Top of the big era

The television industry in any country is strictly regulated.

Just like the current situation of the six giants in Hollywood.

Only about 25% of a Hollywood movie's profit comes from box office, while the other 75% comes from peripheral and derivative copyrights.

If you want to develop peripheral and derivative copyrights, you must rely on the resources of media giants.

In the past ten years, Hollywood giants have basically been acquired by media giants. For example, Warner merged with Time Group and became Time Warner; Universal merged with NBC and became NBC Universal; Paramount merged with Viacom Tom and the CBS television network; Disney completed its merger with the ABC television network; behind Twentieth Century Fox is News Corporation.

There is one exception.

Sony Columbia Pictures.

Because Sony is a Japanese company.

Sony cannot build a TV network in the United States. It can only build some local TV stations in small and medium-sized enterprises, and its influence is very limited. So in terms of overall strength, Sony is the weakest.

Because it had been unable to launch the TV business, Sony could only go in other directions. It took the lead in establishing a consortium and leveraged the acquisition of MGM. It focused on developing the music industry and quickly built Sony Records into the world's largest music group.

All in all, it is almost impossible for Jieyu Media to penetrate into the American television industry.

Even with SoftBank taking the lead, it will be difficult.

More importantly, Zhou Buqi himself has no interest in the TV industry. He said: "The TV industry is too regional. Every country has its own TV station. TV business can only be regional. Compared with After all, the Internet is better, this is the global platform."

Zhen Yu blinked, "What about NBC Universal?"

Zhou Buqi said: "I have a very good relationship with Comcast. If I turn my back on them as Sun Zhengyi said and turn around and compete with them, it will affect my reputation."

Zhen Yu twitched the corner of her mouth, "Boss Zhou, come on! This is the world of capital, a big business worth tens of billions of dollars, and frivolous things are not important at all."

Zhou Buqi laughed and patted his side, "Senior Sister Zhen Yu, come and sit."

Zhen Yu's pretty face was slightly red and her expression was wary, "What are you doing?"

"Come here, let's chat."

"I don't have as much information as you do. I don't know anything."

Zhen Yu didn't refuse, she got up and went to sit next to him on the sofa opposite.

Zhou Buqi said: "So let's talk first and have the same ideas, and then talk to Sun Zhengyi to convince him. Well, let's start from the beginning. Netflix's stock price has been falling recently, have you paid attention?"

Zhen Yu said softly: "Well, in the past few months, Netflix's stock price has grown very fast, reaching 50 US dollars at one time. But... starting from February, major investment banks have begun to bet on Netflix. Fei's stock recommendation changed from 'hold' to 'underperform', believing that the market is overheated and has seriously overvalued Netflix, with the expected share price being $30."

"Why not optimistic about it?"

"The model is that the market has overestimated the development prospects of Netflix's digital transmission business, and that the recent stock price has over-reflected the recent fundamentals."

"Any more?"

"Mainly in this regard, the capital market believes that the ultimate result of Netflix's exploration of digital transmission may be that its profitability proves to be less than the traditional model through email."

Zhen Yu is a director of Netflix, so she knows the specific situation better.

Zhou Buqi pays more attention and has a deeper understanding, "Netflix's current cash flow is very good, mainly relying on the DVD mailing business. The profit prospects of the streaming media business have been questioned. A more important reason is the market There are still doubts about the distribution of content on Internet platforms.”

The fundamental reason is that those who operate capital lack awe and understanding of technology. They cannot imagine how the development of science and technology will bring about earth-shaking changes to the world in the next few years.

It’s actually easy to understand using conventional ideas.

How can watching TV series and movies on the Internet compare with TV?

The TV screen is larger and looks better;

TV signal transmission is faster and more stable, and the picture is clearer;

The TV is in the living room, suitable for families to watch together, which is in line with American family culture.

None of this can compare to streaming video while sitting in front of a computer.

Zhen Yu pondered and said: "Well, it seems so. Both Apple and Amazon have launched online streaming services, but neither seems to be favored by the market. Amazon, in particular, has been scolded very miserably and has not made any money for so many years. No I was doing my best in e-commerce, but out of nowhere I started doing Internet videos again.”

Zhou Buqi smiled and said, "So, prophets are all lonely, such as Bezos, Steve Jobs, and Hargentins of Netflix. Oh, by the way, Disney's Robert Iger is an exception."

