Pirates began to dominate the Chinese entertainment industry.

Chapter 98 An Unprecedented Talent Show (Day 6 of 10,000 words, please subscribe)

Ji Yun, the director of "Lost in Thailand," has just acquired Golden Harvest and is now planning to produce a variety show, which is reportedly an idol talent show.

Even "Super Boy" had poor ratings this year, barely breaking even. Many people within the TV station are laughing at him, thinking he's gotten arrogant just because he has some money. What do you think?

The comments section was immediately divided into two camps: "He's gotten arrogant +1. Making a good movie doesn't mean he can do well in variety shows; they're completely different tracks. So many talent shows flopped last year, what makes him think he can succeed?"

"Hey upstairs, he's worth a billion, what's wrong with him throwing money around for a quick buck? Losing it won't stop him from making movies."

"I'm from Hunan TV. My inside information is that the station's leaders specifically brought this up during a meeting, saying that Ji Yun's actions were purely to generate buzz for the station. When the ratings are crushed by 'Day Day Up,' he'll know what's what."

"There's also some movement from CCTV, saying they think talent shows are outdated, and audiences now prefer down-to-earth shows like 'Avenue of Stars,' while idol shows are too abstract."

Other voices also emerged: "How long has it been? Have you all forgotten when Ji Yun was last criticized by the entire internet? Before the release of 'Lost in Thailand,' everyone on the internet said that it was impossible for a student to make a good movie. And what happened? It grossed 200 million yuan."

"Oh yeah, that time the whole internet was criticizing him, and then he crushed 'Red Cliff'."

"If his film 'Lost in Thailand' hadn't been a success, I might have laughed at him for being arrogant. But after that film's success, I realized that this person cannot be judged by conventional standards."

"+1, don't be too quick to predict his failure, what if he succeeds?"

Although these voices are in the minority, they have received a significant number of likes.

"Quite a few people don't think we'll succeed," Huo Wenxi said, scrolling through the webpage.

"I know." Ji Yun leaned back in her chair after reading the comments.

Huo Wenxi turned her head to look at him, frowned, and said seriously, "The prize pool is in the tens of millions, and the total production cost is already close to tens of millions. I've done my research, and apart from 'Super Girl,' other talent shows aren't that profitable. How are we going to break even? Don't you want to reconsider and reduce the costs a bit?"

Ji Yun smiled.

These days, the potential of talent shows isn't fully realized. Currently, making money from talent shows is still largely limited to news articles and online shopping (GG). Future revenue streams could include fan fundraising, paid memberships, GG revenue sharing, artist endorsements, and tipping/PK battles...

Some of them are too advanced. Ji Yun only briefly mentioned: "In addition to traditional GG and SMS, we can also have artists' follow-up concert tours, commercial performances in various places, endorsements, records, and we also train our signed artists for free... Even if none of these make money, it doesn't matter."

The most important thing is video platforms. Time is limited this time, so I plan to acquire one first. If we can make it work, it'll be a multi-billion dollar business.

Huo Wenxi froze, staring at him with wide eyes, and asked blankly, "It seems that every work of yours not only makes money from the work itself, but also has a big business behind it... Is this still a variety show? Are you going public?"

"Otherwise, how can we build capital?" Ji Yun laughed.

Huo Wenxi looked at Ji Yun's calm demeanor, her feelings somewhat complicated. This man always seemed to have a plan three steps ahead; his unconventional thinking and bizarre actions always made her doubt her own abilities...

She could only suppress her objections for the time being and instead asked, "So, we're not going to deal with the online comments?"

"The accounts that were leading the charge on both sides were all people that I had Xiao Zhao arrange."

There were hundreds of media outlets sitting in the audience, with rows of cameras and microphones set up.

"What do you think Ji Yun is planning this time?" a bespectacled reporter whispered to his colleague.

"Who knows? Talent shows are so common these days, and he's still throwing money into them. Either he really has a special talent, or he's just throwing money away."

"I heard he's going to do something like 'idol' this time, not a traditional talent show."

"An idol? They can't sing, dance, or act. Who would like that? Besides, isn't that just a talent show? It's just a different name."

As they were talking, the lights suddenly went out.

The entire room fell silent.

On the LED screen in the center of the stage, Ji Yun's name lit up, followed by his resume of just six months: "Lost in Thailand," a film with a budget of 253 million yuan, grossed over 200 million yuan; he joined Hong Kong film giant Golden Harvest; and he set numerous records in both mainland China and Hong Kong...

A slight commotion arose from the audience.

All eyes and cameras were focused on the backstage corridor.

