Reinventing the Millennium

On May 27, G1 of the NBA's 2006-2007 Western Conference Finals was held at the Spurs' home court.

Half an hour before the game, Jay Chou, who was in a nervous mood, saw Brother Fang who arrived in a hurry.

But before he could chat a few words, several hook-nosed men in suits and ties came over and invited the Rockets boss to sit in the luxury box.

This invitation was declined, and the two parties chatted in the first row for about 20 minutes, attracting many sports media to take photos.

Normally, due to the Spurs team's playing style, its game ratings are relatively low, but this round of the Western Conference finals is regarded by many experts and retired players as an early decision of the championship. Many media.

Of course, this is inevitable from the Rockets boss's topic and his deliberate fueling of the situation.

When Fang Zhuo sat down, the game was about to begin.

Jay Chou noticed that Brother Fang's mind was obviously not on the court, and asked: "Brother Fang, was that the league's top executive just now?"

"Oh, no." Fang Zhuo came back to his senses and stamped his feet, "Do you know the name of the Spurs' home stadium?"

Jay Chou was stunned and didn't answer. He was deeply impressed by the black and white tone of the Spurs' home court, but when it came to the name...

"This arena is called the AT\u0026T Center Arena, and those people just now are the senior executives of AT\u0026T." Fang Zhuo smiled slightly, "The Western Conference Finals are played here, and it just so happens that Yike and them may be involved in some business cooperation, so they came to play with me. Say hello and chat for a while.”

Yike has very little contact with AT\u0026T, which already has Apple. Compared with adding icing on the cake and providing help in times of need, only T-Mobile or even V dealers can negotiate better terms.

Jay Chou nodded, it turned out to be a business matter.

He suddenly felt a little emotional, it is not easy to become a rich man.

Since the Rockets defeated the Mavericks, Brother Fang has not been seen at all. I heard that he either went to Silicon Valley or flew to New York.

How is it like myself? If I want to drink milk tea in the villa, I can drink milk tea, and if I want to drink red wine, I can drink red wine. When I go to the arena to play, I can find a group of NBA substitutes to play with, and I can watch the intra-squad games of the two consecutive championship teams up close.

Life is so happy!

Oh, in addition to still owing Brother Fang the money to buy the team's shares.

At the beginning of the first quarter, Jay Chou immediately turned all his attention to the field.

The Spurs and Rockets are old rivals in the Western Conference. In the past two years, there has been no shortage of wonderful buzzers and desperate tiebreakers.

In the regular season, he was extremely stable and extremely strong. In the playoffs, he was free of injuries and in strong form.

The intractable first quarter of Game 1 of this round seemed to set the tone for the Western Conference Finals.

Jay Chou was nervous and enjoyable to watch.

However, at the end of the game, he looked back at Brother Fang and realized that the team owner seemed to be distracted, so he pretended to be concerned: "Brother Fang, isn't Yike's mobile phone going well these days?"

Fang Zhuo became more energetic after being asked this question.

The past few days have actually not been smooth. After T-Mobile's last negotiation, Legere relaxed his attitude after seeing the cooperation terms from competitors, and the second round of negotiations on May 24 moved forward a lot.

Fang Zhuo's first and most important thing is to get operators to subsidize consumers so that Yike Mars can be competitive in the mobile phone market.

This is done without compromising product quality.

However, after T-Mobile initially expressed its willingness to provide similar cooperation to Mars, how to live better has become a more important issue.

The scale of the negotiations on the 24th expanded. The atmosphere in the first half was very harmonious, but in the second half, when it came to price, it became more intense.

Including Google, Schmidt also quarreled with Legere over the logo on the back of the phone.

Schmidt hopes that Yike's mobile phone will have more prominent Google or Android elements, while Legere hopes that the "T-Mobile" logo will be printed directly on the back.

Legere's attitude is very clear. No matter what the purchase price of T-Mobile and Yike is, it will provide real subsidies to consumers so that Mars can compete with Apple's iPhone. This is the most important thing.

