Reinventing the Millennium

Fang Zhuo was surprised that Jobs was so willing to come to Shanghai to meet and chat.

Just a trademark.

Although it may hinder Apple mobile phones from entering the Chinese market, it is just a trademark.

"Isn't Apple complaining that Yike's patent is invalid? He must feel that he has done something sorry for you, so he must meet and talk." Su Wei made a joking comment.

Fang Zhuo deeply agrees with this idea.

Trademarks are just a small problem attached to a big problem.

What's the big problem?

It is the competitive intensity and boundary when established manufacturers intend to exert their efforts.

It’s about how to deal with the issues of competition and anti-competition in a situation where everything is competing, such as Symbian’s open source, LG’s joint operator, Sony Ericsson’s touch screen machine, and Samsung’s Android system.

Fang Zhuo had some doubts. Could it be that the news that Yike was going to sue Apple in the Munich court in Germany was leaked?

These are only possible measures that may be taken on the advice of Deutsche Telekom.

Whether there will be any results on Apple's patent appeal in the near future, according to the German side, it is idle and can be sued first.

Could it be that Schmidt had some sort of hook-up with Jobs?

Do you want to follow Steve Jobs' lead and drive Schmidt out again?

On February 19, while his schedule was not so tight, Fang Zhuo first inspected the production capacity expansion of Luzhou Ice Core, then went to Lin'an to visit the second factory that had been cut off, and finally welcomed Jobs in Shanghai, who came from afar.

It is worth mentioning that Bingxin Factory No. 2 encountered orders from its major customer Qimonda. This matter was not limited to the company itself, and even the leaders heard about it.

The ones who were most concerned were first the Lin'an local government, then the leaders of Anhui Province. Finally, Fang Zhuo had someone compile a situation statement and send it to the secretary above.

The timing of Qimonda's order cuts is not good. First, Ice Core is developing rapidly, and second, SMIC has once again received bad news, which is particularly noticeable.

Fang Zhuo is a real person. He objectively explained the problems of the storage industry and Qimonda in the situation statement. He believed that cutting orders like this was a helpless move. Qimonda definitely did not deliberately waste half of the factory's production capacity. It itself At stake.

As for the future, we still need to observe the development of the global industry.

Fang Zhuo didn't have the nerve to mention that he was shorting others. One yard was the other, that was another matter.

At two o'clock in the afternoon, Hang Lung 23 welcomed Apple's senior team led by Steve Jobs.

Apple's 2008 annual conference will be held in March, that is, next month. It has been made clear that 3G functions will be added, and China is also a market that Apple is considering launching this time.

Apple has made early contacts with two operators in China, one is China Mobile and the other is China Unicom.

On this trip, Jobs first visited Yike, and then went to the capital to discuss the operator in person - this was the suggestion of Chinese executives. China values ​​such sincerity, and problems can be solved if there is sincerity.

However, you can also see the deputy general manager of China Unicom here at Hang Lung 23. This kind of local snake-like signal, for some reason, Jobs thought it was very reasonable to place it on Fang Zhuo.

Fang Zhuo expressed his welcome to Jobs.

Considering that Jobs had never been to China in his previous life, Fang Zhuo planned to take this group of people to visit the rapidly developing new area - this place is really developing very fast, and even he himself felt that there would always be changes every time he came back from abroad.

Fang Zhuo and Steve Jobs were riding in the same car.

The person who originally drove the car was secretary Liu Zonghong. As a result, Liang Mu, a reporter and writer who went deep into the grassroots and intended to write a book "Yike's Way to Success" or "Fang Zhuo's Way to Success" heard about this exchange and came over to serve as the driver with great excitement. Driver position.

He was very curious about this kind of meeting and was sure that it would provide material for his final Yike observation trip.

From the time they exchanged greetings and got into the car to the two minutes of the car driving, both Fang Zhuo and Jobs seemed to have lost interest in communicating, which made Liang Mu, who was driving and observing, murmur in his heart.

Finally, in front of a traffic light intersection, Fang Zhuo spoke first, still making regular greetings.

"Steve, is this your first time in China?"

