The world is in trouble

Chapter 272 Two Years! The Moment of Explosion Has Arrived

Lin Xiao appeared before Amy Pascal once again.

"God, if I've made a mistake, let God punish me, don't let this person torment me." Amy covered her forehead in anguish.

"Lin, I have another meeting..."

"never mind……"

Next, Lin Xiao went to the screening room again and brought out DreamWorks' "Shrek", Pixar's "Toy Story 2", and "Monsters, Inc."

They also brought along Blue Sky Studios' Ice Age 2.

Amy couldn't do anything all day, spending the whole day watching five classic animated films with Lin Xiao.

Finally, we played "Kung Fu Panda" again.

“I know what you’re going to say,” Amy said. “I can see the difference.”

At first, watching "Kung Fu Panda" directly didn't make much of a difference, but after watching five classic action movies first, the difference in visual quality became clear.

Lin Xiao: "Blue Sky Studios' first Ice Age was rather rough, but the second one was a huge leap in quality."

"Ice Age 2 grossed $660 million worldwide. With box office revenue sharing and income from other channels, it earned at least $400 to $500 million."

"Amy, I want to ask, if the main investor in this film wasn't me, but rather Sony Columbia completely in charge, would you have let it go like this?"

Amy Pascal remained silent.

“Amy, this is not a movie, it’s a series.”

"Moreover, if this one is successful, the entire IP can be fully leveraged, and we can make a second, third, and fourth installment."

"Not only that, I will also activate a second IP and a third IP."

"This is a multi-billion dollar industry that will last for the next decade or more."

“I am a very, very generous collaborator. You should be able to see that we deserve most of the credit for the success of ‘Doomsday Journey,’ but you took the biggest share of the profits.”

"You should really treat me as one of your own."

"How much money have I made for you over the years? You've invested in countless projects in Asia, and the amount of money involved is unknown, but all those projects combined don't amount to as much as I've made for you."

"But at least for now, you don't treat me like one of your own."

Amy Pascal said slowly, "I'm very sorry about the Squid Game."

The TV series "Squid Game" achieved unprecedented success throughout Asia, sweeping across East Asia.

Lightning Entertainment came to the United States with great hopes, and had high hopes for CBS.

Because this is the largest television network in the United States, although CBS and Columbia Pictures are no longer the same company, they still have a long-standing connection.

In addition, YouTube was one of the first companies to purchase American TV series, buying a large number at once, most of which were purchased from CBS.

However, in the end, "The Squid Game" and CBS did not reach an agreement.

It's not that they wouldn't agree to buy it, but the price they offered was very low, and the airing time slot was terrible.

Therefore, Lin Xiao withdrew his order and made other plans.

"Americans are very realistic. Although 'The Squid Game' was a huge success in East Asia, your other show, 'Breaking Bad,' had terrible ratings."

"I'm very sorry, Lin, but our influence over CBS is really limited."

"And about Sony Electronics, I know about your work on mobile phones. Regarding mobile phone screens, you initially had high expectations for Sony Electronics, but the final result disappointed you."

"But as you know, although they are all within the Sony Group, the relationship between Sony Electronics, Sony Interactive Entertainment, and Sony Pictures..."

"Alright, Lin, I feel guilty enough. You can tell me why you came, even though I know what it is."

Lin Xiao said, "Reworking 'Kung Fu Panda' is an animated film, not a live-action film, so it can be improved. Reworking it is just reworking it to make it better, not like a live-action film that needs to be completely remade."

Amy Pascal: "That would add tens of millions of dollars to the cost, mainly due to the scheduling."

Lin Xiao: "I have had several meetings with the people in the studio. The core members of Oriental Fantasy Studio were all key members of other animation giants. They are not lacking in skills. The reason why the effect is not very good is that the budget is not enough. The key is that most of the time and cost are spent on the early integration."

"Our production schedule was very tight, giving them less than two years, which is why the final product was not satisfactory."

