Chapter 251: Technology Monster’s Entertainment Toys
Carter is only 56 years old this year, and he is in the golden age of political elites. Tang Huan is fully sure that the other party will not be reconciled to the ordinary life after leaving office
It was the same in the original time and space, Carter was only quiet for a short period of time, and then became active again, engaged in busy political, economic and social activities.
His colleagues, except that Reagan, who lived in seclusion due to his advanced age, actually followed this line. Perhaps Clinton is the most obvious example.
There has always been a popular joke among Americans: President Carter was more competent when he was not president than when he was president; Clinton was more competent when he was president than when he was not president.
It can be seen that Carter's level of exerting residual heat is not generally high.
"Don, this matter sounds very meaningful, but I need to think about it carefully." After pondering for a moment, Carter slowly stated his decision.
"This is what it should be, not to mention Mr. President is still busy with business." Tang Huan smiled and nodded, expressing his understanding.
It is a positive attitude not to refuse in person. After all, the president has to be reserved. Tang Huan, who is observant, naturally wants to give Carter enough face.
After a meal at the White House, Tang Huan's trip would be considered as a mission completed, and the victory was over. He planned to stop by the 3rd headquarters and knock the heads of those directors.
...
I don't know if it's because Tang Huan and 3 have a disagreement. This trip had to be temporarily canceled due to a sudden and higher priority matter, because John Beckett, the chairman and president of the board of directors of Pan Am, officially proposed it. I want to meet Tang Huan.
After Luanmei went public in 1957 for financing. Insurance giant Pan Am bought 98 percent of its stock in 1967. Turn United Artists into a part of its own huge industrial group.
Although EA had previously purchased 40% of the shares of United from Pan Am, the remaining proportion of shares in Pan Am's hands still ensured that it had enough voice.
Therefore, if Tang Huan wanted to take Lianmei under his command, he could only hold his nose and be shouted all the way back from the east coast to the west coast.
"I was too busy investigating insurance companies for the employee insurance plan, and Pan Am's staff came to visit." Tang Huan, who was standing at the window, heard Chambers say so.
From here, you can see construction workers and machinery busy on the construction site not far away.
Zheru's office space has long been insufficient. But it was not until recently that the nearby land was negotiated.
After all, it is not a simple word "demolition" that can solve all problems, there are many interests that need to be coordinated.
However, in order to create this new technology community centered on philosophy and Confucianism, the small city of Cupertino is still very enthusiastic and cooperative.
"Why, there are many insurance companies interested in our insurance plan?" Tang Huan walked back to his seat.
"This is inevitable. Some people are already predicting that our number of employees will exceed 10,000 in the next two years, and we will become another big guy in Silicon Valley. The potential of this business is self-evident." Chambers nodded .
"Experts always like to be roundworms in other people's stomachs." Tang Huan sighed contemptuously, "Pan Am is also interested in this business. Anyway, there is no point in keeping Lianmei in our hands, so we decided to Hugging the grass and beating the rabbits--accepting another business by chance."
"I think so." Chambers laughed.
At this time, the subordinates prepared the materials, and Tang Huan got up and rushed to San Francisco.
...
Transamerica Headquarters - Transamerica Pyramid, located in the historic financial district of San Francisco - Montgomery District, based on the price 10 years ago, the building cost 32 million US dollars, started construction in 1969 and was completed in 1972 , with a total of 48 floors and a height of 260 meters, is the tallest skyscraper and postmodernist building in San Francisco, and is currently one of the 100 tallest buildings in the world.
Because of the shape of the building pyramid, the Transamerica Pyramid has become one of the most important elements of the San Francisco skyline.
Just like the "pants" and "long johns" in the original time and space, this innovative design plan of architect William Pereira has encountered quite a lot of opposition during planning and construction. abuse.
The building is in the shape of a pyramid on all sides, with an elevator shaft on the east, a stairwell on the west, and a spire at the highest point of 64.6 meters.
The top of the spire is a virtual viewing platform, cameras are installed in four directions, and there are four monitors in the lounge, visitors can control the direction and distance.
The Pan Am pyramid is enough to catch people's attention, which just reflects John Beckett's philosophy of running Pan Am, that is, to build a well-known brand. The reason why United Artists changed its name directly to Pan American Films.
It's a pity that John Beckett's wishful thinking did not come true, and was resisted by United Artists' middle and senior management, who even made noise to make United Artists an independent film company again.
John Beckett's attitude was very tough. In 1978, the conflicts intensified irreparably, forcing these key figures from United Artists to leave collectively. As a result, the leadership of United Artists was replaced, and Andy Albert took over.