Jobs simply replied: "Yes."

"Why didn't you come here to take a look before?" Fang Zhuo asked again.

Jobs thought about the answer to this question for a while. Fang Zhuo asked a little strangely, why not come to China? He hasn't been to Russia or South Korea, so why are there so many?

He gave the answer: "Because you are here. If you don't go over, I will come over."

This sentence is quite Zen-like.

However, this is in line with Jobs' style. He is a Zen practitioner and regards the Japanese Zen master Hirofumi Otokawa as his spiritual mentor. He even hosted the wedding.

Fang Zhuo smiled and asked: "Now that you are in Asia, Samsung is next door, will you go and see it?"

Jobs asked, "How is Hummingbird doing?"

Fang Zhuo replied: "Very good."

Jobs nodded and said, "Then I won't go."

After these words, the two stopped talking.

The driver, Liang Mu, felt confused. What did he mean? What do Mr. Fang and Steve Jobs mean? Why did you mention Samsung again? What kind of bird is a hummingbird? It seems that the tension between the two people is not as tense as imagined!

After about three minutes, it was Jobs who spoke this time.

He asked something quite a long time ago: "Where did you first know about Toshiba hard drives?"

It's been a while.

Fang Zhuo recalled carefully: "I was in this city at that time, and I directly contacted several well-known hard disk companies. The samples I got should be a little earlier than you. What about you?"

"I saw Toshiba's hard drive when I visited Japan." Jobs shook his head slightly, and suddenly jumped to the present with another sentence, "How about Nokia?"

Fang Zhuo was still immersed in memories when he was suddenly asked: "Huh?"

"Have Nokia and Yike discussed patent licensing?" Jobs asked more clearly.

Fang Zhuo instantly connected the possible situations of the three companies and asked in surprise: "Apple was rejected?"

For some reason, Jobs felt that Mr. Fang's tone was very interesting, and said with a smile: "Nokia's refusal to license our patents is not a matter of price. Is this good news or bad news for Yike?"

Fang Zhuo briefly assessed the credibility of what this person said. The fact that Yike was rejected by Nokia was only known to a small circle within the company. This in itself is very bad news, but now I heard that Apple was also rejected...

He replied: "Good or bad, if Nokia wants to sue Yike, it won't stop suing just because Apple is around."

"Then when Nokia sues Apple, I will definitely remind Kallasvuo that Yike also did it." Jobs didn't hear a clear answer, but he felt the real situation.

Nokia does not license patents from Yike and Apple, which is undoubtedly a negative signal.

Unless Yike or Apple buys enough patents, this problem will need to be solved sooner or later.

"Then Yike can only strive to increase the intensity of competition, gain more share of the iPhone, and strive to be able to pay off the huge sum of money when Nokia comes to us to collect patent fees." Fang Zhuo shrugged.

Jobs was not angry and revealed the information: "Next month, your world's uniqueness will disappear, and the iPhone will have a front-facing camera."

Fang Zhuo praised: "It's a wise choice, but I don't know if it will be too hasty."

Mars was only launched in December last year, and it has only been more than three months since Apple changed its release plan. I don’t know whether the readjusted internal design is reasonable.

"It does require attention," Jobs admitted.

"It's hard to delay the launch for too long this year." Fang Zhuo pointed out the difference in competition this year.

Last year, whether it was the Apple iPhone or the Yike Mars, they had enough unique mobile phone features to attract consumers.

But this year, the efforts of international mobile phone manufacturers deserve attention. The time between the press conference and the launch of sales cannot be too long, and the pre-sale model of Yike cannot be copied. This time, a lot depends on whether it can compete with the more intense competition. Stay stable in a competitive environment.

Jobs was very sober: "There will be a press conference in March and official sales in April, but this time it will be sold in Europe and the United States together."

The iPhone released in June last year has never reached an agreement with operators in various European countries. However, this time, with the rise of Eco Mars and Deutsche Telekom, Apple finally reached an agreement before the release of the new generation iPhone, which is slightly inferior to AT\u0026T in the United States. Subsidies for cooperation conditions.

In other words, the cooperation between mobile phone manufacturers and telecom operators has been further spread.