Amy Pascal: "Two years is actually quite a long time. Don't be fooled by the fact that many animated films have a production cycle of around three years; that's because a lot of time is spent on character design and script refinement. But Kung Fu Panda had a complete script from the very beginning, and you had already completed all the designs for each character. Two years is more than enough time..."

Lin Xiao: "Fifty million US dollars should be enough. I'll contribute thirty million, and you guys contribute twenty million."

Amy shrugged: "Lin, if The Hunger Games is a success, then everything will be much easier, and I won't be under any pressure from the board of directors."

As I said before, Americans are very pragmatic.

If you succeed, you can make any request.

Both "Breaking Bad" and "The Hunger Games" were tailor-made for Facebook's national talent show. Now that "Breaking Bad" is not doing well in terms of ratings, Sony Columbia's expectations for "The Hunger Games" have been greatly reduced.

The status of Lin Xiao as a strategic partner was also diminished within the board of directors.

"Okay, okay, you're the boss, I agree, I agree..."

“I’ll be responsible for persuading the board, or rather, for suppressing them,” Amy said to Lin Xiao.

Lin Xiao: "You're the best."

Amy: "You don't have to say anything, but I can clearly feel the hypocrisy and perfunctoriness in your words."

Then, Amy opened her arms to Lin Xiao.

Lin Xiao stepped forward and gently hugged her.

“You’re a madman, but a madman with infectious energy,” Amy said. “I really want to see you succeed soon. I really want to see you succeed every time.”

………………

Next, Lin Xiao went to negotiate with the people from AMC.

They persuaded them to agree to put Breaking Bad on YouTube.

Charles Dolan owns countless businesses; he is even one of the co-founders of HBO and the owner of an NBA team.

The Dolan family may not rank very high on the rich list, but they are definitely a long-established family business.

Lin Xiao was invited to the best seats to watch an NBA offseason game.

However, the person who invited him was James Dolan, and on his right was Adam Allen, an executive at AMC.

After watching the game, Lin Xiao negotiated with Adam Allen.

"Lin, although Breaking Bad's ratings aren't good, we all love it, especially Charles. He's a man with passion, so we'll co-produce a second season and we'll renew it."

"However, the videotape and DVD market is huge, and because the ratings are bad, the videotape and DVD market can completely make up for it. But if you decide to put the first season on YouTube for free, then we will lose most of the videotape and DVD market."

Breaking Bad's popularity is largely due to the influence of the internet and streaming media, and Lin Xiao wants to accelerate this influence.

He explained his reasons, and most importantly, YouTube pays for the copyright.

Because most of the copyright for this show is held by Dream Vision, they have the power to make decisions on this matter. The reason they are talking to AMC is entirely out of respect.

James Dolan couldn't help but say from the side, "Lin, your YouTube channel is insane, absolutely insane."

“Our TV station has worked hard for several years, even more than a decade, to build up its audience base, while YouTube has achieved that in less than a year, and even surpassed it.”

“Our family has been eyeing this opportunity and has considered investing.”

"Okay, we agree. Hopefully, as you said, the positive word-of-mouth on the internet will bring more viewers to our second season."

"After all, I've heard about your miraculous success, and I want you to replicate that miracle at AMC. Unlike CBS, we're a network with a strong personal touch, making us more resonant with geniuses like you."

This matter was settled without much effort.

A few days later, the first season of Breaking Bad was released on YouTube and streamed for free.

..............................

And Kung Fu Panda got its wish and was remade.

Both parties increased their investment by US$50 million.

As a result, it became almost the most expensive animated film in the industry.

Wu Lingxi was joking, but it really did feel like Lin Xiao's luck had been stolen, just as she said.

After he resigned from all positions at Lightning Group to start his third business, his previous brilliant and continuous success seemed to come to an end.

The setback of "The Squid Game" in the United States, the poor ratings of "Breaking Bad", and the unsatisfactory final product of "Kung Fu Panda"

But it's coming soon, it's really coming soon...

