Chapter 331 Got tricked again?
In fact, Roland has a very special memory of Steven Soderbergh. This memory does not stem from his dislike of George Clooney, nor from his surprise when he saw the big names in the "Rohan" series, but also It's not because of the regret when the other party defeated Ang Lee with "** Network" and won the Oscar for Best Director in 2001.
It's this bald head who once made a movie called "Contagion".
"Contagion" is full of big names, but the multi-threaded narrative makes the whole movie have no highlights, does not highlight any character, and does not create any dramatic conflicts. The narrative technique made the movie criticized by critics and audiences when it was released. shit.
Because most viewers believe that the plot in the movie is too absurd, and that there is no virus that can infect the world before people realize it; while the critics believe that director Steven Soderbergh is deliberately spreading the virus in black countries. The excessive darkness and ugliness of the government, especially when describing the handling policy of America, is like walking after the dung truck, looking for shit!
As a result, the flood of bad reviews made him lose his job as a director.
No film dealer continued to ask him to make movies, and no audience went to theaters to support his masterpiece. As a result, this bald man who could offend both his father and his parents had to give up his career as a director, choose to change his career, and become a painter.
But unfortunately, not long after he left the film industry, he was vaccinated by lottery, made a fortune for the country, smashed, looted and burned...
All showed up.
Not only that, but the Washington Monument was hit by a thunderstorm on a rainy night!
When the movie came into reality, the oncoming horror reminded people of the guy who warned the world back then!
But the ensuing horror of reality and anger at the way of handling made this memory disappear again.
It was precisely because Roland was amazed at the depiction of the movie when he watched "Contagion"!
So now he is willing to help the bald man matchmaking.
Not for anything else, but because of the admiration at the beginning!
All right.
These words were so righteous that even he himself did not believe them.
╮(╯▽╰)╭
The reason why he decided to help the bald head was because Nolan was on the scene and he didn't want to be slapped in the face on the spot. The most important point was because he couldn't pay himself for the rotten project, and he could look forward to the profitable project.
Since we know that the language of the lens cannot restore the whole picture of "Solaris", wouldn't it be over if we don't do it?
And after knowing that "Bourne Shadow" is a good series, wouldn't it be the best choice to prevent it from entering Universal?
Roland has no sense of belonging to any film company, so he has no pressure at all when digging for projects.
Not to mention, when AOL and Time Warner announced their merger, and the two parties quickly submitted the asset distribution results to the American Communications Commission for review, Seagram Wine, which was finally unable to hold on, had already sold Universal's TV assets, American Cable Network, to Barry Diller, the Jewish chairman of the IAC Group, was hired, and while the deal was reached, he also negotiated a merger with Vivendi.
If there are no accidents, within half a year, the two companies will be able to complete the path of merger and liquidation and completely integrate into one.
Knowing that Vivendi is about to enter, it is the right way to take "The Bourne" out of the hands of the French penguins!
As for whether to invest?
That is really not very important to Roland.
Because "The Bourne" is not "Fast and Furious", it has the restrictions of the original work, and the entire series cannot be over-developed.
The over-development here does not refer to the number limit of the movie series, because in Roland's previous life, after finishing the original novel, Universal continued to produce "Bourne Shadow 4 and 5" in order to make money.
Although the reason for the replacement caused the "Bourne Shadow 4" project to die suddenly, but when Matt Damon returned, and after learning from the drag racing method of "Fast and Furious 8", the entire series can still make considerable profits .
So, it is feasible to give up Jason Bourne’s stable personality in the trilogy and turn to selling feelings. After all, there are audiences who are willing to pay for it!
The real operational difficulty of the entire series is actually the development of the peripherals.
Because Robert Ludlum, the author of the original "Bourne Identity" of "Bourne", is a best-selling novelist.
Like Stephen King, this guy who has sold more than 200 million copies of his works only sells film rights.
Because of this, even if the capital knows that if "Bourne" is done well, its market will definitely reach the heights of "007" and "Mission: Impossible", they are too lazy to do it, there is no way, who let the game adapt the copyright, clothing Design copyright, TV adaptation copyright, toy production copyright... Don't these things belong to them?
