I Inherited 5,000 Years of Family Property-Chapter 546 - 544: Price Increase Now
"Was it your Academician Yuan who fed you too much, leading you to create messes like this at the meeting?"
"I've encountered partners who aren't short on cash, but never to this extent, goddamn it. Have you ever seen someone throw something worth 200 billion US dollars into the trash? Even if your family printed money, they couldn't sustain this kind of lavishness."
"Are you this awesome? Do your relatives even know about it? Folks like you must be seriously ill!"
"Mr. Wang, have you considered the consequences of this action?" Seeing that bribes weren't working, Airette directly invoked global citizens, "Do you know how many millions of people worldwide are anticipating this movie? The people of Huaxia have seen it, but what about other countries? Aren't you worried about their reactions?"
"You think I'm easily scared?" Wang Ling scoffed, "Attempting moral coercion with me? Let me tell you, as long as I am devoid of morals, no one can morally coerce me! Weren't humans still doing what they needed to do hundreds of years ago when there were no movies? Can't we survive without movies?"
"You're ruining a classic work!"
"I won't deny that it is indeed a classic work, but there are plenty of superior works in this world, and their authors haven't said a word. What are you yapping about here for?"
"Aren't you worried about global condemnation?"
"Hahaha, are you challenging my forte?" Wang Ling said, "Huaxia might not be rich in many things, but we are abundant in keyboard warriors. I can easily hire tens of thousands of masters from Zaun with just a little money. If your parents are still alive, feel free to come to Huaxia and criticize!
Airette couldn't understand what Wang Ling was talking about, as only Huaxia people could comprehend such Zaun culture.
"Mr. Wang, don't forget that Paramount Pictures has assets worldwide. Once the fans find out that you bought the rights and restricted the screening, the impact might not just be on us at Venus Media. I'm saying this for the bigger picture, hence why we are currently publicizing that we're in active negotiations."
"You tell them, I beg you to tell them," Wang Ling said, "I love it when people threaten me. Let me tell you, first, I'm not afraid to trash a few small cinemas. I've already spent 200 billion US dollars, am I afraid of smashing a few cinemas?"
"Second, the assets of Huaxia people are not to be trifled with. Our country's weapon expert, Mr. Zhang Menglong, has recently taken a great interest in the domain of personal property protection. He invented a security system specifically designed to protect private domains. If I remember correctly, your laws allow killing if someone commits a crime on private property, right?"
"Oh, by the way, we Huaxia people are not known for our good temper," Wang Ling said with a smile, "You can be tough, but the tougher you get, the more excited we become!"
Wang Ling's words plunged Airette into an absolute freeze. He had thought Wang Ling was just a know-nothing rich second generation who randomly played around after learning a bit, but now he realized this man was a complete lunatic!
This 𝓬ontent is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.
The productions are in our hands; we sell if we want to, and if not, then we won't!
You're free to criticize us; we can hire a troll army to fire back. No one in this world can live without money.
If you desire to smash our cinemas, we welcome you to think over whether the funeral industry at your end needs some business expasion recently?
It's just that brutal and straightforward!
"State your terms," Airette sighed. This Huaxia man was truly a negotiation maniac, bereft of any negotiation techniques. His only principle seemed to be, 'I'm rich and with wealth, I can do whatever I want.'
"Our term is simple," Wang Ling said, "If you want the screening rights to those movies, OK, but only if you first agree to screen 'Three-Body'. Its screening share must not be lower than any other movie, and 'Three-Body's' licensing fees must be double that of the others!"
"That's impossible!" Airette flatly refused.
Let alone convincing the cultural regulators to agree to screen 'Three-Body', even if they did allow it, they would definitely control its screening frequency.
Moreover, although he had heard of 'Three-Body', it was, after all, a Huaxia production, and its potential market impact was still uncertain; to bring it in at twice the cost of other blockbuster movies risked a significant loss.
"Then I'll give you four words, gowey gen, get lost!" Wang Ling bluntly hung up the call.
"Act tough with me? Dare to threaten me? They still haven't grasped who needs whom!"
"It's okay," Zhang Menglong consoled, "Give them a few more days, and they'll know what true despair is."
"Are you that confident?"
"Rest assured, although this is purely a market situation, once it reaches a certain level, it will affect social stability. The high-level officials of those countries will not stand by and watch their societies turn into chaos over a few movies. In the end, they will be the ones to compromise."
"Once someone truly finishes 'Three-Body,' they will understand the charm of Huaxia science fiction. By then, even if they want to stop it, they won't be able to!"
"By the way, did those cinemas take measures to prevent recording?" Wang Ling asked, "If a pirated version gets out, our plan's effectiveness will be greatly diminished."
"Don't worry about that," Zhang Menglong said, "I have already written a new piece of Artificial Intelligence software. As soon as any pirated link appears, if you click on it, your computer will play 'Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf' non-stop for 24 hours."
"Hahaha, that's harsh! This might even turn into a powerful form of cultural export!"
"Hahaha!"
...
That day, Wang Ling received another dozen calls from film companies around the world, with the highest offer already increased by 50%. But whether it's 50% or 500%, Wang Ling didn't have any interest at all.
Want the rights? Sure, agree to my terms first. If not, there's nothing to discuss.
But none of the negotiators could make a decision on such terms.
"Let's give a benefit to our overseas compatriots," Zhang Menglong added fuel to the fire, "every person with Huaxia nationality gets a free 4K Blu-ray resource as a welfare gift!"
The students studying abroad were feeling frustrated. It's not that they couldn't afford to go back and watch, but the mandatory two-week quarantine upon arrival was a time cost they couldn't afford.
But the warmth from their motherland thrilled them no end.
When they discussed the content of movies that foreigners couldn't even see on the streets, it finally ignited the last fuse.
"xxx saw massive street protests, with 300 citizens wearing Iron Man helmets pulling banners demanding the government quickly introduce related resources!"
"Last night, 27 cinemas across the Americas were attacked, 19 cinemas in Europe were damaged..."
"xxx company announced a strike, 'The Avengers' won't screen, the company won't work!"
...
Three days later, amid the increasingly loud public calls, the cultural agency in the Americas was the first to compromise.
Although allowing 'Three-Body' into the country would severely impact domestic culture, if they did not take action, the impact would be on the national economy and social stability. Compared to that, they preferred to withstand the cultural shock.
They harbored a slim hope that maybe even if the movie came, it might not attract viewers and its cultural impact might not surpass that of the decades-entrenched superhero series.
The companies allowed to distribute the movie felt as if pardoned and immediately started contacting Paramount Pictures.
"President Wang, after discussions at the senior level, we are willing to agree to your conditions!" Venus was still the first to contact Wang Ling, as they were big enough, and the pressure they faced was substantial.
"Is that so? But I'm sorry, with the recent severe inflation, our licensing fees have gone up again!"
...