Not long after, the work that had been brewing for several years was completed.

All of them will erupt at once.

Having settled things in the United States, Lin Xiao flew back to China once again, returning to Ningbo.

It was already the end of the year.

Another year is coming to an end.

In just over two months, the quantum technology company has already grown to more than 300 employees.

The Chinese branch of the X Research Institute also has more than 100 people.

The chip hasn't been released yet, the screen hasn't been released, the system hasn't been released, and the baseband chip hasn't been released either.

The current work of quantum technology is the design and finalization of mobile phones.

The logo for the quantum phone is quite beautiful and sophisticated.

Because the overview diagram of quantum mechanics itself is very beautiful and sci-fi, it is entirely about the microscopic world and is full of a sense of the future.

Besides the screen, the processor is also important in determining whether a mobile phone can sell well.

Appearance is also very important.

In this regard, Lin Xiao first had the design department complete one draft after another.

then……

He directly released the renderings.

Immediately, the entire design department was speechless with astonishment, exchanging bewildered glances.

For his first phone design, Lin Xiao still planned to take a shortcut and borrow ideas from other manufacturers.

Which generation of iPhone was the most stunning?

Without a doubt, it's the iPhone 4.

The concept image provided by Lin Xiao is essentially a slimmer version of the iPhone 4.

The iPhone 4 has a 3.5-inch screen, while Lin Xiao's first-generation phone had a 4-inch screen.

Moreover, he personally felt that the elongated version would look better and be more dynamic.

Because the phone's appearance is so important, not only the design department staff were present, but the entire senior management team was there as well.

Upon seeing this concept art, I was instantly speechless.

Only two words came to my mind: Holy shit!

Then, instinctively, I took out my phone from my pocket.

There were Nokia, Motorola, and Sony Ericsson phones.

They're all flagship models.

How do you compare this to the concept art provided by Lin Xiao?
It's more than just a matter of dimensional reduction; it's a work from two different eras.

This doesn't look like a phone at all; it looks like a work of art.

It's so beautiful, so stunning.

but……

But...

"Boss, can I ask you something? What material is used for that gorgeous effect on the back?" Bai Yongxiang asked in a slightly trembling voice.

Lin Xiao: "Glass."

Bai Yongxiang: "The cost is very high. The most crucial thing is that the front high-hardness glass is a necessary measure to protect the screen. Adding another piece of glass at the back increases the risk of breakage by half."

"Moreover, it has very high requirements for hardness and toughness. This is materials science, and we... we may not really have enough time to work with suppliers to overcome these challenges. Even if we could make it, the cost would be very high."

Lin Xiao: "I know, I know."

"Therefore, this glass back cover is only made in the premium version and will be released in limited quantities."

"The back cover of the regular version is still plastic, but it must have the texture of glass."

Bai Yongxiang: "It's not difficult, it's not difficult."

"Then, what about the mid-frame?"

Lin Xiao: "It must be metal; there is no room for compromise on this point."

Everyone present gasped in shock.

Boss, aren't you taking too big a step?

In the early eras of smartphones, they were all made of plastic.

One of Huawei's phones at the time didn't use a metal frame, but only a metal trim, yet its appearance was already greatly improved, and sales soared.

The Xiaomi Mi 1 phone was undoubtedly a success, with excellent specifications, but its design was simply beyond words.

Liu Zuohu: "Boss, we can manage to make a metal frame, but... it will increase the cost significantly. At this rate, how much should our phones sell for?"

yes?

How much should we sell it for?

Xiaomi's success left a deep impression on Lin Xiao; the price of 1999 was practically a mantra.

And it's not just Xiaomi; even Meizu, and later Huawei, have similar prices.

It wasn't until the P1 came out that it was positioned as a flagship product and priced at 2999.

However, there is no doubt that Lin Xiao would not sell it for 1999.

Because of Lin Xiao's decisive and arbitrary decision-making, this appearance was approved on the spot.