Schmidt also insisted on what he meant. Without Google’s efforts in developing the Android system and forming the Open Mobile Alliance, Mars would lose its most important intelligent features.

The tempers on both sides are very tough.

What Fang Zhuo was thinking was that it was best not to join him.

However, he has taken a neutral stance in this round of negotiations for the time being and is still committed to promoting T-Mobile's procurement and distribution.

After two consecutive days of negotiations, T-Mobile is willing to subsidize users to maintain Mars’ competitiveness on the market, and the purchase price is 220+50=270 US dollars.

220 is the current basic real hardware cost of Yike mobile phone.

Thanks to the package price of Qualcomm processors and basebands + the internal price of Sony sensors + the continued decline of the storage market + the communication between hardware manufacturers in the Open Handset Alliance, Yike mobile phones should be close to the lower limit of the cost range of Apple mobile phones or even lower .

This is because Yike Mars is determined to use two versions of 8G storage and 16G storage.

If you switch to 4G, you can still get some profit margins.

However, mobile phones cannot only count the hardware cost.

Fang Zhuo argued with Legere on this point and was very dissatisfied with the purchase price of US$270.

In addition, Legere easily agreed to the $3 for new users and $11 for switching users, but he had objections to the 10% share of value-added service revenue and was only willing to share 5%.

In the second round of negotiations, it can only be said that there are still big differences on the basis of determining mutual cooperation.

Such differences may not necessarily be resolved before June 26, but they already provide a good lead for the release of mobile phones.

Fang Zhuo and Jay Chou briefly chatted about their travels over the past few days, and they were indeed quite nervous.

Jay Chou listened politely and only waited until the second quarter began to cheer for the Rockets.

Fang Zhuo was talking to the team's young owner, but also to himself.

The in-depth cooperation with T-Mobile is a follow-up to the operator AT\u0026T, and it is also hoped to be a pioneering demonstration of cooperation with domestic operators.

Last time, I asked my brother in Shanghai to help find the top management of China Unicom, and now there is already an inspection team from China Unicom flying to Houston.

The 3G concept mobile phone is like this for T-Mobile, and it is also like this for domestic operators.

The reform and merger of six domestic operators will inevitably lead to fierce competition in the 3G era.

Fang Zhuo hopes to cooperate with domestic operators in this direction under the existing example of sharing user revenue with US operators.

Once he does this, he will be able to fulfill his childhood wish.

If people all over the country are willing to give me one dollar each, then I will have 1.3 billion.

If mobile phone users of China Unicom or more domestic operators can carve out a piece of meat, then Yike Company will have a steady stream of profits.

Fang Zhuo is not sure whether such cooperation can be achieved. The domestic 3G launch time may be in the second half of 2008, so the momentum of Yike mobile phones after they are launched in the United States is very important.

An instant hit, no matter how much money is talked about, it's a lot of money.

If you put a dud bomb, you don't have to think about it at all.

Fang Zhuo pondered over and over again, thinking about how to make money behind mobile phone hardware.

In addition to Brother Zheng's connections, the senior management of China Unicom who flew over this time also inquired in many ways and found that the independent director of ICBC on his side also had some connections that he could use.

In short, we must first lay the foundation for negotiation with each other before domestic operators merge.

Fang Zhuo was full of things, but he lacked some of his previous enthusiasm for the fate of the Rockets who had reached the Western Conference finals.

The first game ended under his occasional gaze.

Familiar with the start, the Rockets lost one game first.

For three consecutive rounds, they lost the first away game, and then rebounded and scored a point in the second game.

After the game, Fang Zhuo was interviewed by reporters and mentioned this issue.

Uncharacteristically, he answered very truthfully: "The Spurs are very strong and have always been strong. It is normal for whoever wins this series. Of course I hope that my team can reach the finals, but I also hope that the two teams will compete for the championship." The fans brought a good enough game.”

The Rockets' morale no longer needs to be boosted. At this point, the coaches and players want to create history more than he, the boss, does.

However, the Spurs with Duncan, Parker, and Ginobili are really strong.

