My capital is quite large.

Chapter 259 Li Feng's Revenge

Li Feng was always one to seek revenge without delay, and just a few days later, a thunderbolt struck from nowhere.

A major police report that didn't even require Haofeng's PR department to buy trending topics shocked the entire Chinese entertainment industry that morning!

Fang Xiaoming arrested for drug use!

Once this news was confirmed, the entire Chinese entertainment industry was shaken to its core!

Immediately afterwards, film industry heavyweight Fang Shilong appeared at a press conference hosted by various media outlets, looking haggard. He bowed deeply to the people of the whole country and apologized, expressing his deep regret and remorse for failing to raise his son properly.

However, the online criticism and moral judgment relentlessly eroded the reputation he had built up over the years.

And in this storm, the one that suffered the most severe damage was none other than Tencent Video!

As a co-investor and partner of "Dragon Blade", Tencent Pictures invested over 100 million yuan in this blockbuster with an investment of 400 million yuan!

They had originally hoped to capitalize on Fang Shilong's popularity and this epic film to make a fortune during the Lunar New Year season, thus establishing Tencent Video's influence in big-screen investment.

And now! The male lead's reputation is ruined, and the movie is not only facing the catastrophic disaster of possibly failing to pass censorship, but Tencent Video has also been forced to remove and clear all movies featuring Fang Xiaolong that it had previously bought out!

An investment of over 100 million yuan has turned into an unrecoverable mess of bad debts! Pony Ma was so angry at the Shenzhen headquarters that he smashed several water glasses, but there was nothing he could do.

But the penguins' nightmare is not over yet.

Two weeks later, a red-headed document bearing an official seal was jointly issued by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the State Administration of Radio and Television in Beijing and distributed to major internet platforms.

[Notice on Further Strengthening the Management of the Introduction and Broadcasting of Foreign Films and Television Dramas and Sino-Foreign Co-productions in Online Audiovisual Programs]

In this notice, dubbed the "strictest restriction on foreign dramas," the official stance is extremely firm:

All imported TV series and co-productions must be subject to a "review before broadcast and unified registration" system, and a strict upper limit is set on the annual import quota!

This completely thwarted Tencent Video's grand plan to capitalize on the Korean wave!

They spent a lot of money and paid huge deposits to prepare several co-produced Korean dramas in South Korea, but this official document has stalled them at the hurdle of declassification and review!

According to the assessment, the release date of these new dramas will be postponed until at least 2016.

......

Shenzhen, the core conference room on the top floor of the Fiyta Building.

On the big screen, the red-letter entries of investments that were drastically cut short due to the involvement of Fang Shilong and his son in the D case, and the official document from the State Administration of Radio and Television that indefinitely postponed a large number of co-produced Korean dramas by Tencent Pictures, were like heavy hammers hitting the hearts of every Tencent executive.

"Mr. Ma... this loss and strategic setback is due to our department's negligence in the background check. We... collectively apologize!"

Several senior directors from Tencent's Strategic Development Department and Film & Television Investment Department stood up in unison, heads bowed, cold sweat streaming down their foreheads.

In Tencent's ecosystem, which is always KPI-driven and fiercely competitive, such a major strategic blunder would have meant that these people would have been fired long ago.

However, Pony, sitting in the main seat, did not show the expected rage.

"Can an apology get those two hundred million back?" Pony Ma's voice was devoid of any warmth.

"I don't want your cheap apology. I want Tencent Video's solution to break this deadlock!"

"Yes! Mr. Ma, we've already identified a new strategic direction."

The chief of the strategy department wiped his sweat and hurriedly projected a restructuring plan, which had been rushed out overnight, onto the big screen.

"Mr. Ma, we've reviewed the situation. Although Fang Shilong's troubles caused us a significant financial loss, in the long run, it might not be a bad thing!"

"Fang Shilong is already over sixty years old, and his action film career is nearing its end. Even without any incident, his popularity is bound to decline. Now is the perfect opportunity for Tencent Video to rejuvenate its mainstays!"