However, another troublesome aspect is that the key components are not yet standardized, making it difficult to determine the dimensions.

The internal space of a mobile phone is extremely valuable.

Lin Xiao bit it off, and the thickness could not exceed 9.3 millimeters.

The Xiaomi 1 is 11.9 millimeters thick, which is really not aesthetically pleasing at all.

With a thickness of 9.3 millimeters, it's simply exquisite by today's standards.

Next, we need to negotiate with the contract manufacturer.

Targeting Inventec and Foxconn.

There's no doubt that contract manufacturers would be furious if they saw these requirements.

Damn it, please stop messing with me.
However, Apple isn't the most powerful company in this era; you can meet its requirements.

I've paid so much money, and I have so many orders, why can't you do it?
However, without a quantity of five or six million units, the contract manufacturers probably really won't do it.

They placed an order for five or six million units without even knowing how many units would be sold.
The chips, baseband, screen, camera, and system have all been developed at great cost.

Nowadays, the requirements for mobile phone appearance, aesthetics, and size are so high, and the requirements for processing are also so high.

God really has no idea how much money we'll have to invest.

Fortunately, as long as it's not US dollars, everything is easy to handle.

There's another thing to decide next: whether or not to open a flagship store.
By the time this phone comes out, the logistics will be pretty good, and online shopping will be quite convenient.

However... most people still find it hard to accept such high prices when shopping online.

Therefore, flagship stores and specialty stores are essential.

“We don’t need many exclusive stores, a few dozen or a hundred will suffice.” Lin Xiao: “The key is still the distributors.” Liu Zuohu: “However, given the cost and price of our phone, the profit margin left for distributors is not large, so they may not be willing to promote our phone.”

Lin Xiao: "Then our phones need to be hot enough, awesome enough, so that distributors have no choice but to promote them. If your store doesn't have our quantum phone, you don't deserve to run a phone store."

This is Apple's strategy.

Apple has only had a handful of official stores in the country all along.

Selecting locations, decorating, and recruiting for franchise stores across the country takes time, manpower, and money.

Xiaomi 1 initially had no offline stores and sold 800 million units entirely online, but that was in 2011, so it can't be compared.

………………

And so, amidst unparalleled busyness!
2006 has passed, and 2007 has arrived.

For the entire year, Lin Xiao achieved almost no significant success; he was constantly spending money, spending money, spending money.

But... this year, he was able to go home for the Spring Festival.

It's been almost three years since he went home for the Chinese New Year.

He participated in the CCTV Spring Festival Gala in 2004 and 2005, and was in the United States in 2006.

Lin Xiao has also disappeared from the public eye for two whole years.

In 2006, Tencent and NetEase were extremely successful.

Tencent's revenue is nearly 30 billion yuan, while NetEase's historical revenue is around 22 billion yuan. However, thanks to the boost from World of Warcraft, it has directly exceeded 26 billion yuan.

Of course, World of Warcraft's real boom period won't begin until next year, so its financial report next year will be even more explosive.

Shanda's revenue has declined, reaching only around 16 billion RMB in 2006.

Lightning Group is not publicly listed, so it does not publish financial reports.

But Lin Xiao has complete control over all the data.

Many, and very successful.

However... we've hit a bottleneck.

First, while Flash Entertainment is still growing, it has reached a bottleneck, as the four major variety shows have become saturated.

Two or three TV series and two or three movies every year.

Of course, the most crucial asset here is Facebook.

His career in China has reached its ceiling; QQ stands directly in his way, completely insurmountable.

Therefore, Lin Xiao's mobile internet strategy can only succeed, it cannot fail.

The gaming industry made a breakthrough with Fallout 3.

The film and television industry broke through with "Kung Fu Panda".

The internet industry is making a strategic breakthrough in mobile phones using quantum technology.

....................................

“As long as it’s in RMB, that makes things easy,” Xia Xi said. “The group has made a lot of money this year, but is it enough to keep you burning through cash for making phones?”

