What's wrong with me being a rich man?

Chapter 529 Forehand and Backhand

Yu Xing had a very busy Spring Festival this year.

As usual, he went to Jinling with Liu Wanying, but after only one meal, he quickly returned to Haiyan, and only drank a couple of cups of wine at the reunion banquet of various relatives.

However, everyone understands that Lingang has two major events to attend to recently.

In particular, Silicon Carbon Group has officially announced that the new car launch will be held on the 21st of next month, and the upcoming market feedback will determine the company's major strategic direction.

Silicon Carbon Group had a long Spring Festival holiday, while Silicon Carbon Data Company was much busier. Yu Xing returned to Lingang on the third day of the Lunar New Year to closely monitor the progress of Douyin's latest promotion.

The 2015 Spring Festival Gala was hardly spectacular, but lines from the skit "Catering to Tastes" starring Shen Teng and Ma Li, such as "Reject pornography, reject gambling, reject ping-pong," were perfectly suited for the spread of short videos and could serve as a boost to the content.

In addition, while young people don't like to sit in front of the TV to watch the Spring Festival Gala, many middle-aged and elderly people are still willing to watch it. The number of references to dramas in the "lip-sync music short videos" displayed on Douyin's backend has increased significantly.

Uncles, grandparents, and other older users also find content they like in short videos. Of course, the categories they belong to and the related creations are rarely seen by young people.

On the eve of the Lunar New Year, Douyin's daily active users surged to 2000 million, but gradually stabilized at 1500 million over the next three days.

In early December last year, Douyin's daily active users were just over 4 million. In just over a month, it increased to nearly four times, which was undoubtedly due to the financial investment. However, as the user base grew, the daily active user ratio dropped from 28% to 20%.

Whether it's WiFi Master Key or offline screen ads, the traffic is more general, and the activity level will be lower.

Douyin needs to increase its total user base while simultaneously boosting its daily active users (DAU), the latter requiring more subtle, strategic efforts.

On January 28, most of the senior executives of Carbon Silicon Data arrived in Lingang to conduct a comprehensive review of the nearly month-long user acquisition campaign. Overall, they were very satisfied with the performance of 75 million users and 15 million daily active users.

From investing in Zhai Yifei's "Xiaoba" to developing a software matrix with carbon silicon data, and then venturing into the overseas short video market with Mus, and then entering the domestic market ahead of schedule due to the exposure of Mus, the current stability of Douyin can be regarded as a phased achievement of Lingang carbon silicon.

The mobile internet is always changing rapidly.

A little over a year ago, the market was still debating whether short videos had a big enough future. With the entry of giants into the competition, the argument has changed to short videos definitely have a bright future, and Carbon Silicon Data has always been quite firm in its belief.

The most basic logic is still the impact brought about by the development of smartphones and communication networks.

抖音在2015年的全年目标是Q1正式进入1亿用户的门槛，年底则是把这个数字提升到2亿，日活从1500万做到3000万，至于商业化尝试仍然不是当下的重点。

Silicon Carbon Data is very confident about its market performance this year.

After the meeting, which lasted for most of the day, ended, it was Lü Haiying who brought up her concerns about overseas development: "If Alibaba is going to poach people before the new year, it won't be long after the new year if they are going to make any moves."

"I've already organized a team to tackle Alibaba's challenges," Yu Xing said, briefly introducing the new project to his junior colleague.

Out of respect for her senior, Lü Haiying remained silent.

She felt it was like a New Year's joke.

“It’s true. As long as Pinduoduo launches an offensive, everything will be fine.” Yu Xing said seriously, “E-commerce is Alibaba’s foundation. Even if it competes overseas, it will have problems investing resources. If we don’t suffer a quick defeat, it will definitely lose.”

Lü Haiying felt that Alibaba was unlikely to suffer a quick defeat, but Alibaba was at the height of its power.

She thought about it and decided to discuss it with Zhong Zhiling when she got back.

"Senior, I have a lot of media interviews coming up. I have an appointment with NetEase tomorrow. Do you want to come along?" Lu Haiying mentioned another matter. Because of the wave driven by Douyin's heavy investment, many media outlets have felt the change in the competitive landscape of the market.

Yu Xing laughed and said, "Okay, let's see if we have time. If we're free then, we'll see how to conduct the interview. I was thinking of taking advantage of these few days when I'm not so busy to rehearse the new car launch event."

Lu Haiying asked in surprise, "Senior brother, do you still need to rehearse?"

Yu Xing sighed, "Sometimes when I think about it, my palms start to sweat."