Fang Zhuo's unremarkable answer was reported by the media.

There is no Why not this time, but everyone has a higher opinion of the Rockets boss.

"The division of champions, the appearance of three consecutive championships."

"The calmer the Rockets owner is, the more confident he has in the team."

"The Rockets G2 winning formula is going to take effect!"

Sports media in the United States have praised it one after another. CCTV in China has been broadcasting live broadcasts. The sports media circles are not large, so naturally they are free of charge.

On the contrary, after losing the first game, Xiao Ao, who had always taken the initiative to call Fang Zhuo, quickly called.

"Mr. Fang, I was thinking of going to the finals to cheer for the Rockets." Xiao Ao looked at the live broadcast. He did not think that Mr. Fang was confident like the media did. He intuitively felt that he was absent-minded.

Fang Zhuo was a little surprised by his call. When he heard this, he smiled and said: "I am also looking forward to the finals, but if you can come for G6/G7, it will give the team more confidence."

This Xiao Ou had to wait until he was a sure winner in the finals before he appeared.

"I try my best to spare time, but Mr. Fang, you know, since I announced my candidacy, I have been busy with too many things." Xiao Ao mentioned the candidacy. If public opinion hadn't linked the champion and the black leader, he would not have said anything about it. This NBA game has this level of care.

"Then I will try my best to urge our players who have the heart of a championship. This time there is still hope." Fang Zhuo knew that the other party did not want to take unnecessary risks.

Perhaps it was the law of rebound and winning, or maybe it was luck. The second game on May 30th ended with the Rockets winning back a victory.

As time enters June, the Rockets will usher in three home games as usual.

That is to say, this month, Apple is about to be released and Yike is about to hold a press conference. Fang Zhuo feels that his whole person is gradually getting a little nervous from the inside out.

If American operators want to negotiate, domestic operators need to lay a solid foundation first. The mobile phones themselves need to be continuously optimized, and the supply chain needs to be finalized one by one...

On June 1, the Rockets unexpectedly lost their first home game, losing to the Spurs 89:102.

This also means that the Rockets must return to the Spurs' home court to play again, and it is impossible to end the series in a sea of ​​​​red home court like the first two rounds.

On June 3, the Rockets once again tied the Spurs with a big score, and the two teams tied 2:2.

That night, Fang Zhuo learned from the advanced experience of Google CEO Schmidt and showed the draft contract negotiated between Yike and T-Mobile to China Unicom's senior management. The purchase price and proportion of sharing were clearly written on it.

At the same time, he also used the similar cooperation between Apple and operator AT\u0026T as an example to talk about competitive methods in the 3G era.

One company has reached an agreement and the other is negotiating.

With such a fresh example in front of them, China Unicom's top management really felt... fresh and incredible.

"The touch screen is very interesting, Mr. Fang, and the intelligence you mentioned is also good."

"Oh, and there's this front camera."

"But your mobile phones include Apple's competing mobile phones. Mr. Fang, no offense intended. Can such a new product really capture a large number of users from Nokia, Sony Ericsson, and Samsung?"

China Unicom executives expressed their thoughts.

Only time will tell whether it can get users.

"At the end of the month, iPhone will be on the market, and at the end of the year, Mars will be on the market." Fang Zhuo replied, "I believe that AT\u0026T and T-Mobile will soon know that they will choose touch-screen smartphones, choose to subsidize users, and choose to deepen cooperation with mobile phone manufacturers. , is it worth it?”

Similarly, this is also a witness to what kind of changes two mobile phones can bring before China Unicom's reform.

Fang Zhuo entertained the visiting senior executives of domestic operators well and watched the Rockets' last home game of the series in the box with them.

On June 5, the Rockets are determined to visit the AT\u0026T Center Arena again with a 3:2 advantage.

Three days later, the Spurs defeated the Rockets, confirming the two teams' second Western Conference Finals tiebreaker in three years.

On June 10, the Eastern Conference has confirmed that the Cavaliers led by LeBron James will win the Eastern Conference championship for the first time in team history. The last game of the Western Conference Finals series will determine who will join the Cavaliers in the finals.