"And you."

"right."

Zhen Yu pursed her lips and said, "I understand what you mean. That is to say, under the changes of the Internet, the concept of the film and television entertainment industry changing from channel to content is not accepted by the public."

Zhou Buqi clapped his hands and said, "That's what I mean. There is another case that can prove it - MGM. MGM has the largest film library in Hollywood and rich content resources. But now MGM is going bankrupt. Any company As long as big companies take action, it is easy to buy the bottom. The current situation is that no one is buying the bottom, and everyone is letting MGM fend for itself."

Disney decided to acquire Marvel in an unconventional way, because behind it were Steve Jobs and Robert Iger who had a keen eye and were able to recognize the huge changes in the industry brought about by the Internet.

From an industry perspective, MGM is much more attractive than Marvel!

MGM has the famous "007" and "Tom and Jerry", as well as the film distribution rights of "Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit", as well as the TV series adaptation rights.

Later, in order to develop its own streaming media business, Amazon wanted to make a TV series version of "The Lord of the Rings", which really cost a lot of money.

It is necessary to reach an agreement with New Line and Warner to use their design copyrights; it is necessary to reach an agreement with producer Saul and buy the rights to adapt the novel from him; it is also necessary to spend 8.5 billion US dollars to acquire MGM and obtain " The TV series development rights for The Lord of the Rings.

One shortcoming of Hollywood is that the protection of intellectual property rights is too strict. Many times the copyright of a content product will be broken into pieces, and all aspects must be taken into consideration, making it extremely difficult to operate.

However, this also further illustrates the importance of content.

In the future, whoever controls the content will be king.

Zhou Buqi said: "Disney bought Marvel instead of MGM. A very important reason is that the values ​​​​do not match. MGM's "Tom and Jerry" series of cartoons are for adults, and many of them are The episodes all look like horror movies, which are completely different categories from Disney princesses. However, other companies look down on MGM because they are not confident in their strategy and are not firm enough in the future direction of content being king. They still want to pass A strong monopoly on the model to maintain absolute control of the channel side, thereby maintaining its status as a giant."

Zhen Yu immediately understood who he was talking about, "Strong monopoly? You mean Comcast?"

Zhou Buqi said: "Comcast has long wanted to enter the market. I remember when Disney was going into civil strife in 2004, they offered nearly US$70 billion to acquire Disney. Later, when Robert Iger took office, he firmly disagreed."

Zhen Yu said softly: "Yes, the logic behind Comcast's acquisition of NBCUniversal and its bid for Disney should be the same. Now, there are some possible arguments in the market that content is king. This was not the case in 2004. So...Comcast wants to acquire NBCUniversal not because of the content!"

Zhou Buqi smiled and said, "The Roberts family has talked to me several times, saying that they hope I can persuade the NBCUniversal board of directors from the perspective that content is king. In fact, I know that what they are playing with is not content at all."

"It's a monopoly!"

"Yes, these super giants are actually using the Internet as a shield to push the FCC in the United States to modify past regulations to approve their monopolistic acquisitions!"

Zhou Buqi has actually seen through it a long time ago. He has never regarded American capitalists as friends, but only used each other.

Comcast's acquisition of NBCUniversal is definitely a super monopoly.

Comcast is the largest television operator in the United States, and NBCUniversal owns the largest NBC television network in the United States, as well as a library of blockbusters from Universal Pictures.

This constitutes a monopoly mechanism.

Viewers in the United States who want to watch TV have to find Comcast to install a set-top box. Once installed, the set-top box offers a range of TV service packages from Comcast.

This is very telling.

For example, there is an unattractive premium cable channel owned by the NBC television network that no one watches at all. If NBCUniversal and Comcast become a family, it could undermine fairness.

American audiences like to watch ESPN, a sports channel owned by Disney, and ESPN and NBC Sports, a subsidiary of NBC Television Network, are competitors.

This should work.

First, forcefully bind!

If viewers want to open ESPN, they must bundle it with this unsightly paid channel owned by NBC, otherwise they will not be able to open it.

Then, provide a better subscription service for NBC Sports, which can be packaged into a discounted price with popular TV stations such as AMC, CNN or National Geographic.