"Currently, Fan Bingbing's 'The Empress of China' is performing exceptionally well in the market. Its ability to resist the Korean wave and carry a drama series is unparalleled in the Chinese entertainment industry. We have already reached a deep strategic partnership with her studio, and having her as the top female star on Tencent Video will definitely stabilize the market!" At this point, the director changed the subject.

"More importantly, we've found a breakthrough in the top male celebrity segment: Han Geng!"

"Mr. Ma, Han Geng has been quiet for a long time since he left Haofeng. However, just last month, Tencent Video opened an exclusive zone for him and promoted him on QQ Music and QQLive."

"His new album and fan meeting, supported by Tencent Video, saw phenomenal data and revenue far exceeding expectations!"

"This success story has caused quite a stir in the entire Chinese entertainment industry. It fully proves that even without Haofeng and his team, they can still get support and traffic from our platform."

Upon hearing this feedback, Pony Ma finally became interested.

"So, what's your next step?"

"Large-scale poaching!" The director's voice was full of confidence.

"Since Han Geng's success has proven Tencent Video's ability to create stars and promote artists, we can go to Haofeng's backyard and poach their top artists."

"In today's era of internet traffic, the commercial value that a top influencer can create is undoubtedly astonishing. The VIP membership conversions and mobile game endorsement revenue they can generate can reach hundreds of millions within a year!"

"Our legal and finance departments have jointly calculated that even though Haofeng has already increased the breach of contract penalty for their artist to a staggering 300 million RMB!"

"As long as we poach that person, with Tencent's distribution and promotion capabilities, we can earn back this exorbitant breach of contract penalty in two years at most!"

"For Tencent Video, this is not only a profitable investment, but also a highly cost-effective long-term strategic investment!"

Use 300 million RMB to buy out a top celebrity?

Upon hearing this audacious plan, Pony Ma, though unaware of the fanaticism of celebrities, understood data and the immense profits from monetizing online traffic.

"Has anyone been chosen yet?" Pony asked.

"Yes! We've already made contact secretly!"

The director confidently pulled up several photos:

"My first target is that EXO member who returned to China, currently ranked second on Weibo's male celebrity list—that man, and Li Moufeng!"

"These two individuals currently have an astonishing online following and a remarkably loyal female fanbase. Most importantly, their team has an extremely strong desire for money and top-tier resources, and they've been very open to the conditions we offered them privately!"

"As long as we put the contracts and the prepayment on the table, the probability of these two switching jobs is over 90%!"

"What about that deer?" Pony asked, pointing to the headshot that was ranked number one.

"Lu Ha's team's attitude is somewhat ambiguous. After all, he just won the Weibo King award, so they are acting cautiously. We estimate that we will need to do long-term strategic public relations, but we are also confident that we can win him over within two years."

"As for Yang Yang, the last one..."

At this point, a strange and helpless look appeared on the director's face.

"Our people have contacted Yang Yang's team privately several times. But not only did they fail to even get to the point of collaboration, his agent was terrified when he heard it was someone from Tencent!"

"Yang Yang's attitude was even more contrary. He said that he was Hao Feng's man in life and in death, and that he would never let Hao Feng betray President Li for even a penny... You could say his loyalty was bordering on the obsessive!"

"Therefore, after our evaluation, we have decided to reject Yang Yang as our target."

Yang Yang's "loyalty to the point of being wicked" became a small joke in the meeting room.

Little did they know, this wasn't loyalty at all; it was clearly the kid's self-discipline driven by his survival instinct!

But none of that matters to the executives at Tencent.

If we can poach those two top celebrities, Li Moufeng and that man, from the most popular group, it will be enough to tear open a gap in Haofeng's proud position as a top male celebrity!

"Very good." Pony closed the folder.

"Li Feng thought he could lock people down with a mere 300 million yuan in breach of contract fees."

"But he underestimated that money can really buy anything."

Pony Ma stood up and made the final decision:

"Go for it!"

"The group's legal department will fully cooperate regarding the issues of breach of contract penalties and litigation!"

"I want to see these two top celebrities standing at our Tencent Video press conference before New Year's Eve next year!"