To enlarge the plate of "Bourne Shadow" without getting a profit, isn't that the heir of the cheap original author?
With this spare time, the capital might as well devote energy to other places!
Isn't it good to shoot more than a dozen "Fast and Furious" movies?
Let Vin Diesel and others make a motion capture for the game, and you can cheat money when it goes public!
Aren't you happy shooting Tom Clancy's work?
Ghost Recon, Splinter Cell, Rainbow Six…
This special code made Ubisoft make a lot of money!
In this way, in the case of the left Marvel, the right Harry Potter, the former Lord of the Rings, and the post-Hobbit, unless the Big Six is ??introduced, Roland will not intervene in "The Bourne", not because he can't make money , but instead...
The price/performance ratio is too low!
This is not the intrusive brain-computer interface technology shown in the live broadcast of Iron Man Musk. It is a waste of life to continue wasting time when the market has become clear and you know that you cannot get extreme profits.
So, after chatting with the bald head and the others, Roland returned to the guest room and called James Cameron.
"Anyone want to make Solaris? How much?"
"No, no, no, they don't want to buy the copyright, they just want to shoot this project."
"Isn't that just submitting the production plan and waiting for our review?"
"Yes! Is it okay?"
"Oh! You have already opened your mouth! Do you still need to ask me if I can? I will give it to Jon later, ah, no, Jon Landau was taken away by you! Now the only person working in the company is Lei (Sang Cheney)! I will give her a call later and ask her to contact Steven Soderbergh and the others. Anyway, I have lost interest in that project. Now whoever likes to shoot whoever shoots!"
Thirty seconds, and the thorny problem for Steven Soderbergh has been solved.
Immediately afterwards, Roland dialed Catherine Kennedy's number.
When this busy guy who didn't touch the ground knew that Matt Damon had actually rocked Roland, it became a matter of course that "Bourne Shadow" project started shooting, but—
"Roland, you mean, let me go to DreamWorks to attract investment, right?"
"Isn't it okay? Universal is having very serious financial problems right now."
"Uh... it's not impossible, but DreamWorks also has funding problems now."
Catherine Kennedy on the other end of the phone explained: "For a long time, DreamWorks' project funds have come from Chase Manhattan Bank, because Steven's father is familiar with them, so they opened a billion yuan loop for DreamWorks. loan."
"However, Chase Manhattan Bank was recently in talks to merge with J.P. Morgan and wanted to complete the acquisition of First Chicago, Bear Stearns, and Washington Mutual, so this risky revolving loan was stopped, and Steven, who got the news, also loaned out the funds needed for the company's next projects "A Beautiful Mind", "Artificial Intelligence", "Shrek", "Dangerous Lover" and "The Last Castle" come out."
"So, they can't get more operating funds now, and even if Chase approves funds for DreamWorks, because the quota has been used up, they can't lend much money. In the absence of start-up funds, the public offering funds can't can not do this."
have to…
Roland sighed, "Then I vote, how much?"
Katherine Kennedy was not surprised, because she just thought "Bourne's Identity" was a good novel, so she and her husband bought the series, "I don't know, it depends on Matt Damon's quotation."
"What's his current price?"
"The investment of "The Talented Ripley" is 40 million, and the global box office is 120 million. It is a small loss, but it has actually reached the standard of the B-list. When combined, it is more than 5 million and less than 10 million. .”
"Then sign a trilogy with 20 million yuan, just like "The Lord of the Rings", a series will be filmed together."
Since the old man had no money, Roland put the project into his pocket.
In this way, it is necessary to shoot a series together.
Because only in this way can the money from leeks be used through the film and television investment fund.
Although it is a bit strange that he picked up the development of the "Bourne Shadow" series in the process of finding Christopher Nolan to shoot the "Batman" series, but for Roland, it is okay to vote.
Without having to spend money on a large scale, and without having to follow the production team, it is not unacceptable to make a bottom of 30 million.
As for distribution?
Release, of course, throw it to Warner!
Warner, who showed sincerity, deserves to eat this cake when Disney is cautious and vigilant!