The earth will continue to turn without anyone, and John Beckett's idea has been confirmed.
Andy Albert did a great job in 1979. United Artists achieved great success in the four films "", "manhattan", "" and "".
However, under the over-inflated confidence, this year United Artists fell bruised and bruised on "Heaven's Gate" with an investment of 4,400 US dollars.
After seeing this situation, John Beckett stopped reporting any fantasies to United Artists, and previously forced the management of United Artists to leave collectively, which caused a bad influence in Hollywood. The film business has become tasteless. Tasteless. There is no need to keep holding it in your hand.
Huge desk. Put up a Pan Am balance sheet. Among the billions of huge assets, United Artists only occupies a small table.
John Beckett picked up a pen and crossed out the name of United Artists with no expression on his face, announcing that the company, one of the eight major Hollywood companies, was expelled from Pan Am.
It can be said that John Beckett is fully qualified to only regard United Artists as an abstract and cold number.
You know, it was under his leadership that Pan Am grew from an obscure privately held company. It has grown into a financial giant with diversified operations and high brand awareness today.
John Beckett became Pan Am's chairman and president in 1960. During his tenure, Pan Am's revenue increased 20-fold and it became one of the 100 largest companies in the United States, controlling airlines, budgetrent-a-car rentals Corporation, namely Delaware Turbines, Insurance Company.
Little United. He really didn't see it in his eyes, but how to maximize the benefits is a question worth considering.
...
Tang Huan came to the Transamerica headquarters at Panamerica Pyramid at 600 Montgomery Street. After seeing John Beckett, the other party spoke very simply, "I want to buy the remaining shares of United Artists. No problem, but I am very interested in EA."
It has to be said that the 62-year-old John Beckett is old and strong, and he is extremely strong.
Tang Huan stretched out his finger and pointed upwards, and replied lightly, "This Transamerican Pyramid looks pretty good, and I'm more interested."
John Beckett froze for a moment, then laughed disapprovingly, "Young man, do you know the initial cost of this building and the current asset value?"
"This month is the last month of 1980. Do you know how much EA's sales will reach this year?" Tang Huan asked calmly.
"EA is not a listed company, how would I know." John Beckett suppressed the aura of the young man in front of him, and continued leisurely: "But I heard that there will be hundreds of millions of dollars, and the company has only been established for more than a year , to be able to achieve such an achievement is really remarkable, and that’s why I’m interested.”
"EA is already a global company, and its sales in the North American market this year will definitely exceed US$1 billion." Tang Huan replied solemnly, "That is to say, EA's financial situation is very good, and there are no shortages. funds, and have no intention of bringing in investors.”
Hearing this, John Beckett's expression froze. He stared into Tang Huan's eyes and pondered.
Tang Huan's eyes gradually became sharper, "I'm very honored that you are interested in EA. However, I came here today to simply talk about the acquisition of United Artists, and I don't want to get involved in other aspects."
"Lian Mei is of no importance to Pan Am. We can wait for a while to see the situation and sell it for a price." John Beckett said slowly.
"If Pan Am really intends to do so, then it doesn't matter. EA can still keep the 40% of the shares that it bought for more than 100 million yuan. It's not bad for the money, and Lian Mei is a listed company. , there is no chance of stock trading." Tang Huan said as he stood up and left.
"Then how much is EA willing to pay for the remaining 58% of United Artists' shares?" John Beckett quickly changed the subject and mentioned substantive issues.
"Just refer to the price of the previous 40% of the shares. You know, "Heaven's Gate" invested 44 million U.S. dollars, but the box office was only more than 3 million U.S. dollars, which was twice as much as the media's initial estimate. It's meaningless. This shortfall is very troublesome." Tang Huan shook his head again and again, with a regretful expression on his face, "Also, we can do a one-time cash transaction, so we should discuss the price more carefully."
Seeing Tang Huan's hypocritical performance there, John Beckett's nose was almost crooked.
The reason why Pan Am sold the 40% of Lianmei's shares at the beginning was to share the risk of investing in Lianmei. At the same time, they thought that EA was a nouveau riche who got carried away, and it would be better to bring someone into the water.
Unexpectedly, this transaction has now become the upper limit of the price for selling Lianmei. If I had known this, I would have waited until now. Let's sell the 98% of the shares as a whole.
John Beckett decided to let the subject go for a while. Go for another goal. "I heard that the company under your name is starting a small project for employee insurance?"
"That's true. However, this project should not be too small, and the company's scale is expanding rapidly. It will only take a few years for the number of employees to exceed 10,000." There is a sense of irony in it.
