The Wind of China Entertainment 2005

Chapter 534 Opinions
Apple Daily was founded in 1995 by Jimmy Lai's Next Media Group.

Just before Hong Kong's return to China, when it was first established, Apple Daily paid less attention to politics and instead invested its main resources in reporting on entertainment news.

At that time, although the Hong Kong newspaper industry was already in a mess, relatively speaking, the sea of ​​black and white words could barely be considered acceptable.

Apple Daily focuses on tabloid content and spares no expense in printing in color like a broadsheet.

Therefore, when it first debuted, it caught many local newspapers in Hong Kong by surprise, quickly gained a foothold, and even expanded its business to Taiwan in 2003.

There was a period of time when other Hong Kong newspapers had to "Apple-ize" themselves, engaging in gossip and sending out paparazzi to take pictures everywhere, just like Apple Daily.

It is no exaggeration to say that the birth of Apple Daily has, to a certain extent, redefined the bottom line of Hong Kong's newspaper industry, causing some newspaper content to become vulgar.

If everyone competes to be vulgar, it will only lower the overall standard.

What's more, when it comes to crossing the bottom line, Apple Daily is an expert at publishing all kinds of controversial remarks almost without any scruples.

After the "Zhao Zhen incident" broke out, Lu Yuan made a point to learn more about the newspaper that was the first to expose the incident.

On February 2, Apple Daily published an article titled “Hong Kong people, you’ve had enough”, which directly addressed the issue of pregnant women traveling to Hong Kong.

The advertisement content shows that on the dark yellow earth slope, a green locust is looking at the bustling Victoria Harbour in the distance.

Accompanied by inflammatory text.

There is no doubt that such remarks are extremely inflammatory and are exacerbating the gap and conflicts between the two places.

Therefore, after a deeper understanding, Lu Yuan had a very bad impression of Apple Daily.

The reporter from Apple Daily handed over the microphone and asked a pointed question: "Lu Yuan, Zhao Wenzhuo acted like a big shot on the set and arbitrarily modified the script, which caused the crew to suffer heavy financial losses. What do you think about this?"

"What do you think?" He smiled and asked sharply, "I was not at the scene, I did not experience it personally, and I do not know the whole process of the whole incident. Can I make a hasty judgment based on the one-sided words fabricated by some unscrupulous media for the sake of headlines?"

He paused for a moment, his eyes filled with sarcasm: "My journalist friend, look at your expression. Could it be that you were at the scene when the incident happened?"

The reporter's face changed slightly, and he frowned. He didn't answer. After thinking for a moment, he avoided answering and asked, "Shu Qi, Li Ming, Wang Jing and others all support Zhen Zidan. They won't lie. Isn't this enough to prove it?"

"Why, did Shu Qi tell you that she saw it?" Lu Yuan looked puzzled: "Or did Li Ming or Wang Jing admit in person during an interview that they were at the scene?"

"So, you think the fate of Shu Qi, Liming and others is wrong?" The reporter tried to guide the topic.

"I didn't say that." Lu Yuan responded calmly, with an impatient expression, "However, I think it is unacceptable to jump to conclusions based on hearsay without verification. Even a three-year-old child knows that such behavior is not advisable."

The reporter still refused to give up: "So, your position is to lean towards Zhao Wenzhuo, and think that Zhen Zidan is the one with the problem?"

"Heh." Lu Yuan sneered, staring into the reporter's eyes with a slightly sarcastic tone.

“I find your ability to fabricate stories out of thin air, Apple Daily, truly astonishing. When have I ever made it clear who I support?
Before the truth comes out, I don’t support anyone. It’s best for the two actors to solve their own problems. If others want to do good for the public, they have to do it on the premise of knowing the truth of the matter.”

His words were somewhat harsh, and he also expressed his dissatisfaction with the sides taken by Shu Qiliming and others.

Seeing that the crowd was gradually gathering and the airport entrance was becoming noisy and crowded, Lu Yuan didn't want to argue any more and pulled Liu Shishi away.

The reporter from Apple Daily looked at his departing back, his eyes slightly narrowed, as if he was weighing something.

Unexpectedly, after Lu Yuan took a few steps, he suddenly stopped, glanced around, and said firmly with some warning: "I hope that all the journalists present here can report what I just said objectively and truthfully. If there is any form of tampering or malicious guidance, we will see you in court!"

The reporters around had different thoughts. They were all weighing the pros and cons in their minds, hesitating whether to quote out of context just to attract attention.

Based on their understanding of this guy, they really dare to call the police and take him to court.

This top young actor in mainland China and a rising new-generation director did not reach his current position simply by having a good temper.

In previous clashes with Hong Kong film and television people, no one could gain any advantage from him.

Liu Shishi was held by her boyfriend, her eyes following his back, thinking secretly in her heart.

If it is just about the conflict between Zhen Zidan and Zhao Wenzhuo, Lu Yuan will not easily take sides and support no one, because similar conflicts are common in the entertainment industry.

