America: Starting with the acquisition of MGM

Chapter 155 If you don’t agree, I’ll do it to you

Nicole Kidman's birthday party in Beverly Hills.

Eric looked at the man in front of him, stretched out his hand and shook the man gently, and the two looked at each other and smiled.

"Eric Cooper, hello James!"

The other party's surname is Murdoch, and since he appeared on this occasion, it is no surprise that the other party must be the son of the media tycoon Rupert Murdoch.

There is no need to say much about the name of this old man. There are few people in the world who do not know his wealth and power. His wife Wendi Deng is also very famous.

With News Corporation and 20th Century Fox Film in its hands, News Corporation also includes some of the most important media mouthpieces in countries such as Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom.

Twentieth Century Fox Pictures includes Fox Movies, Fox Searchlight, Fox Television Network, Fox Broadcasting Network, etc.

Rupert Murdoch is not only a great influence in the entertainment industry, but also has great influence in the political circle.

This influence will continue to wane for at least 20 years, because the impact of the Internet has caused a serious impact on News Corporation's newspaper business.

Twentieth Century Fox Pictures was acquired by Disney for a staggering US$71.3 billion in 2019, becoming the largest film and television acquisition after the millennium. When this news was officially released, it shocked the world of entertainment. lock up.

Since then, Hollywood has officially entered the five major eras, with only Disney, Warner, Universal, Sony and Paramount remaining.

Although the general trend of the world is that long-term divisions will inevitably unite, and long-term alliances will inevitably divide, but before Disney announced the acquisition of 20th Century Fox, most people still thought that the weakest Paramount should be the first to be acquired. Unexpectedly, it turned out to be Fox.

But that was more than ten years later. Now Mickey Mouse has not expanded to such an extent. News Corporation and Fox are still able to control the situation, at least they are much stronger than MGM.

The two clinked glasses, and James Murdoch said: "Let me introduce myself first. Eric, you should be able to guess my identity, but you are not familiar with me."

“My father is what you would call Rupert Murdoch, and I also work for News Corporation and am currently the chairman of Asia Star TV.”

"Ah? Star TV is run by your family?"

Eric was a little surprised. For a person born in the 1990s, Star TV had accompanied him throughout his childhood. Cartoons that were not imported from mainland China were broadcast on Star TV.

For example, "Inuyasha", "Naruto", "Fruits Basket", "Magical Mirumi", "Detective Conan", "Cardcaptor Sakura Magic Card" and so on.

It was quite a childhood filter, but I didn’t expect it to be affiliated with News Corporation.

James Murdoch smiled slightly: "That's an absolute statement. Star TV is a subsidiary of News Corporation. It belongs to all shareholders. I am only in charge of it."

"In comparison, MGM is better. You alone have the final say. This lion is completely your personal property."

Eric waved his hand: "What's the use of it belonging to me alone? MGM owes billions in foreign debt. I wake up with a big head every day. I don't know when it will be taken away by the bank."

"You are so humble Eric. MGM is currently developing very well. It has been ten months since you took over."

"I have already calculated that all investment projects are profitable. Although most of them are at small costs, the accuracy is simply terrible."

"This proves that you have a terrifying market sense and that you can accurately analyze what the audience wants to see. This is a very rare ability that is enviable."

If you are an American who grew up in a traditional way, you will surely brag that it is your own credit at this time.

But Eric felt that the guy in front of him was a bit unkind, so he had to hide his weakness and observe what he wanted to do first.

He laughed: "This is not my credit, it is the result of MGM's overall decision-making. I am just an executor."

"No matter what, MGM's development momentum is good. Many people are waiting for it to be relisted. Has the time been determined? I plan to buy some stocks by then."

"The specific time is to be determined, but re-listing will definitely happen. The stocks are public and anyone can buy them. If I didn't have any money, I would also like to buy News Corporation and Fox stocks."

Eric looked at Uncle Wolf next to him and said, "Jack, you can buy some when the time comes. A good investment is more profitable than a good movie."

After listening to Hugh Jackman for a while, he could already feel that there was something wrong with the conversation between the two. He is a smart man, and things between big bosses should not get into troubled waters.

"Eric, thank you for your suggestion. I will consider it. A friend is here. I'll go over and say hello. You guys can chat."

After saying that, I was decisive.

James Murdoch made a gesture of invitation: "This location is not very convenient, how about we go over there and have a chat?"

The two walked to a corner of the living room. There was no one here and it was much quieter.

"James, what do you want to talk about? You don't want to buy MGM, right?" Eric said jokingly.

"Of course not. Although career is very important, you have to eat one bite at a time. My ambition has not expanded to this extent."

"But I heard a piece of news. Facebook, which has become popular in the United States recently, seems to be inextricably linked to MGM, right?"

Eric did not answer directly, but said calmly: "Keep talking!"

"Facebook is great. The emergence of this kind of social media is disruptive and will change the way everyone communicates."

"I think it has great potential for development. Although it is mainly spread among major universities in the United States, in the near future, Facebook will definitely cover the entire United States."

"Just imagine, maybe in a year, half of Americans will be using Facebook, and then it will gradually spread to Canada, Mexico, and Europe."

"Use one year to gradually conquer these countries, followed by Asia and South America."

"Maybe in five years, maybe longer or shorter, Facebook's user coverage will cover the whole world."

"At that point, it will not only be the first social media in history, it will be the largest social media in the world."

"You and I both know what the biggest means. It represents monopoly, and monopoly symbolizes profit, which far exceeds all profits."

Seeing what James Murdoch said was so exciting, Eric was convinced that people must have decided that he was the actual controller behind Facebook, and there was no need to deny it.

"James, what you said is very good, and I agree with your vision for the future. So what exactly do you want to do?"