The day finally arrived, and Fang Zhuo's distraction from his cell phone was brought back by a game that determined the outcome.

He prepared throat lozenges, easy-to-tear jerseys, a group of friends waving team flags, and public relations media lenses in advance, intending to participate deeply in the tiebreaker.

However, in the afternoon, Xiao Ao unexpectedly decided to come to watch the game and see with his own eyes whether a miracle would happen.

Photos circulated on the Internet of "If only a black man could be the leader" and "If only the Rockets could win the championship" stood on the sidelines, murdering many reporters.

"What if we lose?" Fang Zhuo asked Xiao Ao after the game started.

"I believe in myself just like you believe in the Rockets." Xiao Ao replied speciously.

The problem is that Fang Zhuo actually believes in Xiao Ao's miracle.

He could only look excited, OK, believe in the Rockets, believe in Xiao Ao!

The game is anxious.

From the coaches to the players to the live audience and the live broadcast audience, everyone was worried about the outcome of this game, which made this game create a new high in ratings for this year's playoffs.

Are the Spurs revenge champions or the Rockets Why not?

In the last two minutes of the fourth quarter, the two teams were tied for the 13th time in the game.

Fang Zhuo took a breath and began to slowly peel the lozenges in his pocket.

He ate one piece first and then handed one to Xiao Ao.

"What is this?" Xiao Ao was confused.

"I have a hunch that this is the sweet taste of victory." Fang Zhuo replied seriously.

Xiao Ao ate the throat lozenges and found that Mr. Fang was lying. The taste was not that sweet, and the mint flavor was a bit harsh on the throat.

In the last minute, the Rockets and Spurs tied again 84:84.

The Spurs made a mistake and Carter grabbed the ball!

Carter advanced to half-court, but Parker made a mistake with the ball.

The Spurs reorganized their offense, with Parker holding the ball, Ginobili running, and Duncan falling low.

There were only six seconds left in this offense. Ginobili received the pass and shot a difficult fadeaway jumper!

Didn't make it! Pop out of the box! Duncan missed a tip-in!

Yao Ming protected the key rebound!

With only five seconds left in the game, the Rockets have the ball!

Rockets coach Nelson unexpectedly did not call a timeout and left everything to the players on the court.

Duncan tried to cut the basketball from Yao Ming's hand. Rockets' Nash and Carter quickly rushed to the frontcourt from left to right. They unanimously chose to believe in Yao Ming's long pass!

Yao Ming held the basketball high and swung it forward without hesitation.

Nash, who was two steps outside the three-point line, received this accurate pass and passed it to Carter, who was closer to the basket, in less than a second.

Carter catches the ball!

There are only the last three seconds left!

He chose a layup!

At the last second, Carter seemed to have eyes in his back, and he feinted, swaying Ginobili who was back on defense, and gently put the ball into the basket!

Time ran out, leaving no chance for the Spurs to win!

The whole stadium was silent, the whistle sounded, the score was valid, the rocket took off, and the live broadcast was boiling!

Fang Zhuo witnessed the classic Trident collaboration in the final round of the tiebreaker. Hearing the whistle, he jumped up from his seat, tore off his jersey with all his strength, faced the home fans and media cameras, and reaffirmed the playoff culture.

"Why not!"

"Why not!"

"FFFF, why not!!"

At this time, Xiao Ao also stood up excitedly.

Fang Zhuo turned around and yelled at Xiao Ao: "Why not?"

Xiao Ao responded on live broadcast and on camera, shouting loudly: "Yes, we can!"

Fang Zhuo raised Xiao Ao's hand, raised his arms and shouted: "Why not? Yes, we can!!"

Who says the Rockets can't win three consecutive championships? Who says Xiao Ao can't be a leader?

The organization has decided, and it’s up to you to get the votes.

Xiao Ao and I had a heart-to-heart connection, and Xiao Aoduo gave me approval, Yes, U can, Yes, U can.