This wave of operations can not only arouse users' resentment towards the competitor Disney's sports station ESPN, but also encourage users and viewers to watch NBC Sports Station. ESPN's influence can also be used to promote the development of NBC's niche TV stations.

Kill three birds with one stone!

This is a strong monopoly routine and should definitely be severely cracked down on.

It would have been impossible to allow this before.

However, with the advent of the Internet, the policy was relaxed.

Such a naughty operation is actually allowed!

The reason is simple!

Operators need to survive!

The Internet is playing OTT overhead passes, and they are so awesome. If operators don't do this, they will all die. For the sake of the stable development of the industry, the regulatory authorities should give the green light!

This is why Comcast is actively recruiting Zhou Buqi as a consultant.

Zhou Buqi is an Internet tycoon!

He said that content will be king in the future, which is very convincing, and FCC officials should consider it carefully.

In a previous life, Comcast and General Electric teamed up to recruit a group of Internet veterans as consultants, and the operation was successful.

As an operator, it completed the acquisition of NBC Universal with a strong monopoly.

In the following years, the entertainment industry in the United States changed. It became a three-party struggle between traditional operator industry leaders, entertainment empires, and Internet giants.

Internet giants refer to streaming media platforms such as Netflix, Apple, and Amazon.

The main pure entertainment empire is Disney, and Robert Iger is a wizard. Disney's streaming media platform was launched last, but as soon as it was launched, it crushed Amazon and Apple.

In the field of operators... they are actually very far away from the entertainment industry. The reason why they are so competitive that even AT\u0026T acquired Time Warner is the logic behind this is the connivance of monopoly.

Although the TV industry is a sunset industry, operators cannot compete with Internet giants in business innovation, and Disney cannot compete with content innovation, but they can still maintain their status as giants by relying on monopoly.

Monopoly is the most eternal competitiveness.

Zhen Yu suddenly understood, covering her mouth and whispering: "You mean...you mean that Comcast invited you to join their advisory board to use you as a shield?"

Zhou Buqi nodded, "Absolutely, using my identity to show the threat of the Internet, so that the regulatory authorities can relax their review restrictions. Comcast has long been eyeing the upstream industry. If it can enter the market, it will also We cannot wait until now to take action.”

Zhen Yu looked at him doubtfully, "Then you are still going?"

Zhou Buqi said with a smile: "We help each other, and there is no loss for me. Having established a good relationship with Comcast will be very helpful to the development of Jieyu Media in the United States in the future."

Zhen Yu nodded slightly, "Now the plan has changed."

"Well, Son Masayoshi was taken care of by me!"

Zhou Buqi was very happy. He stretched out his hand and put it on Senior Sister Zhen Yu's thigh. Through her nightgown, she could feel that her legs were soft and warm.

Zhen Yu's ears were red, as if nothing had happened, "So how to solve the case between Comcast and NBCUniversal? You are right, it is best not to offend a giant like Comcast."

Zhou Buqi said: "Don't compete, cooperate."

"cooperate?"

"Well, push SoftBank and Comcast to cooperate and acquire NBC Universal together. Now Comcast's cash flow is not enough to buy all NBC Universal. What Comcast wants is a monopoly, and their main business is TV operators, what they are actually pursuing is NBC Universal’s TV business.”

"this……"

Zhen Yu finally understood what he wanted to do. He wasn't trying to be a gangster and touch her thigh, but he wanted to split up NBC Universal!

Can’t Comcast afford NBCUniversal? Don't you prefer the NBC television network's business?

It’s simple, invest together and buy together.

Then, break up NBC. Part of NBC is owned by Comcast, and Universal Pictures is spun off and owned by Jieyu Media.

Um!

This idea is very good!

The television business is a sunset industry and is subject to strict supervision, so Jieyu Media must avoid it. But the film business is different, foreigners can also participate. With the endorsement of SoftBank behind it, the possibility of transactions is greatly increased!

Then, she realized that she was wrong.

Boss Zhou, the real purpose of calling him over to talk about work so seriously... seems to be to touch his thigh!

He had already lifted up his skirt and wanted to touch his thigh without any obstruction.

Zhen Yu rolled her eyes at him and slapped his hand away, "I'm at work. Contact Son as soon as possible to explain this plan clearly. Negotiations between Comcast and NBCUniversal are about to begin."