America: Starting with the acquisition of MGM...

Chapter 312, Section 310: I actually hope they persevere to the end.

Los Angeles, Cooper's house, an inside party.

This time, not only were friends and relatives from the entertainment industry invited, but executives from three Silicon Valley companies were also invited.

We used to have separate gatherings, but that was too much trouble. Besides, strictly speaking, Facebook, YouTube, and Lionheart.com all have close ties with actors and directors, so it's better to put them together.

In the study, Fitzhesenberger was reporting to Eric.

"Boss, I should have reported this to you a long time ago, but there are still many areas that are not yet mature after the first month of launching the GG service."

"We encountered quite a few problems, including those related to payments, statistics, splitting, and contracts. Of course, these are not excuses; I should have considered things more thoroughly. I apologize!"

Eric wasn't too concerned; he understood the saying that everything is difficult at the beginning.

Of the three companies, Facebook has always been at the forefront, with YouTube and Lionheart learning from Facebook's experience.

Fitzheisenberg always shouldered the heaviest responsibilities, and one shouldn't be too harsh on such a capable subordinate.

Eric patted him on the shoulder and comforted him, saying, "Let's not talk about these things anymore. Just make sure they don't happen again."

"I promise not! Regarding GG's revenue in the first month, it's a surprisingly good number: $3.53 million."

"After deducting the share paid to bloggers and other costs, the net profit was $1.61 million."

Upon hearing the number, Eric couldn't help but smile. It was much better than he had expected; he had thought that $1 million would be good enough.

After all, even merchants need to test the waters first; they can't just go all in right away.

"How's the feedback? From users, bloggers, and our sponsors."

"The feedback from Google's merchants has been very positive, and they agree with our pricing model. In our survey, the vast majority are willing to pay more, which will increase Facebook's profits."

"The feedback from bloggers has been very positive. They have earned real money, with some even making over $10 a month, which is almost impossible to do with a regular job."

"Only some users have expressed their opinions, feeling that we are no longer pure, and new users attracted from MySpace say that Facebook's functions are too limited and hope to develop more interesting uses."

Eric chuckled coldly: "Pure? You mean we should keep operating at a loss? Ignore them!"

"However, we could consider some interesting ways to play. How frequently has your Facebook been updating lately?"

"It can't be compared to before, boss. You know that creativity and inspiration take time."

"Yes, I understand, but don't let your guard down."

"Also, Fitz, do you guys even know how to develop games? Those little games that can be played on a webpage, so our users can better kill time in their spare time."

Fitz thought for a moment: "Some people on the team have made games before, but we're not professionals."

"It doesn't need to be too professional. I'm not asking you to make Diablo II. Casual but fun is enough."

Upon hearing this, Fitz scratched his head, wanting to say, "Boss, your requirements are too abstract."

The word "interesting" is not only abstract but also difficult to grasp. It's subjective; what if I find it interesting but the user finds it boring?

Seeing that he didn't speak, Eric gave an example: "Have you seen 'The Walking Dead'?"

"Yeah! We're all watching. Season 2 is so exciting! Everyone's hoping for season 3 soon. Boss, is the governor dead?"

"Stop! Forget about whether the governor is dead or not, just make a zombie-fighting game, Plants vs. Zombies."

"ha?"

Eric gave him a detailed description, but Fitz left with a head full of question marks: "Plants and zombies? This thing can be popular?"

Looking at the development over the next twenty years, Facebook has fallen behind Tencent. The reason is that Tencent has built its own ecosystem and is no longer limited to social attributes, so it is inevitable that it will enrich its functions.

The successful expansion of GG's business has made Eric even more resourceful.

This is just in the United States. Once operations in Canada, Mexico, and Europe are also launched, the money will really be pouring in.

This also proves to the market that Facebook is a very high-quality company and is ready to go public.

Eric's ideal time to go public is the first half of next year. As his wholly-owned company, Facebook's IPO will inevitably lead to a geometric increase in his assets.

It is expected that by then he will be qualified to compete with Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, who are the top and runner-up on the Forbes list, respectively.