"It looks very good." Fang Zhuo commented succinctly.

The two were quiet again.

He mentioned Samsung’s cooperation in the competition, talked about Nokia’s malicious refusal to authorize, and talked about the iPhone’s release information.

When Jobs spoke again, he stuck closely to the theme of this trip.

"I heard that Yike is planning to sue Apple in Germany?"

Jobs mentioned something that made the driver Liang Mu prick up his ears.

Fang Zhuo also asked: “Will Apple’s next step in complaining that our patent is invalid be to use the ITC’s ban on sales?”

Apple’s move against Yike’s patent is obviously not limited to the invalidation step.

"We had the multi-touch patent as early as 2005." Jobs frowned and pointed out this.

"That is a patent acquired by Apple. It covers a wide range of mobile devices, and we are based on capacitive screen research." Fang Zhuo raised his voice slightly and retorted, "If such a patent can be invalidated in the US market, then it will definitely It will exert its due power in the Chinese market, and Yike’s legal team is already in Munich. If you want, you can choose the time for German prosecution to be before or after the release of the iPhone in March.”

Ignoring the driver, there were only two people in the car, Yike and the head of Apple. Fang Zhuo spoke very directly, and Jobs also made a special trip to communicate.

Jobs did not comment on the explanation given by the legal department or the ongoing patent complaint.

He looked at this Eastern competitor, suddenly took out the Mars released by Yike from his pocket, and said: "3G, capacitive screens, and smartphones, now is the best time to develop."

Fang Zhuo nodded slowly, with a soothing tone, but still insisted: "Since Nokia has its own considerations, it should take advantage of the current development time to move forward as soon as possible. Yike has never considered using patents to criticize Apple, and Apple should respect it." Validity of Yike’s patent.”

The driver Liang Mu was listening with interest when he suddenly found that there was no sound again.

He quietly used the rearview mirror to observe and saw that the two people seemed to be making eye contact.

Is it tough persistence? Or is it a peace negotiation between the two companies?

Liang Mu felt empowered by this scene in his heart, wishing he could just sit and watch it.

Ten seconds later, he heard Jobs speak again.

When Jobs came up, he violated the common principles of negotiation and first expressed his subjective wishes: "I don't plan to change a new name. Is there a price for the iPhone trademark?"

However, Fang Zhuo did not dwell on this point and simply said: "10 million."

Jobs didn't object.

This trip was based on trademarks, and the main purpose was to resolve the mutual criticisms between Apple and Yike's patents in the United States, Europe and the future Chinese market. The biggest competitors now should be those established manufacturers that hold a large share of the industry.

It's not that Apple and Yike can't fight, it's not necessary.

Fang Zhuo actually had this understanding from the beginning.

However, he unfortunately found that establishing a consistent understanding with friends and businessmen may still require an interactive process.

Complaints are interactive, ITC is interactive, Munich court is interactive, China Trademark is interactive, and when two people meet and chat, they are also interactive.

Big problems can be solved, and there is no need to say much about small issues like trademarks.

The atmosphere in the car became much more harmonious.

Seeing that they were almost arriving at their destination, Fang Zhuo couldn't help but ask curious questions: "Steve, Apple seems to be very dependent on Samsung for chip design, foundry, and screens. But Samsung is not an ordinary company. It is among the best in the world." Mobile phone manufacturers, don’t you think this is a constraint?”

"Does Yike think Google is a constraint?" Jobs used an analogy and smiled, "The things Samsung provides are excellent. This is the first thing Apple considers. Secondly, Apple is tolerant. If your factory can Provide a better wafer manufacturing process and we can even place an order with you.”

Fang Zhuo slapped his thigh and immediately instructed Liang Mu in front of him: "Remember, at 3 o'clock in the afternoon on February 19, 2008, Jobs believed that Bingxin had the hope of taking over Apple's chip orders in the future."

Jobs was confused and asked about the driver's part-time function.

"He is a journalist turned writer, describing business figures in China." Fang Zhuo introduced.

Jobs said slightly seriously: "Then it must be a true record."

