Top of the Great Era

Chapter 1407 Monopoly is Eternal Competitiveness

The television industry in any country is in a state of strict regulation.

Just like the status quo of the Big Six in Hollywood.

Only about 25% of the profit of a Hollywood movie is obtained through the box office, and the other 75% is obtained through peripheral copyrights and derivative copyrights.

If you want to develop peripheral and derivative copyrights well, you have to rely on the resources of media giants.

In the past ten years, Hollywood giants have basically been acquired by media giants. For example, Warner merged with Time Group and became Time Warner; Universal merged with NBC and became NBC Universal; Paramount merged with Viacom Twentieth Century Fox is behind News Corporation.

There is one exception.

Sony Columbia Pictures.

Because Sony is a Japanese company.

Sony can't run a TV network in the United States, so it can only do some local TV stations on a small scale, with very limited influence.So in terms of overall strength, Sony is the weakest.

Because of the delay in launching the TV business, Sony had no choice but to go in another direction. It led the establishment of a consortium and leveraged MGM; focused on the development of the music industry, and soon built Sony Records into the world's largest music group.

All in all, it is almost impossible for Jieyu Media to penetrate the American TV industry.

Even with SoftBank taking the lead, it will be difficult.

More importantly, Zhou Buqi himself has no interest in the TV industry, saying: "The TV industry is too regional, and every country has its own TV station. The TV business can only be regional. Compared with Under the circumstances, the Internet is better, and this is the global platform.”

Zhen Yu blinked, "What about NBC Universal?"

Zhou Buqi said: "I have a good relationship with Comcast. If I really turn my face and deny people as Sun Zhengyi said, and turn around and compete with them, it will affect my reputation."

Zhen Yu twitched her mouth, "Boss Zhou, come on! This is the world of capitalism, and it's a big business worth tens of billions of dollars. The stuff that's empty-headed doesn't matter at all."

Zhou Buqi laughed and patted his side, "Senior Sister Zhenyu, come and sit down."

Zhen Yu's pretty face flushed slightly, her expression vigilant, "What are you doing?"

"Come here, let's chat."

"I don't have as much information as you, and I don't know anything."

Zhen Yu didn't refuse, she got up and sat down beside him on the sofa opposite.

Zhou Buqi said: "So let's have a chat first, to unify our thinking, and then talk to Sun Zhengyi to persuade him. Well, let's start from the beginning. Netflix's stock price has fallen recently, have you paid attention?"

Zhen Yu said softly: "Well, in the past few months, Netflix's stock price has grown very fast, reaching 50 US dollars at one point. But... since February, the major investment banks have begun to sing empty words. Fei's stock recommendation changed from 'hold' to 'underperform', believing that the market is overheated and Netflix's valuation has been seriously overestimated, and the expected stock price is $2."

"Why not optimistic?"

"For the model, it is said that the market has overestimated the development prospects of Netflix's digital transmission business, and it is said that the recent stock price has over-reflected the recent fundamentals."

"Any more?"

"It's mainly in this aspect. The capital market believes that the final result of Netflix's exploration in digital transmission may be that it proves that its profitability is not as good as the traditional mode of mail."

Zhen Yu is a director of Netflix, so she knows the specific situation better.

Zhou Buqi pays more attention and understands more deeply, "Netflix's current cash flow is very good, mainly relying on the DVD mailing business. The profitability of the streaming media business has been questioned. A more important reason is the market. There are still doubts about the distribution of content on Internet platforms.”

The fundamental reason is that the group of people operating capital lacks awe and awareness of technology.They can't imagine the earth-shaking changes that the development of science and technology will bring to the world in the next few years.

It is actually easy to understand with conventional thinking.

How can watching dramas and movies on the Internet compare with TV?

The TV screen is bigger and looks better;

The TV signal transmission is faster and more stable, and the picture is clearer;
The TV is in the living room, which is suitable for family watching, which is in line with American family culture.

None of this is comparable to streaming video while sitting in front of a computer.

Zhen Yu murmured and said: "Well, it seems to be true. Both Apple and Amazon have launched online streaming media services, and they seem to be unfavorable by the market. Amazon, in particular, has been scolded miserably for not making money for so many years, no Do a good job in e-commerce, and somehow started to do Internet video again.”