However, every triumph has its setbacks. In his MGM office, looking at the report in his hand, Eric sighed helplessly.

It's been a month, and this is destined to be a war with no winners.

Despite a significant drop in box office revenue, "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" failed to break $200 million at the North American box office, remaining stuck at $1.85 million.

Although The Hunger Games eventually caught up and closed the gap, it only grossed $1.97 million, failing to break the $2 million mark.

"Van Helsing" fared even worse. Forget about 200 million, it's only made a little over 80 million now. By the time it's taken off the screens, it'll barely break 100 million at most.

Meanwhile, movies such as Kill Bill Vol. 2, The Line, and Train Killer were released one after another, and handsome men and beautiful women such as Angelina Jolie, Ethan Hawke, and Kim Basinger came in droves.

The six groups seemed to have suddenly gone mad, constantly deploying troops and increasing their sniping efforts.

Eric got angry when he saw this, but he couldn't back down, so he played his cards, including "Barbershop 2", "Sharknado 3", and "Machete".

The Sharkshot series is traditionally scheduled for release during the Christmas season, but this year's Christmas season is also going to be a bloodbath.

Inception faces fierce competition from blockbusters like The Incredibles, Cinderella Man, and Spider-Man 2, leaving little room for other films to survive.

From this perspective, there is no difference between placing it in December and placing it in November.

Damn it, let's go! Do whatever you want, nobody's going to survive anyway!

The current film and television market can only be described as chaotic, with competition becoming increasingly fierce and mired in a chaotic battle.

Hollywood is the world's film and television center, and chaos here will turn the global film and television industry upside down.

Not only are the small companies trembling with fear and not knowing what to do, but even the audience is almost completely bewildered.

There are too many movies showing at the same time, but viewers have limited money and can only make choices.

In terms of global box office, "The Hunger Games" and "Prisoners of Azkaban" are far ahead of other films, both approaching the $4 million mark.

However, neither professional institutions nor analysts within MGM believe there is much room for further growth.

It will most likely peak at around $5 million, which is quite a distance from Eric's prediction of $6 million or even $7 million.

This is the consequence of vicious competition, but what can be done? This battle will not stop until one side bows its head and admits defeat.

But it wasn't all bad news; the analysis report Carroll sent indicated that Paramount might not be able to hold on.

Since the showdown between the two sides, Paramount has been charging forward alongside Disney and Warner Bros., but what kind of resources do they have? And what kind of resources do you have?

In recent years, apart from Mission: Impossible, there haven't been any other works that can attract the public's attention.

Moreover, participating in high-intensity warfare can turn a film that could have made a fortune into a small profit, a film that could have made a small profit into a break-even point, a film that could have broken even into a loss, and a film that could have broken even into a loss.

Paramount has released a total of 11 films so far this year, 9 of which lost money and only 2 made a small profit. Its performance is much worse than that of second-tier companies such as Lionsgate, New Line Cinema, and Dimension Films.

In other words, Disney lent it a sum of money; otherwise, it would have been even worse.

"Six months ago, I contacted Paramount, hoping they would remain neutral, but they refused."

"Now contact them again and sound them out. Given Paramount's continuously declining stock price, I want to see just how tough Brad Grey really is."

Carroll nodded: "As long as Paramount can't hold on and remains neutral, once that door is opened, Universal and Fox might also have their own ideas."

"Yes, the key is to have someone take the lead."

"Boss, the end of the year is approaching, and I have a feeling that the Christmas season will be the final battleground."

Why do you say that?

Eric walked over and got a direct look at Carol's big breasts; it was obvious that this slut was trying to seduce him.

Even though it was winter, she changed into light clothes as soon as she arrived at the company. Her work uniform had been specially altered and was noticeably tighter.

She's not really interested in doing anything with him, but teasing him is still quite fun.

Noticing that her boss was looking at her, Carol proactively straightened up, pleasing his eyes. Although it wasn't written in the contract, she considered it to be within her job scope.

