

……

Time comes the next day.

January 21st.

Following yesterday's arrangements, Hideki Hanyu arrived at Elf Entertainment's North American headquarters once again.

Taking advantage of the opportunity presented by Blockbuster's sale and the presence of executives from both Japan and North America, Hideki Hanyu convened an impromptu development meeting for the new year.

The meeting was lengthy, lasting from morning until afternoon.

The specific details cannot be described in detail, but the main issues revolve around are nothing more than the following.

First and foremost, it was confirmed that the PS2 console remains Elf Entertainment's business focus, and the main resources will continue to be allocated to the PS2 console.

After all, less than a year after its release last year, the PS2 console sold more than 20 million units worldwide, a truly staggering number of sales.

While continuing to sell PS2 consoles, it is equally important to leverage the massive PS2 platform to boost the gaming business.

Based on the experience of the first-generation PlayStation, for console platforms with tens of millions of units sold, game sales are actually the most profitable aspect.

Especially given that the price of the PS2 console pushed profits to the limit, Elf Entertainment originally intended to make money through games.

However, with the advent of the EMD disc era, Elf Entertainment also adjusted its royalty system.

Despite relying on EMD's exclusive encryption and anti-theft technology, Elf Entertainment was still able to maintain its monopoly on EMD disc production, just like it had with cartridges.

However, at Hideki Hanyu's suggestion, Elf Entertainment did not choose to do so, but instead adopted a new deposit authorization system.

For large, well-established companies, as long as they pass Elf Entertainment's review and pay a large deposit, they can obtain an authorization license to independently produce EMD game discs.

There are two types of fees.

The first type is large manufacturers that have obtained authorization and have independent production and distribution capabilities. Elf Entertainment will only charge a certain technical service fee, which is equivalent to the patent fee for EMD discs.

In addition, the platform's commission is based on the game's influence, the strength of the major company, and specific negotiations, with a standard 30% cut, but the exact percentage depends on the outcome of the negotiations.

As long as no major issues such as technical leaks occur in the final game, Elf Entertainment will fully refund the deposit paid in advance.

Of course, this time usually takes a long time, depending on the game's sales cycle.

As for what Elf Entertainment will do with this money, the newly established financial investment company will be able to play its role.

The second type is small factories or game studios that lack production technology and game publishing capabilities.

They need Elf Entertainment to produce EMD game discs, and they also need Elf Entertainment to distribute games for them.

Therefore, in addition to the production technology service fee and platform commission in the first category, they also need to bear the production costs and the commission from game publishing.

Although more money was spent, the production quantity of EMD game discs was not limited, unlike the original royalty system.

Compared to game cartridges, which require semiconductor components, the production cycle of EMD optical discs is almost negligible.

In addition, entrusting production and distribution to Elf Entertainment also has many benefits for small studios and companies.

First of all, there is no need to pay a deposit for obtaining production technology and qualifications.

Secondly, Elf Entertainment has strong technical capabilities, which can ensure that there are no problems in the production of EMD game discs.

Even if problems arise, Elf Entertainment will take full responsibility.

Furthermore, Elf Entertainment has a global sales network and outstanding game publishing capabilities that even the top-tier companies cannot match.

Entrusting game publishing to Elf Entertainment is like entrusting a professional task to professionals, and the resulting sales are often better than if you tried to publish the game yourself, even if it took a lot of effort and money.

This is why many large manufacturers, even those capable of producing and distributing their products themselves, entrust production and distribution to Elf Entertainment for insurance and sales purposes.

In conclusion, over the long period since the PS2 was released, the new margin system has been continuously adjusted in practice and has been operating very well, and has been welcomed by many developers.

Of course, due to the still-exaggerated market share of the first-generation PS console, the sales volume of popular game cartridges was still in the millions.

Therefore, many manufacturers are still developing games for the first-generation PS console.

Due to the unique nature of cartridge production, the first-generation PlayStation console still adopted the original royalty system.

After discussing the plans for the PS series consoles, Hideki Hanyu and the other executives naturally had to discuss Elf Entertainment's other businesses.

While the PS console is important, it has just been released, and apart from some peripherals, there will be no new iterations available in the short term.

But other platforms are different.

First, there's EGP arcade machines. After rapidly expanding in the global market through various marketing, financial, and operational means, the updates to the board technology have never stopped.

However, due to limitations in semiconductor technology, Tetsuya Aragaki's original concept of a modular substrate has never been successfully brought to market.

However, just after Tetsuya Aragaki left Elf Entertainment to work on E·T computers on his own, Elf Entertainment's R&D department, through the efforts of other partners, finally achieved a new breakthrough in substrate technology.

Satoru Iwata reported with delight, "According to the R&D department's report, the true third-generation modular EGP arcade platform may be mass-produced this year and officially launched to replace the old one."

By then, we will have completely bid farewell to the era where technological upgrades required replacing the entire circuit board. Upgrading the circuit board will only require replacing the corresponding modules, solving the technological upgrade problem once and for all.

However, no sooner had Iwata Satoru finished speaking than Hideki Hanyu poured cold water on his words.

"I think the R&D department is too optimistic. There is absolutely no such thing as a technology that can solve problems once and for all in this world."

(End of this chapter)