Lin Xiao: "If that's not enough, we'll take out a loan."

If we follow Xiaomi's early model, that would be more than enough, because it's purely a futures model, basically relying on the supply chain.

But Lin Xiao followed the Apple model, which is highly independent and demanding of contract manufacturers.

That would require incurring significant costs.

"Over the past two years, your reputation, and the reputation of our Lightning Group, has continued to decline..."

Will Facebook Night still be held this year?

Lin Xiao: "You're the head of Lightning Group, you decide?"

Xia Xi: "Renren Night is going to be held again, with Microsoft on the side. Sina Blog is also making a big splash this year, with huge influence in public opinion."

"On the contrary, we are making unprecedented profits and are very successful, but our momentum is gradually becoming mediocre."

"I understand you so well now. Making money in a mediocre way is really boring."

"It is a great tragedy if a company truly becomes mediocre."

Lin Xiao smiled gently.

It's the incubation period, the breakthrough period.

Very normal.

The Lightning Group had already unleashed its amazing power, so it always needs to accumulate for two or three years.

"Come on, baby, let's go set off fireworks..."

Lin Xiao, carrying Lin Yiyi, excitedly went to the field opposite the house.

"Bang bang bang..."

"Happy Chinese New Year..."

........................

After a brief Spring Festival, Lin Xiao resumed his busy schedule.

Go to the contract manufacturers, go to the supply chain.

Because Liu Zuohu and Bai Yongxiang were not well-known at that time, they were not valued when they went to the supply chain and contract manufacturers.

You don't know until you do it; you only understand after you've done it.

A mobile phone has so many components.

This is not like ten years from now, when the supply chain is so perfect that anyone can make mobile phones.

The current supply chain is entirely composed of counterfeit feature phones.

Lin Xiao, this pioneering figure, really needs to work with the supply chain and suppliers one by one.

In some cases, when suppliers couldn't handle the situation, Lin Xiao even had to utilize resources from universities and laboratories to help resolve it.

The difficulties and challenges seem endless.

At this point, we really have to thank Apple, because at least it was the first to blaze a trail.

Of course, there's also Nokia. Although they weren't smartphones, they were quite radical in their exploration of design.

But the current situation is... Lin Xiao's requirements are too high. In terms of appearance and materials alone, they are even higher than those of the iPhone of the same era.

Lin Xiao has decided to adopt the metal frame that was only used in the iPhone 4.

While it might not be that difficult, it does require the contract manufacturer to start from scratch.

Keep your head down and do it.

Lin Xiao even had the feeling that this wasn't about making a mobile phone; it was more like going on a pilgrimage to the West, facing far more than eighty-one tribulations.

It gives people the feeling that it's endless.

On January 9, 2007, Apple released its first-generation iPhone.

Although it's not perfect, it has already amazed the world.

Therefore, when Lin Xiao went to Foxconn and Inventec, they saw Lin Xiao's requirements and his design drawings.

It's just a feeling.

You are crazy!
Apple's iPhone is amazing enough, what kind of ridiculous request is this?

However, Lin Xiao also inwardly complained.

What are you pretending for? What's so surprising?
Apple's iPod Touch 1 will be released in the second half of the year.

Isn't that design difficult? Isn't it difficult to manufacture?
Two or three years ago, Apple really did surpass the iPhone in terms of the iPod Touch's design and appearance.

It's just going to be a back-and-forth struggle.

If you can't do it, then update the equipment and upgrade the production line.

I'll add more money, add more money, add more money.

........................

Time continued to fly by.

There were no results or good news reported on almost all fronts.

Lin Xiao's side continues to burn money, burn money, burn money.

The dollar is burning.

The RMB is also burning.

It's like a bottomless pit.

There are still about eight months until the dollar loan is repaid.

However, all the IP-driven blockbusters are still in the works.

And so, it came to May 2007!

It has been two full years since Lin Xiao disappeared from the public eye and resigned from all his positions.

On this day, Lin Xiao was still in the OEM factory.

