Restart life

Chapter 490 0480 [No one's buying The Legend of Zhen Huan?]

Sohu Building, Beijing.

Deng Hua, president of Sohu Video, patiently watched the first two episodes of "Empresses in the Palace" and commented: "Director Zheng's TV series are undoubtedly of high quality. But the price of 30 yuan per episode is still a bit high."

Dun Yong, who was in charge of selling the show, said, "Your company spent over 3000 yuan per episode last year to acquire the exclusive online broadcasting rights for 'New My Fair Princess,' totaling 30 million yuan. Our show is of far superior quality to 'New My Fair Princess,' and its viewership will definitely be much higher!"

Deng Hua shook his head: "Too expensive."

"What amount does Mr. Deng think is appropriate?" Dunyong asked.

Deng Hua said, "20 per episode."

Dun Yong almost laughed out of anger: "Palace has sold for 30 yuan per episode, why does President Deng have to be so ruthless in lowering the price? Give me a sincere price."

Deng Hua said, "Let's think about it some more."

After saying that, he refused to talk any further.

Dunyong then realized that the other party wasn't deliberately trying to lower the price, but genuinely thought it was too expensive: "How about this, let's round it down to 2000 million and sell it all at once!"

Deng Hua shook his head: "We need to have another meeting to discuss this."

Dun Yong frowned, puzzled. His asking price wasn't high; it was the market standard. Why wouldn't Sohu Video even negotiate?

Two years ago, the online exclusive rights to "Empresses in the Palace" could sell for at most 1 yuan per episode.

However, after video websites launched a copyright war, the price suddenly soared to 30 yuan per episode last year.

Dun Yong returned to the company and found Zheng Xiaolong. The two discussed it for a long time but still couldn't figure out what the problem was.

So they flew to Shenzhen to find Tencent, intending to sell "Empresses in the Palace" to Tencent Video.

They still couldn't reach an agreement; Tencent Video was only willing to offer 23 yuan per episode.

Then they tried Youku and Tudou, but still couldn't sell "Empresses in the Palace".

From beginning to end, they never considered selling to LeEco.

"What's going on?" Dun Yong was completely confused.

Zheng Xiaolong called Feng Kuzi: "Xiaogang, you have a good relationship with President Chen, could you help me ask him... I'm not asking President Chen to invest, I just want to know the specifics, why did those video websites suddenly stop buying videos?"

Why not buy it?

From last year to now, major video websites have been scrambling to acquire TV dramas at exorbitant prices, often offering hundreds of thousands of yuan per episode. "New My Fair Princess" even managed to sell for 3000 million yuan!

After more than a year of struggling, everyone's funds were almost depleted.

Especially after Alibaba divested Alipay, and the stock prices of Sohu, Tudou, and Youku continued to plummet, where would they dare to spend lavishly on film and television dramas?

Even Tencent, which is listed in Hong Kong, saw its stock price drop by 7% in a single day.

……

Chen Guiliang was personally overseeing the promotion of QR codes when he suddenly received a call from Feng Kuzi.

Chen Guiliang was still very enthusiastic about Feng Kuzi, after all, this guy had some films.

For last year's film "Aftershock," Feng Xiaogang first approached Chen Guiliang to inquire whether Tudou (a popular Chinese film company) wanted to buy the exclusive online rights. The deal was ultimately struck at the market price of 500 million yuan.

"Director Feng, it's been a long time," Chen Guiliang said.

Feng Kuzi said on the phone, "I have a friend named Zheng Xiaolong who recently filmed a TV series called 'Empresses in the Palace.' He contacted many video websites, but none of them were willing to buy it at market price. He doesn't understand why, so he asked me to consult you."

Chen Guiliang immediately laughed: "Don't you guys read financial news? Jack Ma's illegal operations caused all Chinese concept stocks to plummet. My ByteDance stock price has already fallen by more than $30. Among those video websites, Tencent has fallen the least."

"The video websites are out of money?" Feng Kuzi suddenly realized.

Chen Guiliang said, "We have money, but we dare not spend it recklessly. Who knows how long the price will continue to fall? They have bought too many films in the past year or so, and it has indeed reached a cooling-off period in the copyright war."

The collective plunge in stock prices is expected to last for more than two weeks.

After that, the stock prices of companies that performed exceptionally well began to gradually recover. However, companies that performed poorly or mediocrely experienced a prolonged period of decline, until a general rebound in 2013.

The incident that Ma Jieke caused this time has had a huge impact.

Worried that his films wouldn't sell well, Feng Kuzi quickly asked, "So, you'll have to lower the price of your films from now on?"

"We'll see. Maybe it will recover to market prices in two or three months." Chen Guiliang wasn't sure either.

Feng Kuzi said, "Thank you for clearing up my doubts, Mr. Chen. You are our guiding light."

"Stop flattering me," Chen Guiliang laughed. "I've always admired Director Zheng; I grew up watching his TV dramas. If he wants to sell 'Empresses in the Palace,' he can come directly to me."

Feng Kuzi asked, "Are you going to decide to buy Tudou.com?"

Chen Guiliang said, "Tudou.com has many shareholders, and I can't interfere with the website's operation. Since they are unwilling to buy, I can't force them. I have another video website, and if 'Empresses in the Palace' is of good quality, I can pay to acquire it."

"On behalf of Director Zheng, I thank General Manager Chen for his help," said Feng Kuzi.

In another timeline, "Empresses in the Palace" also failed to sell. Dun Yong and Zheng Xiaolong visited all the major video websites, but everyone thought it was too expensive.

