Reborn Millennium Player

After freshening up, Yao Ming left the team and followed Lu Fei to the Palm West Hollywood restaurant in downtown Los Angeles. He was surprised to see Kobe already seated.

"sit."

Lu Fei simply ordered the meal and then told the truth. He asked them and James to endorse beats headphones. He had two options for paying. One was to sign a contract at the market price for two years and one year, and the other was to directly give shares and everyone could get it.

to 1%.

“Beats should be promoted in any public place?”

Kobe took a sip of the pre-dinner drink with interest.

"Yes, to be precise, you are our image promotion ambassadors, not only in the NBA, but also in international events such as the Olympic Games."

Lu Fei stated the marketing strategy seriously, "Logic will even design exclusive customized headphones for you personally and for the team, just like signature shoes from Nike and Adidas."

"Uh, Mr. Lu, I..."

Yao Ming opened his mouth but stopped talking.

Lu Fei cut the steak and said: "I suggest you choose 1% equity. I remember the Basketball Association has issued new regulations. If you play in the NBA, you must hand over half of your income and endorsement fees."

"It wasn't that much. Later it was changed to 3% to 5% after tax, which only took away a small part of my income."

Yao Ming showed an "awful" smile, half-smiling but not smiling.

"That's a lot of money. Although 1% of the shares won't be cashable for a while, in a few years, they should be worth US$30 to 50 million."

Lu Fei smiled and ate while making soup and making cakes.

Kobe and Yao Ming were eating flatbread with half a bowl of chicken soup, and while fooling around, they asked for shares in unison.

"Welcome to you as shareholders of beats, cheers."

Lu Fei raised his wine glass and gently clashed with them.

"Lu, since you want us to give it away, I want 15 pairs!"

Kobe's attitude was quite positive and he immediately wanted to arm the entire Lakers team. "I hope to have headphones with my team's exclusive color before the All-Star Game."

Lu Fei agreed, "How about purple and gold?"

Yao Ming said: "Me too, Mr. Lu."

"Yao, I heard from the management that your rookie contract will expire next year, right? I think you might as well join the Lakers. Together we can win the damn championship."

Kobe's tone was sincere and he took the initiative to extend an olive branch.

Lu Fei saw it and was determined to match him up.

Although the Rockets were youthful in their previous lives, it was also a pity that they fell in the first round of the playoffs so many times. The only time they made it to the semifinals, Yao Ming was so injured that he retired due to injury.

The culprit is the Basketball Association, followed by the Rockets.

rnm, you’re so stingy! You won’t find a substitute!

What's more, the Molei incident will never be tolerated.

If I join the Lakers, the picture is so beautiful that I can’t even imagine it...

"Sauri, Bryant, thank you for the invitation."

After Yao Ming hesitated for a moment, he declined politely: "But I refused. The Rockets selected me. I will use my efforts to repay Houston. I will take the Houston players to get the championship ring instead of going to other strong teams."

Don't! Don't let loyalty hurt you.

Lu Fei smacked his lips. James could hear what he said, but it certainly couldn't convince Yao Ming. He rolled his eyes and suddenly had an idea, "Since you have agreed, I will tell you now that during the signing period,

Logic will do some marketing around you and take the opportunity to promote beats and build momentum."

"Mr. Lu, how can we cooperate?"

Yao Ming blinked, curious.

"There will be unwarranted news recently. You can just clarify it at the press conference according to your own ideas."

Lu Fei raised his neck and drank the wine in one gulp.

The next day, after the regular season game between the Lakers and Rockets, the gossip tabloids in Los Angeles inexplicably spread the rumor that "Kobe had a private meeting with Yao Ming, suspected of joining forces."

The gossip spread like wildfire, with noses and eyes.

The "Los Angeles Times", "Los Angeles Weekly" and other major newspapers and magazines immediately followed up, and with the help of mysterious forces, it instantly became a hot spot focused on the NBA and even the United States.

"After O'Neal traveled east to join the Miami Heat, the management of the Los Angeles Lakers has been looking for the best choice to replace O'Neal. Yao is undoubtedly one of the best star centers in the league. With the expiration of his contract next year, there is no doubt that

The Lakers have set their sights on China's best player."

"Shocking! Kobe personally admitted at the press conference that he had called Yao to outline a bright future, saying that as long as the two of them join forces, the championship they can win is not 1, not 2..."

