Replay 07: Opening the Temple of Learning

Chapter 373: Banned by Established Companies
In the hours after the meeting, the atmosphere in the hotel remained tense.

Executives from different companies gathered together to discuss how to deal with Ze Meng's rise and how to draft this joint statement.

They gathered around a long table, with notebooks, tablets and drinks in front of them.

Li Hong stood aside, listening to everyone's discussion and thinking silently in his heart.

"The joint statement must be consistent with the theme." Li Hong said suddenly, interrupting the conversation around him.

Everyone's eyes were instantly focused on him.

"The statement should be clear: we are committed to maintaining the safety and stability of the industry."

Shengda’s founder immediately responded, “At the same time, we emphasize our commitment to continued development.”

"That's right." The vice president of Penguin nodded in agreement.

“In the statement, we can emphasize the importance of openness and cooperation, and imply that any attempt to disrupt the market balance is not welcome.”

Li Hong's eyes flashed with appreciation: "I agree that the statement should emphasize the importance of the industry's shared sense of responsibility and unity."

He paused and continued, "At the same time, we must leave room to prevent the other party from deliberately misinterpreting it."

"Yes, this way we can avoid direct confrontation with Ze Meng, but at the same time convey our position."

Yang Qing added, "We must unite and form a joint force."

“I think we also need to mention technological innovation.”

The founder of Shengda added, “Our company’s investment and achievements in this area are obvious to all.”

“We must never let others doubt us easily.”

"Then let's talk about our respective advantages," Li Hong suggested.

"For example, our accumulation in user experience, content ecology, etc."

"Yes, technological innovation and user experience are our strongest weapons," said the vice president of Penguin. "This can make users understand more clearly that our products and services are truly trustworthy."

As the discussion deepened, a draft was gradually formed in the conference room. Everyone expressed their opinions, refining every word and sentence in an effort to achieve perfection.

Everyone was thinking silently in their hearts that Ze Meng’s rise was like a shadow in the darkness and it must be dispelled.

After a heated discussion, finally, at Li Hong's suggestion, the draft gradually took shape.

Finally, Li Hong cleared his throat and said firmly: "We will use this statement to make our position clear to the entire industry."

"It must be released as soon as possible." The founder of Shengda had a flash of determination in his eyes, "The sooner the better."

After the joint statement was released, major media outlets in Xia State reported and commented on it, and a wave of public opinion swept in.

The Xiaguo Daily published a joint statement in a prominent position on the front page with a large headline: "Old companies unite to defend the Internet ecosystem."

The commentator wrote in the article: "Faced with the emerging Zemeng Technology, the old companies have shown due sense of responsibility."

"The statement not only shows the importance attached to industry safety, but also strongly opposes unfair competition."

Comments pointed out that Zemeng Technology's attempt to establish an ecological chain through rapid market strategies is actually destroying the existing industry balance.

“Such irresponsible practices will only lead to the collapse of the entire ecosystem, and ultimately it will be the vast majority of users and businesses that suffer.”

Commentators called on all companies to work together to maintain industry stability and protect the interests of users.

Another well-known media, Economic Observer, chose to analyze from an economic perspective.

The title is: "Zemeng Technology's rapid rise raises industry concerns."

The article mentioned that although Zemeng Technology's operating system has made technological breakthroughs, its development model is full of hidden concerns.

"The joint statement from industry leaders is a warning to Zemeng Technology's development model."

Commentators analyzed that "over-reliance on the construction of a single ecological chain will not only lead to the concentration of market discourse power, but also inhibit innovation and competition."

The article points out that the ecological chain of old companies is the result of years of accumulation, and Zemeng Technology cannot be easily shaken.
The article finally calls on the industry to strengthen self-discipline to ensure the healthy development of the entire market.

"Technology Frontier" conducted a more in-depth analysis, titled: "The ecological crisis in the software industry: Will the rise of Zemeng Technology reshape the market?"

The article points out that although Zemeng Technology has achieved certain success in user experience, the risks behind it cannot be ignored.

"Many people in the industry have expressed concerns about this." The article quoted the views of several industry experts.

"Zemeng Technology's closed ecosystem not only shuts out potential innovation opportunities, but is also likely to lead to industry fragmentation and reduced competition."