"After the Christmas season, next year's financial reports will be released soon. Right now, everyone's stock prices aren't looking too good. Although some are growing, if the growth doesn't meet expectations, it's a failure."

"Failure will further damage investors' confidence. From the perspective of a normal investor, if this battle is to continue, I will definitely withdraw."

"Why wouldn't I invest my money in more profitable industries?"

"The war in the Middle East is still ongoing. Wouldn't it be better for me to invest in steel, textiles, and pharmaceuticals?"

"In the past, film companies could tell a good story, and a good story could bring in high profits, but if this continues, even a good story can only bring in meager profits."

Eric smiled. "What you said makes a lot of sense. But personally, I only hope that the scope of the war will shrink, not that it will disappear."

"I have no interest in Paramount; I can back out if I want."

"Whether it's Universal, Sony, or Fox, I actually hope all three of them will withdraw."

"But that's enough. I actually hope that Warner and Disney will go all out against MGM, preferably until the end of time."

"Even if those two want to make peace, I won't agree. Dealing with six at the same time is unrealistic, but I can handle one or two."

Carol frowned, then suddenly realized something.

"Boss, you're trying to bankrupt Warner and Disney? How come I didn't think of that?"

"Once they collapse, MGM will be the undisputed number one film company in the world, and we will regain our status from the last century."

Eric didn't say anything. Not everyone has a broad perspective and vision, or rather, it requires a long period of cultivation.

Carroll could only think of this much, and dared to think of this much, but he didn't know that Eric's ultimate goal was to devour Warner and Mickey Mouse.

"Go ahead and convey my message. If Brad Grey is willing, we can meet privately."

"Okay, I understand."

That evening, Eric took Daddario to a movie theater to watch "Machete Kills".

This movie is a classic B-movie, a hodgepodge of all sorts of random elements, its main appeal being its illogical yet entertaining nature.

There are so many big names making cameo appearances in the film, such as Charlize Theron, who plays a transgender female assassin.

He appeared for only a few minutes, then ripped off his human skin mask and transformed into Ryan Reynolds.

Will Smith plays an unlucky guy who dies as soon as he appears on screen, while Johnny Depp plays a sissy whose basket is shot off.

The final boss battle went even further, clinging to a rocket and charging into space, inexplicably turning into Star Wars. Falling from 10,000 meters in the air without a single casualty was simply absurd.

The film's marketing directly positioned it as a direct competitor to "Sharknado," meaning, "I'm not pretending anymore, I'm laying it all out, I'm just bad, but bad in a stylish way."

Anyway, Eric and Daddario had a great time watching it, and everyone else in the theater was laughing out loud too.

Seeing so many big-name celebrities making fun of me is just a good thing.

After watching the movie, Eric drove D'Addario home.

Before I knew it, I had been spending more than two months with the husky girl, and our relationship had reached a critical point.

She is a very smart girl and has never taken the initiative to make any requests.

Movie resources are one thing, but girls always like jewelry, accessories, perfumes, and bags, which D'Addario never says.

Even when they occasionally go shopping, he doesn't drag Eric into stores, which makes Eric feel a little embarrassed. Today, he specially bought Eric a diamond necklace as a gift.

"Sweetie, let me put it on you."

"Darling, thank you, you're so good to me!"

A sweet kiss was given, and D'Addario nestled into Eric's arms.

He carried her to the mirror: "Look, you're so beautiful! Don't you like it?"

"Yes, I like anything you give me. Actually, the gift isn't important. I'd rather you spend more time with me."

Eric gently nibbled on her earlobe: "Yes, we'll soon have several months to spend together."

"Honey, are you planning to start filming? Are you going to make 'Dragon Ball'?"

"Well, you've been training for over a month, that's about it. Dragon Ball isn't Fist of the North Star, the key is the special effects."

"By the way, how are you getting along with the crew?"

"It's great, everyone is very friendly. I'm closest to Crystal Liu, since we're the only two main female characters."

Eric nodded, thinking that it would be best if you two got along well and became sisters with different fathers, mothers, and skin colors, so that it would be more natural for you to sleep in the same bed in the future.

(End of this chapter)