However, the favoritism of Shu Qi and others has undoubtedly exacerbated the rift between Hong Kong and mainland artists.

She knew very well that Lu Yuan was on the side of the mainland actors in his heart, but due to his status and the overall situation, he was unable to speak out.

After all, not all Hong Kong artists want to create confrontation.

After the dispute between Zhao Zhen broke out and Shu Qi was eliminated, Hong Jingbao followed closely and expressed his support for Zhao Wenzhuo.

As the helmsman of Yuanfang Media and the leader of the new generation in mainland China, Lu Yuan cannot express his views casually. Every action must be carefully considered and based on the overall situation.

However, Liu Shishi believes that she can be the voice.

Her remarks, if interpreted by someone attentive, would naturally reflect Lu Yuan's position, but it was more subtle and tactful, avoiding direct conflict.

Before boarding the plane, Lu Yuan was very surprised after listening to her thoughts: "You want to post a message?"

"Is it not possible?" Seeing him like this, Liu Shishi backed off a bit and said uncertainly, "When we were promoting Out of Time, we visited the crew of Special Identity. Zhao Wenzhuo's attitude was quite good, and Jing Tian also told us some inside stories."

"Of course, but I don't want you to get involved in these messy things." Lu Yuan looked at her through the dark lenses.

At this time, Zhen Zidan has become a knife pointing at the outside world by the Hong Kong film and television circles, while no artist in the mainland has made a clear statement yet.

If Liu Shishi speaks out first, she will undoubtedly win the support and favor of her mainland peers and the majority of netizens, but it will also inevitably lead to a complete break between her and the Hong Kong circle.

However, with him around, he can naturally protect her, but there will inevitably be some rumors.

He thought for a moment, put his arm around her waist, smiled, and said, "Send it if you want."

"Okay, I'll think about what to say later.

It is already March in the capital.

The sky is blue and the catkins are flying.

After Yang Mi finished shooting the commercial, he took out his cell phone and browsed the morning's entertainment news during a short break.

"Only half a month after its release, the box office of Time Travel has already surpassed the 600 million mark."

"Lu Yuan and Liu Shishi appeared at the Hong Kong airport. Lu Yuan said in an interview that conflicts between actors should be resolved through negotiation between the parties involved."

"Shu Qi was attacked by netizens, deleted thousands of Weibo posts, and his past remarks were dug up and ridiculed."

Yang Mi's gaze stayed on "Super Time and Space" for only half a second, and this news did not cause much waves in her heart.

Her attitude towards this senior brother changed from initial envy, jealousy and striving to catch up, to later looking up to and sincere admiration.

Until now, everything has returned to calm, as if two parallel lines, extending in opposite directions.

Moreover, she only found out in recent days that during the visit to the set of "Search", the other party had mentioned his acting problems to Chen Kaiquan and said some good things about him.

This helping hand made Yang Mi feel mixed emotions. Whenever she thought of this, she felt grateful but also mixed with some complicated emotions. She tried to call the other party's number and wanted to arrange a meal to express her gratitude, but the other party said it was just a small favor and didn't think it was a big deal.

"Yes, after all, we are not from the same world anymore." She sighed softly, her thoughts gradually drifting away, her fingertips sliding as she clicked on the news related to Shu Qi.

Shu Qi instantly became the target of online public opinion and was criticized by netizens for publicly supporting Zhen Zidan.

Tianya Zhihu, Tieba, blogs, and especially the comment section of her Weibo, are all flooded with screenshots and photos of early erotic films as well as overwhelming abuse, ridicule, and insults.

Her bold words, "I will put back on every piece of clothes I took off," have now become the target of public criticism and are being mercilessly mocked and trampled upon.

Faced with the sudden storm, Shu Qi chose to escape, hastily deleted thousands of Weibo posts, and even cancelled his account.

His agency stated that it would take legal action to protect the artist’s rights against online violence.

But no one expected that she would soon be hit back by netizens in the legal field. In a word, she took the photos voluntarily, and the netizens' actions, although immoral, did not constitute a legal basis for infringing on her reputation and portrait rights.

Yang Mi was browsing the news online and eating fresh melon when his fingertips suddenly froze on the screen and a thought flashed through his mind like lightning.

She suddenly realized that this was a great opportunity to show her stance.

If she was still weighing the pros and cons before, after Shu Qi was beaten up by netizens, she finally made up her mind to post a message to support Zhao Wenzhuo.

The movie "The Great Wudang: The Secret of Heaven and Earth" which she collaborated with Zhao Wenzhuo has not yet been released, but she is not so short-sighted as to offend the entire Hong Kong circle for a low-budget movie.

What determines everything is the attitude of netizens.

Netizens' collective condemnation of Shu Qi is actually a concentrated outburst of dissatisfaction with certain long-standing phenomena in the Hong Kong circle.

Even though no mainland artists have yet participated in this war of public opinion, the voices of netizens are firm and the balance of victory has quietly tilted.