Zhou Buqi smiled, "So, the prophets are lonely, such as Bezos, Jobs, and Netflix's Hagentins. Oh, by the way, Disney's Robert Iger is an exception."

"And you."

"Correct."

Zhen Yu pursed her lips, "I understand what you mean, that is to say, under the transformation of the Internet in the film and television entertainment industry, the idea that channels are king and content is king is not accepted by the public."

Zhou Buqi clapped his hands, "That's what it means, there is another case to testify - MGM. MGM has the largest film library in Hollywood and has rich content resources, but now MGM is about to go bankrupt. As long as big companies make a move, it is easy to buy the bottom. The status quo is that no one is going to buy the bottom, and they are letting MGM to fend for itself.”

Disney’s unreasonable decision to acquire Marvel is because Jobs and Robert Iger have the sharp eyesight behind them, and they can clearly recognize the great changes in the industry brought about by the Internet.

From the perspective of the industry, MGM is much more attractive than Marvel!
MGM has the famous "007" and "Tom and Jerry", as well as the film distribution rights of "Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit", as well as the TV series adaptation rights.

Later, in order to develop its own streaming business, Amazon wanted to make a TV series version of "Lord of the Rings", which was a lot of money.

It is necessary to reach an agreement with New Line and Warner to use their design copyrights; it is necessary to reach an agreement with producer Saul to buy the adaptation rights of the novel in his hands; TV series development rights of The Lord of the Rings.

One disadvantage of Hollywood is that the protection of intellectual property rights is too strict.In many cases, the copyright of a content product will be dismantled into fragments, and it is extremely difficult to operate with all aspects in mind.

However, this also further illustrates the importance of content.

In the future, whoever controls the content will be king.

Zhou Buqi said: "Disney bought Marvel instead of MGM. The very important reason is that the values ​​​​do not match. MGM's cartoon "Tom and Jerry" series is for adults. Episodes are similar to horror movies, which are completely different categories from Disney princesses. However, other companies look down on MGM because they are not confident in their strategy and are not firm enough in the future direction where content is king. They still want to pass A strong monopoly on the model to maintain the absolute control of the channel side, so as to maintain its own giant status."

Zhen Yu immediately understood who he was talking about, "Strong monopoly? You mean Comcast?"

Zhou Buqi said: "Comcast has long wanted to enter the market. I remember that when Disney was about to have civil strife in 04, they offered nearly 700 billion US dollars to acquire Disney. Later, Robert Iger took office and firmly disagreed."

Zhen Yu said softly: "Yes, the logic of Comcast's acquisition of NBC Universal should be the same as that of Disney's offer back then. Now, there have been some arguments about the possibility that content is king in the market. There was no such thing as in 04. So...Comcast didn't want to buy NBCUniversal because of the content!"

Zhou Buqi smiled, "People from the Roberts family have talked to me several times, saying that they hope that I can persuade the board of directors of NBC Universal from the perspective that content is king. In fact, I know that what they play is not content at all."

"It's a monopoly!"

"Yes, these super giants are actually using the Internet as a shield to push the FCC in the United States to amend the past regulations so that they can approve their monopoly acquisitions!"

In fact, Zhou Buqi has already seen through. He has never regarded the American capitalists as friends, but just used each other.

Comcast's acquisition of NBC Universal is definitely a super monopoly.

Comcast is the largest TV operator in the United States, and NBC Universal owns the largest NBC TV network in the United States, as well as a large movie library of Universal Pictures.

This constitutes a monopoly mechanism.

Viewers in the United States, who want to watch TV, have to find Comcast to install a set-top box.Once installed, the set-top box can offer a range of TV service packages from Comcast.

That's a lot to say.

Take, for example, an ugly premium cable channel on the NBC television network that nobody watches at all.If NBCUniversal and Comcast become a family, it can destroy fairness.

American viewers like to watch Disney's ESPN sports station, while ESPN and NBC television network's NBC sports station are competitors.

This works.

First, forcefully bind!
If viewers want to subscribe to ESPN, they must bundle and subscribe to this unsightly paid channel under NBC, otherwise they will not be able to subscribe.

Then, offer a better subscription service for NBC Sports, which can be packaged at a discounted price with popular stations like AMC, CNN, or National Geographic.