"Zen Master Phil Jackson hinted after the game that if Yao joins the Lakers, he will receive the same treatment as O'Neal, which caused strong dissatisfaction from the Rockets. After being reported, they were fined US$25,000 by the league for suspected recruitment violations."

"..."

"Yao Ming transfer" has become a hot topic, and the exposure of the two key figures, Kobe Bryant and Yao Ming, is increasing day by day. Not only sports media such as TNT and ESPN, but also major newspapers and TV stations are also rushing to report on it, and the attention and topicality have increased sharply.

As everyone knows, whether online or online, Yao Ming and Kobe Bryant are wearing beats headphones in the picture. From the time the players arrive before the game until they leave the arena after the game, they seem to be welded to their necks semi-permanently.

They even served as souvenirs to teammates and reporters in front of the media's cameras. Gradually, like an advertisement for an old Chinese medicine practitioner, they appeared in NBA arenas pervasively, turning it into a fashion showcase for beats.

"I simply can't imagine how I would listen to music when I travel, exercise or decompress after a game. Beats loves the sport of basketball and is committed to promoting the stories of their favorite players. I look forward to their future cooperation with the NBA.

"

James' interview video was playing on the TV. Guo Xing picked up the remote control and turned it off. He turned around and said with a smile: "Mr. Lu, James, Kobe Bryant and Yao Ming are all good and good spokespersons. Now we can penetrate the NBA and it will be a matter of course.

"

"It's a good start."

The corners of Lu Fei's mouth raised. This time it was a precise and successful brand positioning. "The NBA has long been an important driving force in global culture. People like Allen Iverson brought hip-hop culture to the court..."

"And Nike and Jordan are a match made in heaven."

Guo Xing rubbed his hands, "Sometimes I really want to buy an NBA team. How much advertising and sponsorship fees can be saved."

"not the right time yet."

Lu Fei showed a mysterious smile, "Lao Guo, let's not just be happy and strike while the iron is hot. In addition to the NBA, we also need to win football, ice hockey and baseball. Especially football, it is best to cooperate with the entire club through the players."

"Who should we work with in football? Manchester United?"

Guo Xing couldn't help but get excited, and raised his voice and said: "I think Ronaldinho is good. Signing him should be a stepping stone to enter the English market."

"And, Messi."

Lu Fei knocked on the table.

Guo Xing let out a light sigh. He thought he would say Kaka Ronaldinho, or at least Ibrahimovic. He never expected that he would be an unfamiliar player.

"it's him."

Lu Fei searched on Google and clicked on personal information.

"Ah, I'm impressed!"

As an old fan, Guo Xing recognized him at a glance: "Argentinian, the youngest player in Barcelona's first team. He seems to be the World Youth Championship champion. He has golden goals and golden boots. He does have great potential, but Mr. Lu, is it worth signing him? He still has

Just a kid."

"Times have changed. In the past, athletes realized their potential and performed well before signing a contract. Now signing a contract is a bet, a bet on the person's potential and a bet on whether he will become a talent."

Lu Fei glanced at Messi's photo: "He may carry the football hopes of Argentina and South America in the future. If he is kicked out, as long as long-term cooperation can be maintained, beats will have no problem even logically monopolizing the South American market."

"Emm, this risk is indeed worth taking."

Guo Xing pondered for a while and nodded slightly.

There is no risk at all, Messi is the world champion!

Lu Fei couldn't help but raise the corner of his mouth, "The key is that it's cheap."

"I'll tell people in Europe to take care of it." Guo Xing changed the topic, "Mr. Lu, we have conquered an important position in sports events. Now we only need pop music. Which company do you think will be the first to agree to be our fortress?

?”

"If Roger was still here, it would definitely be Warner. Now, it might be Universal. After all, he is the old man of Dr. Dre Universal."

Just as the two were chatting about the logical promotion plan, there was a "dong dong" knock on the closed door of the office. After Lu Fei said "come in," Zhang Tianmei stepped on her high heels and walked quickly.

"Mr. Lu, something happened."

"Don't be anxious, speak slowly."

"Take a look at this first."

Zhang Tianmei handed over the court summons in her hand.

Lu Fei frowned and glanced at ten lines.

It clearly states that five independent music companies have launched a class action lawsuit against Logic, accusing it of using FairPlay copyright protection technology, which does not support music downloaded from other music websites, and cannot transfer music downloaded from Spotify to players outside of Logic's monopoly camp.

monopoly.