They finally approached LeEco, allowing LeEco to snag a huge bargain. This brings LeEco a stable income of over ten million yuan annually, not including other hidden benefits!
The next day, Zheng Xiaolong and Dun Yong paid a visit, and Feng Kuzi also came along for the fun. While waiting for the elevator on the first floor, Dun Yong looked at the signage and exclaimed, "Good heavens, President Chen's two companies actually occupy five floors here!"

Feng Kuzi, who seemed quite familiar with the area, corrected him, "It only occupies four and a half floors. They even built their own building in Shunyi, and companies specializing in mobile phones, publishing, investment, animation, and Youpay have all moved there."

"Amazing!" Zheng Xiaolong exclaimed sincerely.

The three of them took the elevator upstairs. Feng Kuzi, familiar with the route, registered them at the front desk and then led them to Chen Guiliang's office.

Chen Guiliang warmly received them and asked his secretary to make coffee.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Dunyong pulled out a portable hard drive containing the first three episodes of "Empresses in the Palace".

Chen Guiliang only watched half an episode before asking, "How much?"

Dun Yong said, "The fixed price is 2000 million. That averages out to just over 26 per episode."

Chen Guiliang then asked, "How long is the copyright term?"

“Five years,” Dunyong said.

Chen Guiliang shook his head: "Ten years. And after it expires, I have the right of first refusal to renew. Within ten years, I have the right to resell or sub-sell to other video websites."

Dun Yong looked at Zheng Xiaolong, who nodded imperceptibly.

The production company for "Empresses in the Palace" is Huayi Brothers Media, and the production and distribution company is Beijing Television Art Center.

Dun Yong is the president of Huayi Brothers Media, and Zheng Xiaolong is a contracted director and shareholder.

The online copyrights for films and television dramas are typically sold for three to five years.

Ten years is considered old for a TV series. Who would buy it for that long? To put it bluntly, it's hard to say whether Huayi Brothers Media will have gone out of business in ten years.

Dunyong is in a hurry to sell the online rights to "Empresses in the Palace" because he wants to quickly recoup funds to invest in making another film.

“It’s a deal!” Dun Yong said.

Chen Guiliang said, "Find some time to go to Shunyi and sign a contract with AcFun."

When Chen Guiliang acquired ACFUN, ACFUN was a personal website and did not have a fixed office address.

The site administrator was messing around at home, and the other administrators were also working from home.

AcFun (A站) has now officially registered as a company, with its office located in ByteDance's Shunyi Building. It's now aligned with companies like HarmonyOS mobile phones, Xiyi Capital, and Youpay.

Dunyong said happily, "President Chen is decisive and efficient, and gets things done quickly!"

Chen Guiliang said, "ByteDance has a publishing company that has expanded its business to film and television production this year. They are now planning to shoot two films, a youth campus romance movie and a campus sitcom. I don't know many directors, do any of you have any good director recommendations?"

Both of these novels were selected from a writing contest on Renren.com and are cherished memories of youth and campus life for many white-collar workers today.

One is called "That Summer" and the other is called "Our Love". Both novels have sold over a million copies.

Dun Yong said, "Zhang Yibai, Teng Huatao, Xu Jinglei, Liu Fendou... these directors are all suitable. If President Chen needs any behind-the-scenes staff, just give me a call and I will definitely help you contact them immediately."

"Thank you very much," Chen Guiliang said with a smile. "If any of you have movies released in the future, you can also contact ByteDance, formerly known as Mtime. They have online ticketing and seat selection services, and can also help with movie promotion."

Feng Kuzi laughed and said, "Then we definitely have to cooperate. President Chen's business scope is getting wider and wider."

Dun Yong said, "I went to the cinema a few days ago and saw Mr. Chen's company's QR code. This thing is very novel. Many viewers paid with the QR code on the automatic ticket machine according to the instructions in order to get free popcorn."

“Haha, it’s still in the promotion stage,” Chen Guiliang said. “In a few years, who knows, even vegetable vendors on the street will be using QR codes to collect money.”

The three laughed upon hearing this, all thinking that Chen Guiliang was joking.

Cinemas are now one of the main battlegrounds for Upay and Alipay, as more and more cinemas are installing automatic ticket vending machines.

Stick the QR code on the automatic ticket vending machine, along with an instruction manual. Offer ticket discounts, free popcorn, and other promotions to attract moviegoers to use the QR code for payment.

This promotional method is very effective because the audience members who buy tickets automatically are themselves a group of trend-conscious people. They are very willing to embrace new things!
After chatting for a while, the three said goodbye and left.

When it was time for Chen Guiliang to get off work, he also let his driver Yang Shuo go home, and he personally drove to a residential area in Zhongguancun to pick up the person.

"Here!" Tao Xue waved from the entrance of the residential area.

Chen Guiliang slammed on the brakes and stopped the car: "Wow, who did your outfit? You look like a big star."

Tao Xue opened the car door: "To meet the deadline, I haven't left the house for half a month, and I've even been ordering takeout for meals. I'm practically moldy, so I'm getting a new look to revitalize myself."

"You actually have times when you're rushing to meet deadlines?" Chen Guiliang teased.

Tao Xue said, "I need to finish this quickly; I don't want to write anymore."

Chen Guiliang said, "Weren't your grades pretty good?"

Tao Xue said, "If my grades weren't good, I would have just given up. I only persevered and finished writing it because my grades were good. I also contacted Xu Fengyin and asked her to help me find an illustrator to turn my novel into a comic."

"When did you get along so well with Xu Fengyin?" Chen Guiliang asked, quite surprised.

Tao Xue laughed and said, "Hehe, I won't tell you."

(End of this chapter)