After this wave of operations, it can not only arouse users' dislike of ESPN, the sports station owned by rival Disney, but also encourage users and viewers to watch NBC sports station.It can also use ESPN's influence to promote the development of NBC's niche TV stations.

Three birds with one stone!
This is the way of strong monopoly, and it should definitely be severely cracked down.

It was impossible to allow it before.

However, with the advent of the Internet, the policy was relaxed.

Such a coquettish operation is allowed!
The reason is also simple!
The operator wants to live!

The Internet is playing OTT over the top, it's all too good.Operators will die if they don't do this.For the stable development of the industry, the regulatory authorities will let go of the green light!
That's why Comcast is actively wooing Zhou Buqi as a consultant.

Zhou Buqi is an Internet boss!

He said that content is king in the future, which is very convincing, and FCC officials must carefully consider it.

In the previous life, Comcast and General Electric teamed up to attract a group of Internet veterans as consultants, and the operation was successful.

As an operator, it completed the merger and acquisition of NBC Universal with a strong monopoly attitude.

In the following years, the entertainment industry in the United States has changed, and it has become a three-party struggle between traditional operators, entertainment empires, and Internet giants.

Internet giants refer to streaming media platforms such as Netflix, Apple, and Amazon.

The pure entertainment empire is mainly Disney, and Robert Iger is a wizard.Disney's streaming media platform was the latest to go online, but it crushed Amazon and Apple as soon as it went online.

In the field of operators... They are actually very far away from the entertainment industry. The reason why they are so competitive, and even AT&T acquired Time Warner, is the logic behind this is the connivance of monopoly.

Although the TV industry is a sunset industry, operators cannot compete with Internet giants in commercial innovation, and Disney in content innovation, but they can still maintain their status as giants by relying on monopoly.

Monopoly is the most eternal competitiveness.

Zhen Yu suddenly realized, covered her mouth and whispered: "You mean...you mean that Comcast invited you to join their advisory committee, and wanted to use you as a shield?"

Zhou Buqi nodded, "Almost, use my identity to show the threat of the Internet, so that the regulators can relax their censorship restrictions. Comcast has long been eyeing the upstream industry. If it can enter the market, it will You can’t wait until now to make a move.”

Zhen Yu looked at him suspiciously, "Then you still go?"

Zhou Buqi said with a smile: "Help each other, and there is no loss for me. If you make friends with Comcast, it will be very helpful for Jieyu Media's development in the United States in the future."

Zhen Yu nodded slightly, "The plan has changed now."

"Well, Sun Zhengyi got it done by me!"

Zhou Buqi was very happy. As soon as he stretched out his hand, he covered Senior Sister Zhenyu's thigh. Through her nightdress, she could feel the softness and warmth of her leg.

Zhen Yu's ears turned red, as if nothing happened, "So, how will Comcast solve the case against NBC Universal? You are right, a giant like Comcast, it is best not to offend."

Zhou Buqi said: "Don't compete, but cooperate."

"Cooperation?"

"Well, push Softbank and Comcast to cooperate to acquire NBC Universal together. Now Comcast's cash flow is not enough to eat all of NBC Universal. What Comcast wants is a monopoly, and their main business is TV operators, what they're after is actually NBCUniversal's TV business."

"This……"

Now Zhen Yu finally understood what he wanted to do. It wasn't a hooligan who touched her thigh, but wanted to split NBC Universal apart!

Can't Comcast afford NBCUniversal?Don't you prefer the business of the NBC television network?
Simple, invest together and buy together.

Then, split NBC. The part of NBC belongs to Comcast, and Universal Pictures is spun off and owned by Jieyu Media.

Ah!
This idea is very good!

The TV business is a sunset industry, and it is subject to strict supervision. Jieyu Media should avoid it.But the film business is different, foreigners can also participate.With Softbank's endorsement behind it, the possibility of the transaction is greatly improved!
Then, she realized that she was wrong.

Boss Zhou, he called himself over to talk about work so seriously, the real purpose... seems to be to really touch his thigh!
He had already lifted his skirt, and he was stroking his thigh without any hindrance.

Zhen Yu rolled his eyes at him and slapped his hands off, "It's work, hurry up and contact Sun Zhengyi to clarify this plan. The negotiation between Comcast and NBCUniversal will start soon."

(End of this chapter)