Huayu 2011: Starting with Hilarious Men

Ren Yi was the worst student in the dormitory.

x + 3x = 16, what is the value of x?

Ren Yineng was able to calculate three different results.

Faced with a mountain of data, Ren Yi said he couldn't understand it at all.

Zheng Nan had no choice but to continue explaining: "Then the next time I update, I will update according to the order of the data ranking."

"What's the difference? You posted it for free, so everyone can see it, it's just a matter of sooner or later."

"As the audience grows, viewers will naturally want to see the latest episodes as soon as possible. Platforms that update later, coupled with review time, may be 10 to 30 minutes later than those that update earlier. Gradually, many people will switch to the platforms that update earlier."

In the long run, the better the data performance of a platform, the more people will watch it.

The worse the data presentation of a platform, the fewer people will watch it.

The joy of watching TV series lies in the desire to see the latest episodes as soon as possible. Otherwise, why would so many platforms offer advanced on-demand viewing? It's because they're exploiting people's desire to watch TV series.

Actually, Zheng Nan had another consideration here.

Platforms buy copyrights to make money and attract new viewers.

It's certain that the first season of "Hilarious Men" will be a hit, but which platform will ultimately buy the rights to the second season and even the entire "Hilarious Men" franchise?

It's too early to say, but platforms with better data are more likely to buy exclusive rights.

…………

On Friday, April 23, 2011, at 4 PM, the third episode of "Hilarious Men" began airing.

The first platforms to update were Youku and Tudou, and the last platform to update was PPTV.

After a week of fermentation, the show "Hilarious Men" became very popular among teenagers.

Teenagers have a significant voice online.

As its popularity and discussion grew, various platforms gradually took notice of "Hilarious Men," a dark horse that stood out from the crowd.

Some smaller platforms that acted quickly have already started trying to contact Zheng Nan, but the larger platforms are still observing.

At this point in 2011, film and television platforms did not pay much attention to online dramas, or even paid very little attention to them.

Major platforms prefer to acquire the rights to TV dramas or movies that are broadcast on satellite TV.

Moreover, with the involvement of capital in film and television platforms, the price of TV drama copyrights has been rising rapidly in recent years.

Before 2008, the copyright for a regular TV series cost only a few hundred yuan per episode.

Popular TV dramas such as "Soldiers Sortie" and "Golden Wedding" only cost three to eight thousand yuan per episode.

The classic TV series "My Own Swordsman" has 80 episodes, which only cost 100,000 yuan as a package, or 1250 yuan per episode.

In 2009, the price of TV drama copyrights began to rise, with ordinary dramas reaching 20,000 to 30,000 yuan per episode.

In 2010, the price of TV drama copyrights skyrocketed across the board, ranging from 50,000 to 100,000 yuan per episode.

By 11, a single episode of a hit drama was priced at eighty to one million!

Web series are still considered lowbrow by major platforms at this point in time.

Of course, this "low-class" label is in comparison to TV dramas. Compared to other online video creators, "Hilarious Men" is undoubtedly the king.

Various platforms have also started giving "Hilarious Men" featured placement.

It's worth noting that featured placements are usually reserved for signed works, but now even a free work like "Hilarious Men" is enjoying them.

…………

October 4th, Sunday.

Luo Yonghao, a Weibo influencer with millions of followers, suddenly reposted a video from the show "Hilarious Men" and added a caption.

"There's a really popular online short drama lately, especially the part in the second episode where they're buying milk tea. I've been through that too, so I totally relate!!!"

In the comments section of his Weibo post, Luo Yonghao specifically tagged Starbucks' official account, asking, "Is this how your brand serves its consumers?"

Luo Yonghao is someone who is particularly good at generating buzz, and he capitalized on the internet boom very early on.

He gained some fame in 2003 because of the spread of "Luo Yonghao's Quotations" online.

The phrase "A badass life needs no explanation" was said by Luo Yonghao.

In 2004, Luo Yonghao was selected as one of the top ten internet celebrities in China, ranking seventh.

She became Baidu's Internet Celebrity of the Year in 2005.

Then Luo Yonghao has always paid close attention to network traffic.

This year, Luo Yonghao has been frequently making statements online to generate buzz, for a simple reason: he wants to pave the way for his future mobile phone startup.

Originally, Lao Luo had his eye on Siemens refrigerators, intending to use the quality issues of Siemens refrigerators to launch a major campaign, but this matter is still in the planning stages.

But just today, he got ripped off by a Starbucks employee, and that reminded him of a segment from the sitcom "Men's Laughter".

I immediately came up with a great idea to generate buzz, and that's how this Weibo post came about.

In 2011, a Weibo user with millions of followers still had a lot of influence, and this post quickly became a trending topic.

Starbucks has a considerable following online due to the sense of superiority it brings to its customers because of its high-end positioning.

These people immediately started criticizing Luo Yonghao in the comments section.

"That's how they set the rules; if you don't understand them, don't buy them."

"They used to criticize New Oriental, now they're criticizing Starbucks, always trying to piggyback on others' success! It's disgusting!"

"Why not criticize McDonald's and KFC instead of Starbucks?"

"You can't understand the cup shape because your English is bad, so why blame the brand?"

"The shop assistant was just following the rules and regulations. Are you deliberately making trouble? Why are you harassing working people?"

"Why use videos from 'Hilarious Men'? Did they authorize you to use them?"

"The show 'Hilarious Men' didn't mention whose brand it is, so don't try to piggyback on Mr. Luo's fame!"

Luo Yonghao personally joined the online debate in the comments section.

"They call their names inhumane, use word games, and bully consumers, and they still have the nerve to complain?"

"Just because you've had Starbucks twice, you think you're superior, huh?"

"Turning a small cup into a medium cup? That's a rip-off!"

"Starbucks, please speak up!"

"I'm just quoting this because I feel the same way. If the creators of 'Hilarious Men' feel there's a problem, I will delete the video and pay the copyright fees immediately."

"However, I believe the creators of 'Hilarious Men' have similar experiences to mine, otherwise they couldn't have created such down-to-earth works!"

While arguing online, Luo Yonghao also tagged Starbucks' official account.

Starbucks' official attitude was calm, ignoring the issue and giving it the cold shoulder.

…………

Inside a classroom at the Shanghai Theatre Academy, Dilraba was scrolling through her phone.

"Zheng Nan, have you seen the trending topics? It's about Luo Yonghao and Starbucks."

"Why didn't you see it?" Zheng Nan doesn't use Weibo often; she prefers browsing Tieba.

"Luo Yonghao used a video clip from 'Hilarious Men,' the one we filmed on the first day about buying milk tea," Yuan Bingyan interjected.

"Was this joke inspired by Starbucks?" Dilraba asked.

"I guess so," Zheng Nan nodded.

"Starbucks is really like this?! I was quite curious before because I'd never been there, but now I won't go anymore." Dilraba was very disgusted by the rip-off.

"Speaking of which, with 'Hilarious Men' being so popular right now, how much money are you making, Zheng Nan?" Yuan Bingyan asked curiously.

Zheng Nan gave a wry smile: "If we release it for free, we won't earn a single penny."