Rebirth of Xiangjiang - 1978

"They're actually going to raise fares all together. Oh my god, these people are really crazy."

Four film companies, Universal, MGM, Fox and Warner, jointly issued a statement that ticket prices for major productions released in the future will be adjusted.

Barry Diller laughed and shook his head when he saw the news.

Price increases in the United States are not something you can do just by asking for an increase. You have to apply first, then hold a public hearing, and then go through a series of procedures after deliberation. Only when all these are passed can you be allowed to raise prices.

Price increase.

It would take at least a few months to complete such a cycle. If it were slower, it might even take a year. Of course, this is assuming everything goes smoothly.

And after the price increase, you will face strong opposition from the audience. After all, the price increase will make the audience pay more. Obviously no one will support such behavior.

But even under such circumstances, Lin Daoqiu and the others still chose to do this. In Barry Diller's view, this was really stupid.

"Although Lin Daoqiu's move is stupid, I think this should be the future trend."

Jeffrey Katzenberg, who had always disliked Lin Daoqiu, had to admit that Lin Daoqiu's behavior was correct.

Because movie ticket prices cannot always rise, Lin Daoqiu chose to increase the prices of blockbusters this time, and his reasons are very good.

The budget and effort required to produce a blockbuster film are much larger than that of an ordinary movie. Under such circumstances, if the ticket price of an ordinary movie is used to show it, the cost will not be reflected at all.

"You wouldn't suggest that I follow them in raising prices, right?"

Barry Diller frowned because he heard that Jeffrey Katzenberg voted in favor of Lin Daoqiu's price increase.

"What would you choose if they succeeded?"

Jeffrey Katzenberg looked at Barry Diller and asked with a smile.

When asked by Jeffrey Katzenberg, Barry Diller was speechless, because the answer was very simple. If Lin Daoqiu and the others were successful, what reason would Paramount have to maintain the original ticket price.

Although according to the rules set by Lin Daoqiu, it is unlikely that there will be one in two years.

"Paramount will not dance to this, and I will join other studios in boycotting this move."

After Barry Diller finished speaking, Jeffrey Katzenberg directly objected.

Although this approach seems very pleasant, it not only effectively attacks Lin Daoqiu and his alliance, but also earns some good reputation for himself.

But Paramount will definitely increase ticket prices in the future. Once the price increases, others will use Barry Diller's words against Lin Daoqiu and others to block him, which will be even more embarrassing.

"I think we should either raise prices with them or do nothing. After all, we will also raise prices in the future. If we oppose them now, it will be difficult for us to raise prices when the time comes."

Jeffrey Katzenberg doesn't want Barry Diller to make a mistake. Doing so would not do Paramount any good.

Moreover, Columbia and Disney may not necessarily cooperate with Paramount. After all, Lin Daoqiu went to Disney at the beginning, and now he still doesn’t know what Disney’s attitude is.

If Disney also joins Lin Daoqiu's alliance, Paramount will be in a very embarrassing situation.

"I really can't figure it out. Are little Alan Ryder and Ashley's heads filled with water? How could they come to cooperate with Lin Daoqiu? Can't they see how big a threat Lin Daoqiu is to everyone?"

The more Barry Diller got angry, he felt that little Alan Ryder and Ashley had been dominating Hollywood for so many years, but they even believed the words of a young guy like Lin Daoqiu.

Once MGM becomes bigger and stronger, they will have no choice but to serve as MGM's followers. Is this the result they want?

"Lin Daoqiu is willing to invest 200-300 million U.S. dollars to make a movie, and the average blockbuster film is 50 to 80 million U.S. dollars. We have no chance to fight with him."

Jeffrey Katzenberg revealed the key point, Lin Daoqiu is willing to spend money on movies, and so far the movies he has made have not failed.

Looking at other film companies, let alone a movie that invests 200 to 300 million yuan, even an investment of 50 million yuan must be carefully considered.

And if it fails, the person who made the decision will be blamed by the board of directors.

Lin Daoqiu is the boss, and he can do whatever he wants. No one would dare to blame him even if he fails, let alone Lin Daoqiu has never failed.

"From what you said, is it possible that you are planning to let me join their alliance?"

Barry Diller's words were obviously angry. If he were asked to go to Lin Daoqiu and say that he wanted to join their alliance, even a dead Barry Diller would probably not do so.

"I think this time is a good opportunity for us to innovate Paramount."

Jeffrey Katzenberg suddenly said something that Barry Diller couldn't understand.

But he did not stop the other party from continuing, but motioned to Jeffrey Katzenberg to continue.

"Lin Daoqiu has proven with actions and results that the future is the era of special effects movies. If this is the case, if Paramount wants to catch up with him, it must do something in special effects movies."

"Are you planning to let Paramount invest heavily in making a few big-budget special effects movies?"

Barry Diller felt that Jeffrey Katzenberg's proposal was not too bad, because as long as one movie was successful, Paramount would be able to make a lot of money.

But the problem is that if the high investment fails, it may be difficult for him to secure his position.

"In addition to investing heavily in special effects movies, I hope you will acquire Lucasfilm."

"You want me to buy that guy Lucas's company?"

Barry Diller looked at Jeffrey Katzenberg in shock. He didn't expect that Jeffrey Katzenberg would ask him to buy Lucasfilm. This was simply an extremely crazy suggestion.

Barry Diller has heard people say many times how expensive Industrial Light and Magic, owned by Lucasfilm, is.

Even with the support of the "Star Wars" series, it can only barely maintain the research and development of Industrial Light and Magic.

If Paramount buys Lucasfilm, they will not only have to invest huge sums of money to make special effects movies, but they will also have to send a large amount of money to Industrial Light and Magic every year to conduct special effects research.

After such a round, the initial investment will be at least more than 500 million US dollars. This is just the beginning, and we will have to continue investing in the future.

When he thought of this, Barry Diller felt a dull pain in his head.

"Special effects movies are the future trend, and Industrial Light and Magic's special effects technology is no worse than Magic Studio. If we can..."

Before Jeffrey Katzenberg finished speaking, Barry Diller raised his hand to stop him from continuing.

"I think we should put this proposal aside for now."

Hearing that Barry Diller directly vetoed his proposal, Jeffrey Katzenberg could only shut his mouth silently, and then a feeling of helplessness suddenly surged in his heart.

It can be said that Paramount gave up the opportunity to catch up with MGM.