Ji Yun has made her appearance.

He wasn't wearing a suit and tie, just a simple dark blue linen shirt, the sleeves casually rolled up to his forearms, revealing his well-defined arms. His hair wasn't styled either, a few stray strands fell across his forehead, which he casually brushed back, a movement as natural as if he had just come from a studio.

Several female reporters in the audience put down their pens and stared at him.

"Everyone, welcome to the press conference for 'Produce 101'."

Ji Yun stood in the center of the stage, smiled at the microphone, and said, "I know what everyone is thinking: This kid made some money making movies, and now he dares to get involved in variety shows? Doesn't he know his own limitations?"

The audience fell silent.

"I really don't know the immensity of heaven and earth, nor do I need to know. I only know that if the show is well-made, people will watch it."

"7

He spoke frankly, without any pretense in his tone, as if he were simply saying that the weather was nice today.

The place was quiet, with only the soft clicking of cameras.

Ji Yun calmly looked around and said with a smile, "Everyone can wait until this show airs and then see how long I can hold out."

Another commotion erupted from the audience.

Someone muttered quietly, "That's too arrogant."

"With that kind of speed at which they've made their fortune, they certainly have the right to be arrogant..."

Ji Yun ignored the discussions below the stage and went straight to the point.

"Produce 101 is not a traditional talent show."

The large screen behind him lit up, displaying a screenshot of a questionnaire: it showed how he had promoted Tiandao Culture at over a dozen universities...

Thousands of responses were collected from performing arts troupes and even factory female workers' dormitories.

First question: When do girls sparkle?

The answers varied widely; some brought tears to my eyes, while others made me laugh until I cried: "The first time I stood on the stage, even though there were only three people in the audience, I felt like I was the center of the world."

""

"I can't actually dance, but I really want to learn. Every time I watch videos of South Korean girl groups, I secretly try to dance along in front of the mirror."

"The girls in the factory all say I'm pretty and that I should become a star. I don't dare, but sometimes I'll secretly put on makeup and walk a few steps on the catwalk in the dormitory corridor."

"I work as a waiter in a bar. Sometimes customers get drunk and request songs, and I sing for them. Someone recorded a video and posted it online, and some people said I sang quite well. I've never had formal singing training, but I really enjoy singing."

Ji Yun's voice came through the microphone: "These answers are all from real questionnaires, and I have read every single one of them."

We conducted a survey: more than 90% of people have at some point thought about standing on a stage in front of thousands of people and longing to be seen.

The only difference is that some people are lucky, while others are still waiting.

He turned around, facing the camera and all the eyes in the audience.

.

"As a youth growth program, what 'Produce 101' aims to do is to hand over that stage to all the girls who want to stand on it."

Who stays and who goes is up to the audience.

The reporters hadn't even had a chance to ask questions.

"Whoosh—", the lights changed again.

The big screen suddenly went dark.

Then, "Snap!", the first mentor's photo and name appeared on the screen:

It's the princess!

The reporters in the audience gasped simultaneously, and the flashbulbs exploded, turning the room into daylight.

Someone nearly stood up: "What?! She's a mentor?!"

"She's willing to go on variety shows??"

"The fans' carnival is about to begin."

Then a second photo and name popped up: Girls' Generation.

A group of young, beautiful girls with long, attractive legs appeared so conspicuously before everyone's eyes that several men in the audience were already secretly swallowing their saliva.

"Wait a minute, that new generation of South Korean boy band? They're going to be mentors?!"

"SM's top girl groups are all here."

"9

The third name: Aaron Kwok.

The king of singing and dancing among the Four Heavenly Kings, an early idol of the last century, and the dream lover of countless middle-aged women.

The fourth name: Mystery Guest.

The noise in the venue grew louder and louder, and the cameras flashed brightly.

A group of reporters huddled together, whispering excitedly.

Compared to the judges in previous "Super Girl" and "Super Boy" shows whose names you couldn't even remember, the mentors Ji Yun found this time are all top industry experts. These people are personally mentoring newcomers... Nobody dares to imagine that this show is so high-class. Those ordinary girls will go crazy.

Even without looking at the contestants, just the fact that these mentors are all together is enough to create a sensation.

The reporters were emotional, but this was not the end of it.

The big screen started scrolling again, displaying the show's prize money and debut resources:

[Nine debut members: 100 million RMB each in cash, plus a debut project with resources worth tens of millions of RMB from Tiandao Culture.]

[Top three: 150 million RMB in cash, plus a cameo role in a movie.]

[Champion: 200 million RMB in cash, plus a leading role in a theatrical film.]

The audience was silent.

>