Internet moguls are being held hostage by the entertainment system!

Chapter 451 Strategic Cooperation Plan between Tencent and TikTok (Bonus Chapter, Requesting Monthly Tickets!)

With his right hand still raised, Pony Ma clearly saw a sly look on Chen Xiu's face.

As his thoughts raced, he quickly realized that Chen Xiu's words were meant to first elevate WeChat, then Douyin, in order to lead to the eventual cooperation between the two parties.

Based on the current development trend of the Internet, Baidu is becoming increasingly ineffective. After more than two years of working on AI, it has not produced any significant innovations and has long since fallen out of the top tier.

In contrast, Douyin's growth has been soaring, and it's a foregone conclusion that it will become one of the top three internet platforms after Tencent and Ali.

Such a behemoth of a company is not likely to merge; it is best for it to exist independently.

However, Chen Xiu just mentioned TikTok... that has great potential!
Out of modesty, Pony lowered his right hand, picked up his coffee, and pondered for a moment.

His eyelids were half-closed, his eyes were calm and unwavering, and he transformed into a thinker statue, pondering the cooperation that Chen Xiu had just mentioned.

"Based on Chen Xiu's description, TikTok is the overseas version of Douyin, similar to WeChat's overseas chat app. Could it be WeChat?"

"No, no, he couldn't be that stupid as to use TikTok to benefit WeChat. There must be another reason."

"Could it be that he plans to have Tencent partner with TikTok to jointly develop a chat app?"

"That won't work either!"

“The overseas instant messaging market has long been occupied. Tencent can’t squeeze in no matter how hard it tries. How can a new app possibly change the usage habits of overseas users?”

"..."

A multitude of thoughts rushed through Pony's mind, but none of them were things he agreed with.

Left with no other choice, he could only take a sip of coffee, look up, and let Chen Xiu continue explaining.

"Tell me how TikTok and Tencent are going to collaborate."

"OK."

Chen Xiu quickly took a sip of coffee to moisten her throat, coughed lightly twice, and began to explain the cooperation plan she had been thinking about all the way here.

"As I just said, short videos and instant messaging are upstream and downstream relationships for attracting and retaining users. Their development tendrils will inevitably collide sooner or later. If conditions permit, cooperation is the optimal solution."

"Given the current situation, whether from an objective or subjective perspective, Douyin and Tencent can only exist as two separate companies, and there is no possibility of them merging."

"However, the overseas market environment has made this cooperation possible. TikTok currently has 7 million monthly active users. These users are attracted by short videos, and if there is an instant messaging software to retain them, that would be the optimal solution."

Chen Xiu ended the conversation there, preparing for the questions that were bound to come.

However, Pony remained silent and did not speak.

Liu Chi waited calmly for 5 seconds and immediately understood the bond between him and Pony.

"Ahem, Mr. Chen, I have a few questions I'd like to ask you."

"Please say."

"Okay, actually, Tencent has been trying to expand into overseas markets for the past few years, but the results have been less than satisfactory. My question is, you just mentioned that you hope to have an instant messaging app that can retain TikTok users. Are you planning to have TikTok and Tencent develop this app together?"

Liu Chiping accurately grasped Pony Ma's thoughts, and then used a gentle attitude to act as a cooling-off point in the negotiations between the three.

Chen Xiu glanced at him, then turned to look at Pony Ma, her expression relaxed and at ease.

"As I just said, once users develop a habit, it's very difficult to change it. I don't think a new social software will get much feedback when it's launched on the market."

"So, what exactly is this instant messaging software?"

Liu Chiping continued to press for answers, and Pony Ma slowly sat up straight.

Chen Xiu leaned forward again and emphasized, "An overseas version of WeChat."

"..."*2
Pony Ma and Liu Chiping looked at each other speechlessly, inexplicably feeling that they had been tricked by Chen Xiu.

Seeing his boss's face begin to stretch, Liu Chiping could only continue explaining and pressing for answers:
"Mr. Chen, there's always been an overseas version of WeChat, we call it Wechat, but its user base isn't very large. Would you be willing to use TikTok to drive traffic to it?"

"...The overseas version of WeChat is a metaphor of mine. Please do not take it as a direct translation."

Chen Xiu looked somewhat helpless, but she understood that such a misunderstanding was normal, since Tencent really does have an overseas version of WeChat.

"As for driving traffic to the software, Weishi has already proven that if users don't have the habit of using it, even if enough new users are acquired, there will be no retention."

Hey, that's enough.

You've only been here for less than half an hour and you've already mentioned Weishi three times. Do you want to do it a few more times?
Pony leaned back to suppress the urge to speak.

Liu Chiping noticed his movements and could only quickly ask Chen Xiu for answers in order to divert his attention.

"Since we're not developing a new app and can't drive traffic to WeChat, how exactly can we collaborate?"

"Actually, TikTok has already demonstrated the correct approach."

Chen Xiu's gaze shifted back and forth between Liu Chiping's curious expression and Pony Ma's suppressed curiosity, a suggestive smile slowly creeping onto her lips.