The media emphasized that the union of old companies is not only a defense of commercial interests, but also a responsible attitude towards the future of the industry.

It calls for stronger cooperation within the industry, resistance to unfair competition, and joint construction of an open and healthy market environment.

In the office of Zemeng Technology, Chen Yang's face was gloomy, and the "Xiaguo Daily" in his hand had been torn to pieces.

The reports on the industry's joint statement were like a thorn in his heart.

“These established companies are so self-righteous!”

He said coldly, anger flashing in his eyes.

His assistant Xiao Li watched him cautiously, knowing that he might explode at any time.

"Mr. Chen, we should respond as soon as possible."

"If we don't fight back, it may give the outside world the impression that we are weak."

"Of course I know." Chen Yang clenched his fists and said in a low voice, "Prepare a statement and face their attacks head-on!"

A few minutes later, Xiao Li handed the draft to Chen Yang, who reviewed it word by word, becoming more and more angry the more he read.

He did not hide his anger and retorted: "How dare they claim that we are destroying the market balance! This is slandering us!"

"Our model is innovation, not monopoly," Chen Yang pointed to the manuscript.

He said coldly, "We must not let them slander us at will!"

"I will issue this statement immediately." He raised his chin with a determined look.

Just then, Lu Shan pushed the door open and walked in with a serious expression.

"Chen Yang, wait a moment."

"Boss Lu, we must issue this statement!"

Chen Yang's tone was firm, and he was obviously unwilling to give in.

Lu Shan shook his head slightly, his eyes revealing a hint of fatigue.

"It's unwise to send it now. Don't worry, we still have to wait for Ma Lijuan to come back."

"She is discussing cooperation outside." Chen Yang was a little dissatisfied, "These old companies will not pay any attention to our counterattack."

“I know, but Ma Lijuan’s negotiations are crucial.”

Lu Shan said calmly, "We can't add pressure to her now. Let's wait and see what happens."

Chen Yang was unwilling, but he also understood Lu Shan's considerations, so he had to reluctantly retract his statement.

A few days later, Ma Lijuan returned to Zemeng Technology as promised. She was exhausted but did not look happy.

She dragged her luggage into the office, looking tired, as if she had suffered a setback in the negotiations that had just concluded.

"Mr. Ma, how did the negotiations go?" Xiao Li immediately stepped forward, full of expectation. "We didn't reach an agreement with any company."

Ma Lijuan sighed, sat down and said slowly, "They all refused, and their attitude was very firm."

"Determined?" Chen Yang frowned, his tone revealing dissatisfaction, "How do you explain it?"

“They have come together to form a consensus.”

Ma Lijuan shook her head slightly. "Many companies have clearly stated that they will not cooperate with us because they are worried that we will take away their market share."

In the large conference room of Zemeng’s headquarters, Lu Shan convened the company’s top executives and held a special meeting on the construction of the Zemeng system ecosystem.

The atmosphere in the conference room seemed particularly depressing. The sunlight coming in from the window did not bring much warmth at all.

Lu Shan sat at the head of the conference table with a solemn look on his face.

His eyes swept across the seats one by one, finally landing on Ma Lijuan who had just returned from another place.

"Senior, please tell me about the negotiations during this period."

Lu Shan spoke lightly, his tone calm but with unquestionable majesty.

Ma Lijuan nodded slightly, organized her thoughts, and began to report.

"Everyone, over the past month or so, I have been mainly out negotiating with the heads of major music and video companies."

Her voice was a little tired, but her tone was still firm, "But... the results were not ideal."

She paused, her eyes scanning each of the senior executives at the conference table.

Everyone looked solemn, obviously waiting for her detailed explanation.

"First of all, in terms of music," Ma Lijuan continued, "Except for Qiantian Music, no other large music company is willing to cooperate with us, and they don't even give us a chance to discuss in detail."

"Why?" Chen Yang frowned and couldn't help but interrupt, "Is their attitude so tough?"

"It can be said to be quite tough." Ma Lijuan smiled bitterly.

"Several companies I contacted have clearly stated that they have great distrust of the independent ecological model of the Zemeng system."

“In other words, they don’t want us to have any presence in the market at all.”