And just after Roland took three minutes to solve the problem that ordinary people couldn't solve for a few days or months, the bald man who was about to treat everyone to dinner received a notification call not long after he walked out of the hotel.
When everyone learned that the call was made by James Cameron's partner, and that the content he said was to make Soderbergh feel at ease and that "Solaris" would be reserved for him as a priority, they were slightly delighted. exclaimed, suddenly rose—
"Holy shit! Is that why they're successful? They're so efficient!"
"Sure enough, it's still useful to find someone! Didn't Steven say before that when he asked Fox, he got repeated excuses? He didn't even say whether there was a project plan! But now, after Roland intervened, the project has been finalized Already!"
"Aren't you talking nonsense? You don't even look at the relationship between Roland and James!"
"Stop discussing this! Steven, congratulations!"
"Yes, yes, yes! My wish has come true!"
"thanks, thanks."
The heartwarming words of congratulations made the bald man smile like a daisy, and he simply vented his joy in front of everyone.
And after that...
His eyes fell on the smiling Nolan again.
Because he knew that Roland was probably not taking care of himself, but that he had taken a fancy to this cutting-edge director!
‘Roland actually likes his movies so much? '
' "Memento" doesn't seem to be good enough to be sought after by countless people, does it? '
The bald man muttered in doubt in his heart.
After thinking about it for a few seconds, he stopped thinking about it, because—
'who cares! Anyway, now I discovered Christopher's Bole! '
‘As long as you maintain a good relationship with him, then...doesn’t it mean you have found a backer? '
After reacting, the bald head laughed and opened his arms, hugging the guy who still didn't speak much.
...
Although Roland didn't take "Solaris" seriously, and also felt that "Bourne Shadow" was not worth much, but these views are all the impact of capital's pursuit of profit. For the general public, for those who want to climb For newcomers climbing the mountain, Roland's nod in response was enough joy to cheer.
While everyone who had profited from this was celebrating excitedly, three old men were also in a meeting in Seattle, tens of thousands of miles away from London.
"The opportunity to acquire Yahoo has come, when are you going to do it?"
Paul Allen intertwined his fingers and put his hands on his abdomen, tilting his head and asking.
"Yahoo's board of directors reorganization must be completed at the earliest." Bill Gates said: "They have a total of 13 board members. After the reorganization, Carl Icahn and Ronald Perelman can take away seven. , In this case, as long as Carl continues to tell the public that Yahoo is mismanaged and the company’s value is undervalued according to his past habits, we can take advantage of the trend to propose an acquisition.”
"With a vote ratio of seven to six on the board of directors, Yahoo will have to sell anyway, and after the acquisition agreement is reached, we just need to sit down with Carl and the others to negotiate the price. Judging from the current situation, 100 billion to 15 million About one billion."
Yes, Yahoo is so valuable these days.
In the first few days of the millennium, their stock price soared to 118.75, with a market value of 128 billion. Although it fell back later, it has remained at around 100 billion. Kerhill Hathaway.
Under such circumstances, it is simply a dream to buy at a par price, let alone a 1.5 times premium. It is still a tacit agreement based on the fact that Carl Icahn only needs so much money, and if Roland does not take the initiative With nearly 18 billion worth of shares being sold, it will be even more troublesome to do this business.
"150 billion? It's almost the same. No amount of money can be purchased."
Paul Allen nodded, "At this price, how many shares do we need to use?"
"It's about 15 to 18 percent, and the rest is cash," Steve Ballmer said. "Carl will help us kick Yahoo's founder out of the company, so don't worry about it." After the acquisition, they intervene in the company's operations."
"Hmm." Paul Allen was very satisfied with the result, "How should the Ministry of Justice explain it?"
“It is impossible for us to take over the antitrust case.”
When this topic was mentioned, the faces of the two who were still calm and composed turned bitter.
After looking at each other, Bill Gates shook his head and said: "The biggest problem with the Ministry of Justice is actually that they think the system + browser solution is a monopoly, so we decided that PC manufacturers can freely choose the Windows desktop and publicize the Windows desktop. Part of the source code for the software enables our competitors to write applications on the operating system as well."