James Murdoch said seriously: "Win-win cooperation."

"Cooperation? James, cooperation requires sincerity. I need to see your sincerity." Eric said

"Of course I have sincerity. The first is financial support. As you said, MGM's current development momentum is indeed very good, but it is also true that it is heavily in debt."

"As Facebook grows, it's going to require more and more operating capital, and you have to admit that."

"At least until the user base is stable, it will be difficult for Facebook to start making profits. It will be in a state of loss for a long time, and it will need constant blood transfusions."

"So the first condition I gave was financial support, based on Facebook's registered users. For every 1 million registered users, News Corporation is willing to invest US$5 million in operating funds for one year."

"And this number is floating. As market prices fluctuate, it will rise to 6 million, 7 million, or 8 million in the future."

Eric smiled slightly. This price is indeed very good. If you don't consider business expansion, it is actually profitable in terms of operations alone.

"Well, that's good. Please continue with the second condition."

"The second one is naturally resource support, including connections and public opinion, which are what News Corporation is best at."

"I noticed that although Facebook has not been online for a long time, some media are already saying bad things about it. Did you watch the CBS talk show? It was full of worries and criticisms about Facebook."

"Once we have the support of News Corporation, Facebook does not have to worry about public opinion. We will be the most authoritative news media."

"In the future, when expanding its business in Europe, Australia and even Asia, News Corporation can also provide strong support, which can at least minimize the resistance Facebook encounters."

"Eric, although what I said is very general, you should be able to feel the role of News Corporation. Think about it."

Eric nodded: "James, I want to ask a question. When you came to me this time, was it your personal behavior or did you represent your father?"

Perhaps because he felt that Eric could not reject him, or perhaps because he thought that he was superior to Eric in terms of status and power, James Murdoch did not hide it.

He said openly: "This is my personal behavior for the time being, but I am very confident that I can convince my father to agree to this matter."

"It has been three years since I started working at Asia Star TV in 2000. In the early days of my tenure, the TV station had already incurred a cumulative loss of US$500 million."

"And I spent three years bringing it back to life, entering the Chinese and Indian markets in one fell swoop, and helping the company turn losses into profits."

"Now that I am about to leave Star TV, my father has promised that I will be able to choose almost any position at News Corporation or Fox."

"I was originally going to be the CEO of BSkyB, but then Facebook came along and I discovered this pearl."

"Judging from its popularity, the market potential of social media is very huge, so this area will be my new target."

"I'm not afraid to tell you that if we work together, it will be a win-win situation, or if News Corp. launches its own social network, we will become competitors."

Eric looked sharply: "Are you threatening me?"

"Eric, this is not a threat, but a benign persuasion. You can't survive in this world if you live alone."

"Haha, do you know how much time MGM spent behind the scenes to develop Facebook? When News Corporation develops its own software, how much time will the market leave for you?"

"Eric, the premise you mentioned is redevelopment, but what if I already have the finished product in hand?"

"What? How could you have that?"

Eric was a little surprised, and for a moment he thought of words such as code leaks and insiders.

"Don't be so surprised. I didn't do anything illegal. Someone sold it to me. Its name is myspace."

"If you agree to cooperate, we will work together to build the world's strongest social network. If you refuse, then MySpace will immediately compete with Facebook."

"MGM can launch celebrity promotions, and so can Fox. We have the resources that MGM has, and we have the resources that MGM doesn't have."

"I don't want it to be a lose-lose situation in the end, Eric, I hope you understand this too."

After James Murdoch finished speaking, he looked straight over, and only then did Eric understand where the other party's real confidence came from.

If they don't get you, they will use similar methods to destroy you. Penguin is not the only one who is good at this method. Capital groups all over the world are good at it.

Eric narrowed his eyes: "James, tell me what you want."

James Murdoch spread his fingers and said: "50% of Facebook's shares, of course, the operating rights still belong to you, I have the right to make suggestions, and you are still the actual controller of Facebook."

Eric almost laughed angrily when he heard the other party's request.

If you really dare to open your mouth, you will get half of the equity if you open your mouth. Why don't you go to heaven?

If it were 10% or no more than 20%, Eric would still seriously consider it, but 50% is completely nonsense.

If you haven’t participated in the operation yet, who would believe this?

At most, it can be honest for a while at the beginning. Once it has established a firm foothold, it will definitely find ways to occupy a dominant position. By then, Facebook is bound to usher in fierce internal fighting.

After drinking the wine in the glass in one breath, Eric said coldly: "It seems you are not sincere at all."

Seeing that Eric was about to leave, James Murdoch hurriedly said: "Wait a minute Eric, this is just my preliminary idea. We can discuss the specific cooperation methods."

"I don't think it's necessary. You can't bring this number down to 10%, just like I can't take away half of the shares of News Corporation and Fox from you."

"You want to swap shares?"

"Yes, this is the best way to cooperate. I don't need your money. Your resources may be useful, but what if you don't have them?"

"Eric Cooper, share swap is impossible, especially since Facebook is just a new company. It seems that you have to choose the road of competition." James Murdoch's voice also turned cold.

Eric's body did not move, and he turned his head to glance at him, which seemed to be like a hawk looking at a wolf.

I don't know why, being looked at like this, James Murdoch suddenly felt a little uncomfortable and felt uncomfortable all over.

At this moment, Nicole came over, but she didn't notice the problem.

"Why are you two here? Eric, let me introduce to you, this is"

"No need, Mr. Murdoch and I have already talked."

"Really? You already know each other, that's great, James, I always"

"Sorry Nicole, there is something urgent at the company and I have to go back to deal with it. I wish you a happy birthday and will contact you when you have time."

Looking at the back of James Murdoch leaving, Nicole looked at Eric blankly.