Fang Zhuo said to Liang Mu in English this time: "Remember, on February 19, 2008, at 3 o'clock in the afternoon, Steve Jobs said to me, let's fuck Nokia together."

"No, no, no, we want to have healthy competition with Nokia." Jobs immediately corrected him.

"What do you think of Nokia's innovation performance so far?" Fang Zhuo asked.

Jobs said tactfully: "Nokia can take more risks."

Fang Zhuo dictated: "At 3 o'clock in the afternoon, Jobs said that Nokia, which lacked innovation, was burning. He smelled the rotten smell of the old era floating in the air. He believed that iPhone and Mars would change the mobile phone industry together, and said that Mars was even better. ."

Liang Mu said in a strange tone: "Mr. Fang, it would be untrue if you added the last sentence."

"Then let's go ahead. This is all material worth remembering in the future." Fang Zhuo said with a smile.

Liang Mu: "..."

Jobs complained: "President Fang, you seem to be communicating encrypted in front of me."

“I was just telling him that Steve Jobs wouldn’t say Fuck Nokia, only Google’s Schmidt would say Fuck iPhone,” Fang Zhuo explained.

When Jobs heard this, he complained in his heart.

Fang Zhuo looked at Jobs's expression and immediately said to Liang Mu in English: "Remember, Jobs said, Fuck Schmidt."

Jobs denied, "I didn't say that."

"That's what you think in your heart." Fang Zhuo said his guess.

"Schmitt is a very good CEO. He has led Google to achieve outstanding achievements. I am very grateful to Schmidt for the professional advice he provided me when he was a director of Apple. In fact, it is because of him..." Steve Jobs Looking at Fang Zhuo's smiling expression, he stopped talking.

Liang Mu immediately understood that it was indeed F S.

The car has stopped.

Fang Zhuo and Jobs discussed for a while whether Schmidt was driven away or whether he would like to join the better Yike.

The other Apple executives and Yike executives who had come down looked at the motionless car and couldn't help but feel worried. Wouldn't these two people get into a fight in the car?

Fortunately, such worries were quickly broken by the two people who got out of the car.

Just walking together, the two heads of Yike and Apple have quickly set the tone for this negotiation.

The most important thing is development. Under this premise, the two companies can carry out patent cross-licensing, Apple withdraws the patent complaint, Yike will not block the European and Chinese markets, and a trademark transfer fee of 10 million US dollars.

Fang Zhuo estimated that, at the very least, when Jobs was around, matters involving patent issues should be negotiated within this framework. If he was gone, he would talk to Cook about losing his soul.

Jobs, who came to China for the first time, did not expect that communication with each other would be so smooth. His mood became much clearer when he visited China City.

Fang Zhuo took a selfie with Mars and also left a commemorative photo with Liang Mu and others.

After seeing the rapid development of Shanghai, the dinner reception and the next day's negotiations became routine.

However, this conventional atmosphere was not well understood by China Unicom's deputy general manager Xu Chiyu. After sitting with him for a long time and fully supporting Yike's stance, he quietly asked Mr. Fang.

"Isn't Apple going to complain about the invalidation of the patent? Why do you look like a normal collaborator?"

Fang Zhuo answered the question with a smile: "This is not normal. There is competition and cooperation. I am still waiting for Apple to place an order for my ice core in the future."

Xu Chiyu happened to know some details, and also knew that Fang always joked with him that Apple's orders were all placed with Samsung. Even if it was not good enough, there was a world-class Taiwanese reporter, how could he place the order with Bingxin.

Fang Zhuo didn't have to worry about Apple's patent actions for the time being, so he naturally paid attention to China Unicom's developments. The biggest purpose of Xu Chiyu's visit this time was the cooperation on new domestic phones.

"Mr. Xu, when will our 3G mobile phones be available? Domestic channels and consumers are waiting to try it out."

Yike's publicity has been launched, and the company can receive real phone calls and online channel reminders from time to time.

"September, September, September." Xu Chiyu, on behalf of China Unicom, gave a clear timetable for the first time. This is the fastest launch time for China Unicom to successfully reorganize and obtain 3G cameras.