Lu Haiying teased, "That's true, after all, the silicon carbide over there is the result of our hard work."

Yu Xing nodded leisurely, "Indeed."

However, speak of the devil, and he appears.

That very evening, Alibaba's overseas moves were revealed: Leyin launched its overseas version of the software, officially appearing on the Apple and Google app stores.

It's not a lip-sync music short video like MusVid, but a full-format short video platform like Douyin, Weishi, LeTV, and Kuaishou.

This development was brought up for discussion by Silicon Carbon Data the following morning.

how to say……

It's probably as bizarre as Weishi's decision to adopt a MUS mode after its revival.

Besides the fact that Google and Facebook have a monopoly on traffic access, which Mus considered from the very beginning, the fact that users in Europe, the United States, Japan and South Korea have very different habits and usage scenarios compared to the domestic market is also an important factor.

Therefore, music may serve as a basic tool to connect people.

After initial testing, Overseas Music has shown a clear vision and ambition, as it is targeting the global market rather than focusing solely on the US market like Mus.

Of course, as the world's second-largest internet company, this seems quite fitting for its status.

Yu Xing could understand Alibaba's confidence, but he himself did have more confidence now.

His statement at the meeting was: "This time it's about teaching forehand and backhand techniques."

Tencent first implemented the MUS model in China, but then had to switch to the Douyin model. Alibaba, on the other hand, first implemented the Douyin model overseas... Let's see if it will ever change its approach again.

After the impromptu meeting ended, Lü Haiying went to give an interview. However, halfway through the interview, a message appeared on the Baixiaosheng Forum.

Tencent's Weishi team has been taken over by COO Ren Yuxi. Along with this confirmed fact, there is also a rumor that Liu Chiping will step down as president.

The leaders of the BAT giants have always been just Ma Huateng, Pony Ma, and Li Hongzhang. However, both Baidu and Alibaba have seen changes in their second-in-command. Tencent is much more stable in this regard. President Martin Lau does not face the media as often as Pony Ma, but the industry does not doubt his power and position within Tencent.

What would it symbolize if such a CEO left Tencent?
A shift in Tencent's strategy? An admission of defeat in the short video competition?

Lin Jinpeng, a reporter from NetEase who was interviewing Lü Haiying, received the widely circulated news midway through the interview and couldn't help but look down to check it and ask the president of Douyin.

Lu Haiying was taken aback and exclaimed in surprise, "Really? I've never heard of that. It can't be. That's...that's Liu Chiping." She had a high opinion of Liu Chiping, a low-key but capable second-in-command who could hold his position and get things done. How could he suddenly step down?

However, on second thought, it does seem that such a possibility is not impossible.

The interview was interrupted as both of them checked their own messages.

A moment later, Lin Jinpeng saw Yu Xing knock on the door and enter the office. His eyes lit up, and he immediately asked the all-knowing Jianghu expert to confirm the authenticity of the information.

“It should be true, I see the stock price is already falling,” Yu Xing said, then added, “I didn’t ask, but if President Liu is no longer in charge of Weishi, the possibility is indeed very high.”

Lin Jinpeng immediately followed up, "President Yu, if President Liu steps down, what is your assessment of him?"

The current timing is delicate. Everyone in the market is saying that Douyin has taken the lead in the short video market, but this lead is obviously not stable yet. Whether it is Tencent or Alibaba, they undoubtedly have the ability to catch up.

Liu Chiping is the dominant force in the competition for Tencent's short video platform, and the change of leadership at Tencent likely signifies a shift in the direction of the competition.

Yu Xing pondered for a while, then shook his head: "Let's wait for the news to be confirmed. If it's true, Tencent's announcement won't be long."

As expected, as Tencent's stock price fell by more than 3%, an official announcement was released, stating that Liu Chiping had resigned as president for personal reasons, and that former COO Ren Yuxi would succeed him as president, while Tang Daosheng would take over as COO.

Following the announcement, Tencent's stock price dropped another 1 point, but then rebounded slightly.

Liu Chiping has indeed stepped down as president of Tencent.

Penguin bid him farewell with a market value loss of over $30 billion.

Regardless of the Baixiaosheng Forum or various financial portals, the mainstream opinion is that the most direct reason for Liu Chiping's resignation was Tencent's poor performance in the competition once again.

Yu Xing soon saw the surprise of his internet friends on his WeChat Moments regarding his resignation.

This has truly shocked the industry.

The interrupted interview resumed an hour later.

Reporter Lin Jinpeng asked the same question.

Yu Xing pondered how to evaluate his old friend Liu Chiping.