Upon seeing this, Tencent's two top executives immediately began to review TikTok's series of operations for going global, and then the answer became obvious.

Pony Ma raised his hand slightly to stop Liu Chiping and took the initiative to say, "You mean, let Tencent acquire an overseas instant messaging software and then cooperate with TikTok?"

"I'm more inclined to believe it's a joint acquisition by TikTok and Tencent, and we already have a target company in mind." "Which one?"

LINE.

Chen Xiu stated frankly that he was not worried at all that Tencent would bypass him and TikTok and acquire LINE separately.

Pony Ma's expression shifted between light and dark, while Liu Chiping's brows furrowed with deep, unresolved doubt.

The two exchanged a glance, successfully switching roles, and Liu Chiping continued to ask Chen Xiu questions.

“Since its IPO in 16, Line’s stock price has continued to decline, and the company has not been able to find a suitable profit model. We have actually considered acquiring it internally.”

"However, after calculation, we found that the acquisition of Line was not very meaningful. The input-output ratio was too low, making it a completely unprofitable transaction."

Chen Xiu nodded slightly, agreeing with this statement.

"Line currently has about 2 million monthly active users, mainly from Southeast Asia. Normally, it would be difficult to increase this number of users any further."

"200 million monthly active users is indeed not worthwhile compared to Line's current market value of several billion US dollars. What if the number of users doubled, tripled, would the result be different?"

Upon hearing this, Pony Ma and Liu Chiping's gazes towards Chen Xiu changed.

Liu Chiping opened his mouth, intending to have a good talk with Chen Xiu about how to acquire Line and how to double the number of users.

Unexpectedly, Pony Ma lightly patted his arm, signaling for a change of personnel.

Liu Chiping pursed his lips helplessly, picked up his coffee, and quietly waited.

"Cough cough."

Pony Ma coughed twice and said seriously, "I can understand that the acquisition of Line was based on user habits. But you said doubling the user base, that doesn't seem like that easy to do, does it?"

"Line alone isn't enough, but I have TikTok!"

Chen Xiu spread her hands, indicating that she had an ace up her sleeve.

"TikTok currently has 7 million monthly active users. This number is not its limit. You are all aware of the daily increase in users, so I won't go into details."

“Let’s talk about our current 7 million users, most of whom are located in Southeast Asia, where there is a high degree of overlap with Line users.”

"The users of the two apps overlap, which already creates a sense of community familiarity, making it easier to drive traffic between the apps."

Chen Xiu suddenly stopped and placed her cup of coffee in the middle of the coffee table. "This is TikTok, which is responsible for continuously using short videos to attract and retain new users."

Then, he took Pony Ma's coffee and placed it in the back.

"This is Line after the acquisition. It is responsible for using instant messaging functions to retain users, and at the same time, it will bring users back to the short video field to form a perfect closed loop."

As Pony Ma and Liu Chiping's eyes gradually brightened, Chen Xiu raised her chin slightly and pointed to the two cups of coffee on the coffee table.

"Could adding this double Line's user base?"

Yes, absolutely! *2
Pony Ma and Liu Chiping both agreed in their hearts.

In fact, when Tencent decided to enter the short video market last year, it had already conducted a series of user surveys.

The final results showed that there was a very high overlap between users who watched short videos and users who used WeChat; they were basically the same group of people.

Although Douyin (TikTok) doesn't affect WeChat much, people's time is limited. If users spend an extra minute watching short videos, the frequency and time spent using other apps will decrease.

Out of consideration for defending his own app, Pony Ma resolutely entered the short video market last year, but failed...

However, failures often bring experience and growth.

The sacrifice of Weishi made Tencent realize Douyin's dominance in the short video market. Since they couldn't beat it, they decided to join in!
The positive news brought to Tencent by investing in TikTok makes the resource waste caused by Weishi seem insignificant.

However, Tencent's obsession with the short video sector has become increasingly strong.

Pony Ma originally planned to use WeChat Channels to regroup and launch another attack on the short video track. Whether it works or not, we'll see. In short, we'll give it a try.

However, after hearing Chen Xiu's words, Pony Ma suddenly realized that cooperation between the two sides was actually quite good.

If TikTok acquires Line, its users can be gradually converted into Line users. This is practically the second WeChat, no, its potential is even greater than WeChat's, directly aiming to become Facebook's successor...

Thinking of this, Pony's heart began to pound.

"Chen Xiu, what are your thoughts on this cooperative acquisition?"

Seeing Pony Ma's obvious interest, Chen Xiu said, "My idea is to make WeChat independent and use it to join forces with TikTok to launch an acquisition of Line."

"This is a good idea; it can avoid a lot of trouble."

Pony nodded in agreement and, with great interest, began discussing the feasibility of the plan with Chen Xiu.

As they chatted, Liu Chiping joined in.

As time went by, the three of them refined their plans, and then they started discussing whether the new version of WeChat should be merged with TikTok after acquiring Line...

As the conversation expanded, the topic of the Duoshan App was long forgotten.

(End of this chapter)