America: My Time

Chapter 379 The Ambition of the Koreans

Chapter 379 The Koreans' Ambition
Huang Xizhao had long intended to get involved in the record industry, but previously their funds and energy were limited, so they were unable to develop it vigorously. Now they finally have the opportunity. With the power of the two major television stations in Hong Kong and Taiwan, as well as the power of the film industry, Phoenix Group can definitely have its own record label.

At this moment, Huang Xizhao thought of Phoenix Comics and Animation in Japan, so he said, "Boss, could we set up Phoenix Records in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan? That way, we can grow and expand as quickly as possible?"

“Sure, but you can discuss it with them yourself. You’ll be in charge of all Chinese-language entertainment, including television stations, film studios, and record labels! Don’t worry about short-term profits. I don’t have such requirements for Phoenix Group. I only ask that Phoenix Group accelerate its expansion and take control of the entire Asian media and entertainment industry.” At this moment, John directly delegated power to Huang Xizhao, handing over the entire Chinese-language entertainment and media business to him, completely trusting Huang Xizhao’s abilities.

The fact that Huang Xizhao was able to complete the establishment of Taiwan Television and the expansion of Phoenix Cinemas in such a short period of time is enough to prove his ability. John believes that he will not let him down. As long as the layout in the Chinese-language sector is completed, the media and entertainment industry in the whole of Asia will expand rapidly.

Just as John and Huang Xizhao were making arrangements for the expansion of Asian Media and Entertainment, their secretary, Ava, hurried in. She wouldn't interrupt John and Huang Xizhao's conversation unless it was something extremely urgent. Upon seeing Ava, John frowned; something unexpected must have happened again.

"What happened that made you so flustered?" John asked, looking at Ava's tense face.

“Boss, this is the situation from South Korea. They want to restart negotiations with us and accept the construction of the oil refinery, but they have put forward a condition: they also want to join Hughes' research and development project.” As she spoke, Ava handed the telegram in her hand to John, which contained detailed information.

"Has Ms. Carroll been notified? What did she say?" John asked, taking the telegram and glancing at it.

“Ms. Carroll is aware of this matter, but she doesn’t know whether Quantum Mining and Western Energy care about cooperation with South Korea, so she can’t make a decision and asked me to come to you.”

"Let's put that aside for now. Those Koreans have always been arrogant. It's laughable that they still want to negotiate with us at this point. We don't necessarily want to build our oil refinery there. We have plenty of other places to choose from. It's not us who are in a hurry now, it's them!" John said with a disdainful sneer, his eyes full of contempt.

If Hughes Aerospace hadn't reached a cooperation agreement with the Middle Eastern tycoons, and hadn't received that two billion dollars in funding, plus the five hundred million dollars from Japan, they might have accepted the South Korean conditions. But now John doesn't care whether the South Koreans participate or not, and he doesn't lack research and development funds, so naturally there's no need for him to pay attention to these guys.

“Ava, go and ask Ms. Carol to come to me. I have something to discuss with her!” John said, gesturing for Ava to leave. Then he continued to Huang Xijinzhao, “Xijinzhao, do you think we can take this opportunity to obtain a television license in South Korea, or even acquire a television station? If so, do you have the ability to control such a television station?”

Upon hearing these words, Hwang Seok-jo was also shocked by his boss's ambition. Although he did not know what Hughes Aerospace's research and development was, the fact that it could make South Korea bow down meant that this might be an opportunity to enter South Korea. However, he did not have the energy to continue to complete such acquisitions or build such a company.

Huang Xizhao shook his head and said, "Boss, I can't do it. The expansion of Chinese-language media and entertainment has already required me to devote all my energy. I have no way and no ability to continue to control a TV station. Besides, Hong Kong is too far away from South Korea, and it is not easy to control."

John nodded slightly in agreement. His previous assumptions were indeed somewhat presumptuous. The distance between Hong Kong and South Korea was too great; it wouldn't be easy for Hwang Seok-chao to manage such a television station. The best option was to make arrangements through TV Tokyo, provided that South Korea agreed to his demands and accepted his conditions.

Since the Koreans dared to make demands and impose conditions on him, John naturally wouldn't accept them. If anyone should be making conditions, it would be John himself. The TV station was just one of them; John could propose many more. Now, the Koreans were begging him, not John having to cooperate with them. That was the key point.