“So, not only cooperation, but even negotiations on content licensing are completely unworkable.”

She sighed, "You could say that these companies have formed a closed circle, and no one wants to be the first to defect."

“Huh, established companies are joining forces to blockade us?”

Chen Yang sneered, with a hint of anger in his eyes, "Aren't they afraid of missing out on new market opportunities?"

“Obviously, they believe the risks of working with us far outweigh the benefits.”

Ma Lijuan shook her head. “They would rather stick together than take the risk of contacting us.”

Lu Shan sat in the main seat, his face calm, and nodded gently: "Go on, what's the situation over there in the video?"

Ma Lijuan's face darkened slightly, and her voice was somewhat helpless: "The video part... is even worse."

She explained with a wry smile, “Except for small independent studios, almost all large video platforms directly rejected our invitations.”

"The reason is still the same - distrust."

"Currently, the video column in the audio and video section of the Zemeng system is almost empty."

She said helplessly, "We wanted to fill the gap in content by acquiring small video companies, but the quantity and quality were far from meeting market demand."

Hearing this, the atmosphere in the meeting room became even more solemn.

The top executives of Zemeng looked at each other, their expressions filled with worry.

“So, our music content is limited to 1,000 days of resources, and there are almost no videos.”

Lu Shan concluded in a low voice, his voice calm but with a hint of coldness.

Zhao Qiang, the technical director at the side, could not help but speak up: "Mr. Lu, if the audio and video content is not rich enough, our user experience will be greatly reduced."

"In the long run, it will be a huge obstacle to the promotion of the system."

Ma Lijuan nodded in agreement: "Yes, our user growth has slowed down, and there are also some problems with user retention rate."

"Especially young users who have higher demands for audio and video, they are disappointed with the Zemeng ecosystem that has no video content."

There was silence in the conference room for a moment, and then it seemed to be ignited.

Many senior executives began to whisper, with shock and anxiety on their faces.

“I didn’t expect their attitude to be so firm.”

Operations Director Li Wen frowned, obviously finding it hard to believe.

"At first I thought at least a few companies would be willing to give it a try, but I didn't expect all of them to say no."

"I expected they would have concerns, but leaving no room for them is too much."

Financial Director Huang Cheng also shook his head, with a hint of anger in his expression, "They are deliberately suppressing us and completely blocking our source of content."

"It's not surprising that we were banned." Wei Xing, head of the marketing department, smiled coldly.

The tone was somewhat sarcastic, "These old companies don't want to see us rise, so it's not surprising that they band together to boycott us."

"If Zemeng rises, how will they harvest users?"

Zhao Qiang, the technical director at the side, sighed and frowned: "But the problem is that our users need this content."

"If there is always a lack of audio-visual content, the system's retention rate will get lower and lower, which will be a fatal blow to our promotion."

"Yes, many users have started to complain now," Li Wen nodded, "especially young users, who have a high demand for audio-visual content."

"In the feedback we received in the app store, many users asked why there were so few video contents in Zemeng's system."

Chen Yang looked at everyone coldly, his tone unfriendly: "Do these old companies think they can sit back and relax just because they control the market? They underestimate us too much!"

Lu Shan remained silent, sitting in the main seat with no expression on his face.

His eyes scanned everyone in the conference room, as if waiting for them to express their thoughts.

Ma Lijuan looked at Lu Shan and added, "I clearly felt rejected by these companies when I went out for negotiations this time."

"Not only did they refuse to cooperate, they didn't even have the willingness to continue communicating."

"They made it clear that they would not support Zemeng's ecological chain construction, especially in terms of content. They were afraid that once they gave us resources, users would turn to us."

She paused, a hint of helplessness in her eyes: "What's worse is that many companies have made public statements saying that they will only provide services on existing platforms."

"Say something like this, and it's basically the same as directly stating one's position."

Financial Director Huang Cheng couldn't help but say: "This puts us in a passive position. Without the support of large platforms, we are just an empty shell in terms of content ecology."

“It is impossible for users to stay on our platform relying only on Qiantian Music’s resources and some scattered independent content.”

"Yes, if you want to retain users, the advantages of the operating system alone are not enough."

(End of this chapter)