"We are also considering providing users with a basic version of Windows, allowing users to install the software themselves." Steve Ballmer added.
"Is that so? Isn't the sacrifice too great?" Hearing this, Paul Allen also frowned.
Because the window of the whiteboard...
Really only has the core competitiveness of 'user habits'.
But for those two people, this kind of concession is acceptable.
Steve Ballmer said: "Although giving up the monopoly has weakened our competitiveness, we have gained the largest interface on the Internet. Coupled with MSN, even if we don't use bundling means, users will choose us based on their habits."
"What really worried us was that when we formulated the settlement agreement, there was a clause that might cause dissatisfaction in the market, because we decided to compensate some users of the Windows operating system and issue vouchers of a certain amount. This amount needs to be discussed with the Ministry of Justice, and when the coupons cannot be fully distributed, the remaining balance will be donated to schools that accept students from low-income families, and half of them must purchase Microsoft’s educational products.”
"And this result may cause dissatisfaction with the companies that occupy the education market."
Such words made Paul Allen stunned on the spot.
Because he understood the implications of this decision.
The so-called random compensation is just a pretense to appease the hearts of the people, and through this means to suppress the voices of opposition from the people.
The amount of donations after that is to block the mouths of governments around the world, because the education funds of public schools have always been the bulk of financial expenditures, and if Microsoft pays them to update their equipment, they can also use it as a grade.
After all, this is the result of the struggle they took the lead!
The states jointly sued Microsoft, and then Microsoft admitted its cowardice and took the initiative to contribute to the cause of education. This kind of self-dedication and feedback to the public will allow many people to hold their votes in the next election.
Since Microsoft makes them more stable, they will not continue to die.
Everyone is a civilized person, so there is no need to die!
But this kind of move is actually infringing on other companies in the education market.
Because the money donated by Microsoft can be returned by buying Microsoft products.
In this way, what about other companies that focus on the education market?
Unite to sue Microsoft for monopoly!
Of course, since the education market is far smaller than the civilian market, Microsoft can fight those companies to the end, but the problem is that the largest companies in the education market, they know it!
Not only that, they also got to know their boss very well!
"No... Is it really good for you to cheat Roland like this?"
Paul Allen smiled wryly, "Roland allowed us to acquire Yahoo smoothly, but in order to acquire Yahoo more smoothly, we then took the market share of their company's main business?"
“Although there are no friends in business, what we do is really…”
"Isn't that too much?"
"Who in the circle doesn't know that Roland asked us to accept Yahoo?"
"He made tens of billions less to cooperate with us, but we ended up killing another company in his hands. This..."
"Will people in the circle dare to do business with us next time?"
Such words made the other two shrug their shoulders helplessly.
They didn't argue because Paul Allen told the truth.
In the acquisition of Yahoo, they did trick Roland again, but...
This is the best way to block the mouths of the people and the government at the same time!
That's right, the company occupying the American school teaching machine market is related to Roland.
And that company...
Called Apple.
Note: ①After Steven Soderbergh finished filming "Contagion", no film company handed him a contract. After the previously signed cooperation was completed, he lost his job because the industry felt that he was Black' is too harsh. ②The "Fast and Furious" game refers to the game of the same name that was promoted by Vin Diesel at the TGA last year. It was originally released this year, but considering the current situation of school closures, it is estimated that it will not be released this year. And the game was made to cheat money. The modeling is not as good as "Uncharted 4" which has been around for a year or six. If I have to describe it, the feeling to the outside world is the same as "Marvel's Avengers" which has been tested for several rounds this month. almost. ③Ray Sancheni is James Cameron's partner and producer. ④DreamWorks did have financial problems in the 2000s. At that time, after spending all their revolving loans, they wanted to take out mortgage loans to buy more than 1,000 acres of land in Los Angeles for a factory building, but because of the merger of ** It dragged on for too long, and the plan had to be cancelled. ⑤ The Microsoft settlement strategy written in the article is true. Public officials in various states have always felt that their position is more important than the company's monopoly.
(end of this chapter)
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