His feelings were quite complicated. If the penguin doesn't work harder, it will really fall to the level of Baidu.

And what changes will Ren Yuxi, the king of Tencent games, bring to Lingang...?

Lin Jinpeng did not urge President Yu, but waited silently for the first-hand news. He should also be considered a party involved. President Liu's resignation was a "bad deed" in Lingang. What is even more touching is that it is said that President Liu had the idea of ​​acquiring WeChat back then.

That failed acquisition seems to be the root of the current situation.

Assuming the acquisition is completed, Tencent's Weishi may have become the leader in short videos.

Or perhaps, Mr. Yu is currently sitting in his office at the Tencent Building.

Lin Jinpeng's mind wandered.

"I have a deep impression of Mr. Liu. His departure is perhaps quite symbolic," Yu Xing answered the question in a conciliatory tone. "I believe that Tencent will undergo profound changes following his departure, as for whether those changes will be for better or worse..."

Yu Xing was still pondering when he saw Lü Haiying lean over to deliver an updated message.

A Tencent employee, using an alias, revealed on the Baixiaosheng Forum that Ren Yuxi took over the Weishi team yesterday, and major adjustments have been made today. Weishi will be merged into Weichat in the future, and all of Weishi's functions will be available within Weichat.

Weishi 2.0 seems to have repeated the fate of version 1.0.

Yu Xing's tone immediately softened, and he directly criticized the message: "I wasn't sure what the profound changes at Tencent were like just now, but now it seems that they are most likely bad. President Ren is really reckless in his pursuit of strategic differentiation. He wants to merge Weishi into Weichat again, which is undoubtedly a strong binding. So, what about WeChat users? Who will meet the needs of WeChat users to use Weishi?"

He shrugged and laughed, "It seems that only Douyin can step up. Watch short videos, watch Douyin, don't use Wechat or WeChat. This will solve the problem of fragmented social ecosystems for everyone."

Lin Jinpeng couldn't help but ask, "Mr. Yu, who is responsible for everyone's social isolation problems?"

Yu Xing said casually, "The penguins just don't want to admit defeat."

Lin Jinpeng smiled.

He continued, "Mr. Yu, everyone says that Mr. Liu resigned because the transformation to mobile internet did not achieve the expected results. From what I understand, Tencent's news and short videos are benchmarked against Lingang Carbon Silicon. Given this, do you still think Mr. Liu is a suitable president? Was your evaluation of Mr. Liu just now because Tencent under his leadership did not gain the upper hand?"

The victors can always show mercy to the losers. Although the competition between silicon carbon and penguins has not yet reached a final conclusion, results have emerged on a personal level.

Yu Xing shook his head: "The transformation of the mobile Internet is an unprecedentedly fierce environment. It's not that Mr. Liu is not good enough, but that the situation he faces is very special. I am not judging him based on his competition with us. How should I put it, it's all about timing and fate. There are no standard answers to many things. If I were in that environment and in that position, I would only be worse off."

Lin Jinpeng immediately deconstructed the situation, saying, "So, it's because silicon carbon is too competitive, making it difficult for anyone to operate the penguin business effectively, right?"

"Of course not, WeChat is not under my control." Yu Xing denied this. "Silicon carbon still needs to be developed. Speaking of which, we are also short of people here, especially talents like General Manager Liu."

Lin Jinpeng immediately felt that this was President Yu's mockery and ridicule.

He paused for ten seconds, then continued his interview with the head of Lingang Carbon Silicon, following up on today's shocking news that had reverberated throughout the industry.

NetEase's related report was extremely swift, appearing on the website in just the afternoon, and Yu Xing's response became a focal point of the incident.

At least, Ren Yuxi, the newly appointed president of Tencent, cares a lot about this.

He saw the comments about him in Yu Xing's report and responded with dissatisfaction on his WeChat Moments: "Don't make random comments, Mr. Yu. I know what kind of person you are."

Yu Xing was not familiar with Ren Yuxi; he had neither blocked Ren nor been blocked by him.

He did not respond to the new president's call from afar, but considering that he might actually be able to win Liu Chiping's future choice, he only posted his previous evaluation of him on his WeChat Moments: "Not a fault of war."

The following day, perhaps angered by an interview or social media post, Yu Xing heard in the evening that Tencent was selling its shares in Silicon Carbon Group. "Unknown internet friends" chose to withdraw their shares just as Silicon Carbon's new car was about to be launched.

Coincidentally, after the Chinese New Year, Alibaba was also selling its shares in Meituan, which had chosen to cooperate with Tencent.

(End of this chapter)