She keenly grasped this point and was very confident that if she took the lead in supporting Zhao Wenzhuo, she would surely win the favor of the majority of mainland audiences and film and television practitioners.

In the two years since signing with Meiya, she has completely realized that the Hong Kong circle is a thing of the past and will not last long, and the mainland is the trend of the times.

However, before she could post the message, Liu Shishi had already expressed her position on Weibo.

"When I visited the set of 'Special Identity', Brother Zhuo was very enthusiastic and treated me to a big meal. Brother Zhuo is not that kind of person. I hope everyone can stay rational and not be blind. After all, the Yin Xiaotian incident happened not long ago."

Yang Mi looked at the blog post whose ranking kept climbing, and his heart suddenly pricked, making him feel even more uncomfortable.

In early March, a major event occurred in the video network company circle.

With the continuous innovation of theoretical concepts in the field of video playback, the competition for video copyright has become fierce, and Tudou.com's operation has become increasingly difficult.

As a result, China's two most well-known video websites, Youku and Tudou, jointly announced that the two parties have signed a final agreement to merge through a 100% stock swap.

The merged new company will be named Youku Tudou Co., Ltd., and the two together will account for half of the market.

There are also significant moves within iQiyi.

Previously, iQiyi had three major shareholders: Baidu, Providence Capital, and Lu Yuan.

Now, Baidu has repurchased the iQiyi shares held by Providence Capital and owns 82% of iQiyi's equity.

Baidu has decided to develop video as an important business, and its strategy is to build around its core business of search.

After years of development, iQiyi has invested heavily in building a copyright library, coupled with the powerful "Baidu Frame" and "Baidu Advertising Alliance", and has beaten the old first-tier players to a pulp.

Previously, it ranked first in market share, but after the merger, Youku Tudou surpassed it to become the first.

What Baidu least wants to see is the emergence of another Taobao in the video industry.

After Taobao became bigger, it blocked Baidu, making it impossible to search for content, which reduced Baidu’s value as a search engine.

This is what Baidu is most worried about strategically, so the next step for iQiyi is to take a big step forward, provided that iQiyi becomes a subsidiary of Baidu.

The breakfast shop outside Ziyu Villa.

Gong Yu stopped the car, ordered a cup of soy milk and a plate of soup dumplings, and while eating, he took a brief moment to check Weibo.

There are endless incidents in the entertainment industry.

The box office of "Out of Time" continues to rise, and the "Zhen Zhao incident" is still in full swing.

Liu Shishi was the first mainland artist to speak out and won wide praise.

Immediately afterwards, the great director Feng Xiaogang stood up for Shu Qi, angrily criticized netizens, and happily won the title of "Hushubao".

"Boom boom boom!"

Lu Yuan came over at some point, knocked on the glass table, and teased, "You are such a busy person, and you still have time to check Weibo. I heard from people in the company that you are the first person to arrive at the office every day, you have no private life, and you send messages to your subordinates at two in the middle of the night, which makes them very stressed."

Gong Yu looked up and saw that he was wearing sportswear and had sweat on his forehead. He smiled and asked, "Morning jog?"

"Hmm." Lu Yuan nodded and asked the shop owner for breakfast in a familiar manner.

Gong Yu said sincerely: "Congratulations, the box office of "Out of Time" has exceeded 7 million, ranking first in the mainland box office."

"Luck." Lu Yuan waved his hand. He was jogging in the villa in the morning when he unexpectedly received a call from Gong Yu, who said that he was near the community and wanted to have breakfast together.

Gong Yu waited for him to sit down and said, "Youku and Tudou have merged. Did you know about this?"

Lu Yuan nodded slightly, and seeing that he looked unhappy, he asked, "Why, is iQiyi under a lot of pressure?"

“That’s not the case.” Gong Yu shook his head. “Youku’s merger with Tudou is almost the least complementary merger among the current mainstream video websites in China. It is a merger of two companies with homogeneous content, homogeneous users, homogeneous products, and homogeneous advertisers.

It is difficult to achieve the effect of 1+12. Of course, considering the possibility of a decrease in bandwidth costs and drama procurement costs after the merger, the loss of the new company may be narrowed. "

"Then why are you looking so sad?"

Gong Yu said: "In fact, it is most appropriate for iQiyi to acquire Youku."

"Have you talked to them?" Lu Yuan asked knowingly.

"Well, Gu Yongqiang and I worked together at Sohu for many years, but in the end he chose Tudou."

"If Youku doesn't work, just try another one."

"I've been in contact with PPS recently." Gong Yu said subconsciously, and then stopped immediately.

Lu Yuan glanced at him and roughly knew the purpose of his visit. After a few words, he got straight to the point: "Tell me what's the matter. You wouldn't have gone through so much trouble to come here for breakfast before."

Gong Yu put down his chopsticks and said, "Regarding the issue of shares, the board of directors asked me to consult you privately."

(End of this chapter)