John Beckett looked very uncomfortable, but there was nothing he could do, so he decided. He simply opened the skylight and said, "Pan Am is a well-known large company in the insurance business. How about handing over this list directly to us?"
"Is this an additional condition for the acquisition of Lianmei?" Tang Huan raised his eyebrows. "We originally planned to invite bids. If we directly hand over to Fanmei, will the service quality be guaranteed?"
"Is the service quality guaranteed? This question is simply a joke." John Beckett showed a proud expression on his face, "Do you think that the Pan Am brand has no foundation?"
"There, it's our new companies, which seem a little shallow." Tang Huan smiled slyly. "I think that the office model of the established company Pan Am should keep pace with the times. Some high-tech elements have been introduced into the business process. The use of the second-generation Fangyuan computer will definitely help Pan Am to further improve service quality."
"It's a good idea, and it's worth considering." John Beckett glanced at the information in his hand, "You once said that EA will seek to go public as soon as possible. Even though EA doesn't need investors now, it still needs to introduce investors. It’s better to allow Pan Am to invest some money before then.”
"Does Pan Am want to learn from Xerox's investment miracle created by Apple? You really have spent a lot of time collecting information." Tang Huan nodded clearly, "Yes, I allow a certain legal period before EA goes public. It would be interesting enough for Pan Am to invest $1 million."
"The 1 million quota is a little less..." John Beckett shook his head.
"When will Pan Am start using the second-generation Fangyuan computer?" Tang Huan cut off John Beckett's words.
"The use of personal computers in large financial institutions does not seem to have such a precedent?" John Beckett spread his hands innocently.
"Wouldn't it be better to be a pioneer in the industry to improve your brand image?" Tang Huan chased and pressed.
After all, John Beckett is an old man over the age of sixty. No matter how strong he is, he can't stop Tang Huan's continuous energy. Now he obviously can't stand up to this young man's eloquence. , "I think that the purchase price of Luanmei should not be capped in violation of commercial rules, otherwise, it is better to continue to keep the shares in hand."
"You are too optimistic. Pan Am was unrealistically tough before, forcing the top executives of the United Artists to leave collectively. It has already made your reputation in Hollywood." Tang Huan unceremoniously exposed the other party's shortcomings , "Didn't you realize that after "Heaven's Gate" went bankrupt this time, everyone's gloating attitude is not generally obvious. I dare to predict that if Pan Am continues to hold on to United Artists, it will only become more and more serious." It’s getting worse and worse. At that time, even EA will have to find ways to give up and stay away.”
John Beckett's face turned black, with anger in his eyes, and he said thoughtfully: "Since EA thinks it can be the savior and save United Artists, then take the insurance order and EA's previous investment rights." Additional conditions in exchange."
"It was a very simple acquisition, but you designed it so complicated." Tang Huan shook his head helplessly, "How many second-generation Fangyuan computer systems will Pan Am purchase?"
"The second-generation Fangyuan Computer intends to open the door to enter the financial field through Fanmei. It's too good to think. Fanmei doesn't want to take the risk of being an experimental guinea pig." John Beckett sneered, and his eyes flashed "It's been a long time ago!" See through you" mockery.
Tang Huan slapped the table impatiently, "Since everyone's hole cards are revealed, let's quickly do addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. If both parties have advantages to take advantage of, continue to talk, otherwise, it will be separated. Like now Such a waste of saliva is simply a disrespect for time."
...
A few days later, the English-language newspaper "Asian Weekly" of Fang's Newspapers in San Francisco first disclosed a big news.
Tang Huan, a young Chinese business leader, invested US$300 million to buy United Artists, one of the eight major Hollywood companies, from the insurance giant Pan Am.
Moreover, a new entertainment group, namely Yanle Entertainment Group, was officially established with its headquarter in San Francisco. Tang Huan himself served as the chairman of the board of directors, and Mikhail Kogan took the post.
Yanle Entertainment Group owns three companies: Electronic Arts, which is Hawkins; United Artists, which is Andy Albert; the Oakland Raiders, whose manager is concurrently held by Mikhail Cogan.
At the same time, the San Francisco Chronicle, which has a wider circulation, further reported in detail on Yanle Entertainment Group, which is headquartered in San Francisco.
The "Los Angeles Times" followed up with introductions and comments on the matter, many of which were sour and joking.
"I have to say that our cute California technology monster is always surprising people. After buying a sports toy, I bought an entertainment toy in Hollywood. However, this entertainment toy seems to have some quality problems, and I don't know Can tech geeks fix it."
"But anyway, Hollywood should welcome this new friend, our cute little California tech monster." (To be continued..)
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