"Mr. Lin, I don't know when you plan to release or launch your phone, but at this pace..."

"For your sake, we have purchased brand new machine tools, brand new equipment, and even upgraded the production line."

Where is your phone?

Lin Xiao: "It'll be soon, it'll be soon."

The other person took the cigarette from Lin Xiao and said slowly, "However, I'm also looking forward to it."

"Apple's iPhone is already so amazing, I can't even imagine what your phone would be like if it were to actually come out?"

"But, haven't they even gotten the SOC and screen sorted out yet?"

Lin Xiao: "It'll be soon, it'll be soon."

....................................

"Lin Xiao, come to X Research Institute." Wu Di made a phone call.

"Our mobile phone operating system is out."

Lin Xiao was taken aback. So they finally came out?

Oh my God!

This is a fucking great moment.

It's been two years, and I've already burned through $1.5 million on this system alone, haven't I?
Because the core business is in the United States, we have to bear the high costs and high salaries there.

It's more than twice that of Google.

The goal is to get ahead of the curve.

Because with this thing, whoever comes out first gets it?
Google is awesome, but it's not in a hurry, and it doesn't even have a mandatory timetable.

Lin Xiao was in a hurry, so he needed to invest regardless of cost.

“Yes, it’s not as difficult as you might imagine, it’s just troublesome, extremely troublesome…” Wu Di.

Lin Xiao: "You've already learned how to be giant?"

Wu Di: "Stop arguing, hurry up and come over, we're waiting for your inspection."

Just as Lin Xiao hung up the phone, asked his assistant to book a ticket, and rushed to the airport.

The phone rang again.

Amy Pascal called: "Lin, The Hunger Games is all finished. We're having a preview screening in three days."

"Hurry up and fly over here. We still need to have a meeting to discuss the scale of its issuance and publicity."

"So far, Sony hasn't given it a very high strategic priority, and they don't have high hopes for it. I need you to come and work with me to elevate this project."

"I need your inflammatory rhetoric."

Lin Xiao hung up the phone and looked up at the blue sky.

Clear blue sky!

The Hunger Games grossed $6.94 million worldwide!
Top-selling item!

To everyone's surprise.

The gloom is truly about to pass.

The moment of explosion may really be coming.

Lin Xiao: "Okay, I'll fly to the US the day after tomorrow."

………………

A few hours later!
Lin Xiao landed in Ning City and immediately rushed to the Quantum Technology Park, bursting into the X Research Institute.

More than a hundred people stood neatly outside to greet them.

They lined the streets to welcome them.

Get out of here, stop this charade.

Enter the office.

Both of the institute's vice presidents, though American, were present.

Wu Di was in a wheelchair, holding a mobile phone in his hand.

Of course, this is not a quantum phone, but a batch of phones specially customized to verify the phone system. Even the SOC was developed by ARM.

"Actually, this system came out a few months ago."

"But I know you well, so I don't dare show it to you."

"We are really afraid of your sighs, afraid of your disappointed eyes."

Wu Di slowly said, "I am smarter and more demanding than you, but my vision is not as broad as yours, so I think it's about time and I can show it to you."

"Of course, there is still a lot of room for improvement in the UI and in the details of the functions."

"Just look at the basic functions, the smoothness, and so on..."

Lin Xiao looked up and said, "Stop talking nonsense, I'll see for myself."

Lin Xiao took the phone.

Let's ignore functionality and smoothness for now.

This UI, this layout, this icon design.

Wow!
It truly reflects his vision, which was ahead of its time by a decade or two.

It's no wonder he hired an artist to draw them one by one from his memory.

And the overall layout.

This is not technology, but application logic, and aesthetic design.

There are so many mobile operating systems that are truly ahead of their time.

........................

Note: I went out again today and only got back to writing this afternoon. I don't need to go out tomorrow, so I can focus on writing. My benefactors, can I still ask for monthly votes? Thank you all so much!

(End of this chapter)