Zhang Tianmei looked serious: "Also, we found a website founded by a man named Thomas Slattery. He initiated a vote online and wanted to jointly sue us for bundling sales and illegally restricting their right to choose.

.”

Lu Fei narrowed his eyes, "There should be a lot of votes, how many are there?"

Zhang Tianmei said: "More than 5,000 people have participated, and the number is still increasing. For a class action like this, the amount claimed will definitely not be small."

"It's such a coincidence that we all came together?"

Guo Xing smelled something wrong, "Mr. Lu, I think these things are too strange. Is there someone behind the scenes?"

"Call Goodman for me."

Lu Fei paced back and forth for a few steps, his expression darkening.

………

It took about five or six hours from New York to Seattle. Saul Goodman took the fastest flight and rushed to Logic's headquarters building.

"Hey Lu, congratulations!"

He put his hat on the coat rack and held a bottle of champagne in his hand.

"I don't think the fact that the defendants have a monopoly is something to celebrate."

Lu Fei raised his eyebrows, "But you really should have a drink, you're alive again."

"Don't be so stingy, I just earn a small amount of hard work from your billionaire pocket." Saul Goodman grinned, "You see, when you call me, I immediately put my face down.

The book case came up with just a few drinks of water."

"Oh, Saverin finally realized something was wrong and filed a lawsuit against Zuckerberg and Facebook?"

Lu Fei poured a cup of black tea and handed it over.

"Thanks."

Saul Goodman took a sip and said with a smile: "He was really stupid. He signed his name without even looking at the agreement. He completely lost his advantage. Now we have launched a countersuit, forced him to submit, and settled out of court.

"

Lu Fei sat down and asked, "Will he accept his fate?"

"He will, he is so weak that even the Brotherhood will not come forward to help." Saul Goodman showed a proud smile, "Once settled, his shares will shrink to about 4%, completely changing

He will become a marginal minority shareholder, and you, Lu, will take his place and become the number two person after Zuckerberg."

"very good."

Lu Fei slapped the court summons on the table, "If we can solve this problem again, it will be even better."

Saul Goodman put down his cup, "I have sent people to investigate the entire case. Don't worry, a technology company without a monopoly by the defendant is by no means a bullish technology giant. It is like proof of the strong."

Lu Fei said: "Haha, I would rather not."

"To win this kind of lawsuit, one way is fast and the other is slow. The slow way is to prolong the litigation time. Those companies are small-scale and cannot afford to compete with a behemoth like logic."

Saul Goodman crossed his legs.

Lu Fei crossed his arms: "What about the fast one?"

Saul Goodman said: "The most effective and powerful counterattack is to ask partners in the recording industry to testify, including Universal, Sony, Warner, and EMI."

"Looking for them? Now I'm wondering if these independent companies are the instigators behind them." Lu Fei curled his lips, "They recently formed a temporary negotiating alliance and wanted me to make some concessions at Spotify. The suspicion is high. Even if it's not

Talking to Doug and Andy now is like handing them a knife to cut my flesh."

"What terms will they offer?"

"The first step is to ask Spotify to remove the DRM copyright protection of downloaded music. Without it, users pay to download music files without any restrictions on copying and moving, and can be transferred to any media player for playback at will."

Lu Fei bluntly said "no". This was a way to control record companies and control manufacturers such as Philips. The second war with Samsung was to rely on Spotify to make a desperate comeback.

Saul Goodman asked: "Any more?"

"Of course it is the freedom to set prices that they are most concerned about."

Lu Fei said with a straight face, "But I can't agree, at least not now, because now is a critical period to compete with Apple. If these record companies are allowed to set prices at will, even if a song is only increased by a few cents, it will still be higher than iTunes."

It’s 99 cents expensive, and customers are not fools. By then, not only Spotify, but also MP3 sales may be greatly reduced.”

"I understand, they've touched your bottom line."

Saul Goodman took his cigarette case out of his pocket.

"Yes, the word 'bottom line' is used accurately."

Lu Fei took his Camel cigarettes and said, "Will these cases trigger an investigation by the antitrust agency of the Ministry of Justice? I don't want it to get involved. After all, Microsoft is not a rival."

"Not for the time being. You are much more flexible than Microsoft. You have split brands like Spotify and Beats into multiple companies in advance, and other companies have invested in it."

Saul Goodman puffed on his cigarette and said, "We just need to focus on the case itself."

"What good ideas do you have?"

"Lu, is iTunes more closed and monopolistic than Spotify?"