Thinking this, a faint, cold smile crept onto John's face. Perhaps this opportunity would be a chance to teach the Koreans a lesson, to show them that China wasn't to be trifled with, and also to lay the groundwork for their actions. At this point, the Koreans weren't like Japan; they didn't have Japan's powerful economy. If they wanted to cooperate with Hughes, they probably couldn't offer any financial support; they were just looking to take advantage. John wouldn't accept that. To participate in Hughes's research and development, they had to pay a price and show sincerity.

Not long after, Carol Tomey appeared before John. She did not want to accept the cooperation request from South Korea because South Korea had never shown any sincerity from the beginning, at least in her eyes. South Korea had not mentioned any investment funds, which left Carol Tomey speechless. If it were not for the layout of Quantum Mining and Western Energy, she would have rejected them outright without the slightest hesitation.

"Boss, are you looking for me?"

"Sit down! It's nothing major, just the cooperation with the Koreans. Ignore them for now. Don't discuss the quantum mining and Western Energy matters. They have little to do with Hughes Aerospace. They don't want to pay the price and just want to participate in our project with such a ridiculous cooperation. That's impossible. We don't lack R&D personnel or funds right now. There's no need to pay attention to such an insincere guy."

"Boss, South Korea isn't a big deal, but I'm worried about what Europe might think. Britain is also interested in participating in our research and development. It seems they've all been spurred on by Japan and the Middle Eastern tycoons!"

"Ignore them. What they think is their own business and has nothing to do with us. We won't agree to anything that doesn't benefit us, and such projects don't lack their participation. We are capable of completing them on our own."

When these guys in Britain also expressed interest in participating in the research and development, John immediately refused. Involving them would inevitably affect his future plans; they weren't exactly benevolent and would certainly cause unnecessary trouble for the research. With the support of Bell Labs and Dreamworld, Hughes Aerospace had no shortage of technology or funding. With the support of wealthy Japanese and Middle Eastern investors, this project had no problems whatsoever.

Involving those British guys in the Hughes Space program would only cause unnecessary trouble. John didn't believe they would genuinely help Hughes Space; they just wanted the technology they desired, which was something John was unwilling to accept. In contrast, Japan and Middle Eastern tycoons wouldn't have such problems.

Does Britain have any resources that John values? Yes, but not many, and they wouldn't affect its own development, so there's no need to involve these guys. Hughes's strength in the aerospace and communications field is not weak.

After a moment's thought, John continued, "Hughes Space's satellite launch program needs to be accelerated. We can't keep the Middle Eastern tycoons waiting too long. We need to at least give them hope. This year, we must launch at least three communication satellites to form our own satellite network. Funding is not a problem, but safety must be guaranteed. We absolutely cannot allow any mistakes. We will meet any needs Hughes Space has."

Upon hearing his boss's words, Carol Tomé couldn't help but smile wryly: "If that's the case, we'll be under a lot of pressure. Those guys will make even more demands. The communications satellite hasn't even been launched yet, and some people are already asking for improvements and a small test of the GPS system."

"Promise them. If they have the capability, why should we stop them? Isn't this a perfect way to give those Middle Eastern tycoons and those guys in Japan a satisfactory answer? As long as they don't affect the satellite communications network, nothing else matters. We have no reason to stop them!"

"Boss, that's true, but they're going too far. They want to completely overhaul the reserve satellites in the communications satellite network plan. The report has already been sent to me with detailed explanations, but I can't understand it at all."

"Since Hughes Aerospace thinks there are no problems, then agree to their request. We only care about the results, not their progress. As long as they think it's feasible, let them do it. In terms of research and development, we only need to make our demands and ignore everything else. We need to accelerate the connection with the dream world. We need to have faster results on the computational simulation problem, otherwise we won't be able to convince Japan and the Middle Eastern tycoons to continue investing in this project. We have to let them see the real thing."

Hughes Space's communications satellite network plan is also the result of a collaboration between Dreamworld and Hughes Space. They used Dreamworld's supercomputers to conduct simulations, and it was precisely because of Dreamworld's assistance that such rapid development was possible, allowing John to implement the second plan and begin research and development of a global positioning system. With Nvidia's continuous advancements in chip technology, Dreamworld's supercomputer and server development has also progressed rapidly, forging its own path, especially in its excellent supporting infrastructure.

(End of this chapter)