Replay 07: Opening the Temple of Learning

Chapter 385: Profits of Major Subsidiaries Explode

"Oh, 'Waiting for the Wind and the Rain'?" Li Ran is usually a sentimental person and likes to listen to some gentle and lyrical songs.

She immediately clicked to listen, and the faint melody came to her ears, with a hint of gentle sadness, as if telling a story of waiting and hope.

"This song is so healing!" She couldn't help but whisper to herself, "If I could hear this song every time I answer the phone, I would be able to relax instantly no matter how stressful my work is."

Although Li Ran had never considered spending money on ringtones before, this time, she felt that the three dollars was really worth it.

She quickly placed an order to subscribe to Waiting for the Wind and the Rain, and couldn’t wait to send a message in the company’s WeChat group:

"Sisters, I just changed my ringtone to a new song, the super healing song "Waiting for the Wind and the Rain". You can go and listen to it!"

He Wanqing, a colleague standing by, saw the message and asked curiously, "Ringback tone? Does anyone still use ringback tone? What kind of retro sentiment are you talking about?"

Li Ran smiled and replied: "Of course I have to have feelings! Ringtones are so interesting. Every time I answer the phone, I can hear my favorite songs. This song in particular is perfect for times when I'm stressed."

He Wanqing was moved by what she said and curiously clicked on Mobile Dream Network.

She had no interest in ringtones before, but when she saw the trial listening page of "You Are in the Distance", she immediately became interested.

“This song is full of positive energy. It makes me feel better just by listening to it!”

She excitedly told her colleagues, "I want this one, it suits me perfectly!"

Soon, she also placed an order and subscribed to "You Are My Dear".

After a while, in the company's lounge, several female colleagues were discussing the topic of ringtones, showing each other their choices, and the atmosphere was relaxed and pleasant.

Not only white-collar workers, but also college students in schools have quietly started a craze for ringtones.

Zhang Haojie, a junior student, was swiping his phone while waiting in line for food in the cafeteria.

Suddenly I saw someone recommending the "three hot-selling mobile ringtones" on the forum, including "You Are in the Distance", "Waiting for the Wind and Rain" and "Chalk Words of Love".

Many people left comments in the post, saying that the ringtones of these three songs are particularly nice and worth trying.

"Ringtone? What is this?" Zhang Haojie was a little curious and clicked on the recommendation page.

He casually listened to "Chalk Words of Love". The cheerful melody and the rhythm with the youthful atmosphere of campus immediately made him feel familiar.

A smile appeared on Zhang Haojie's lips, as if he had returned to his high school days, and those youthful times suddenly came to his mind.

"This song is good, it's really exciting to listen to." Zhang Haojie was tempted, "Three yuan a month is not expensive, let's go!"

Soon, his ringtone was changed to "Chalk Words of Love".

A few days later, his roommate Wang Qiang heard the ringtone of this song when he made a phone call.

He laughed so hard that he couldn't close his mouth: "Oh, Haojie, you actually used this as a ringtone, how interesting!"

Zhang Haojie smiled proudly and said, "How is it? Isn't it nice? This song is very popular recently. The songs I like should be shared with others, so that people can resonate with them after listening to them!"

Wang Qiang immediately opened his mobile DreamNet APP and decisively subscribed to the ringtone of "Chalk Words of Love".

At the same time, in another corner, the group of square dance aunties have also become potential users of this wave of ringtones.

Aunt Zhao is the lead dancer of the community square dance and dances with a group of sisters every night.

That night, her old friend Aunt Li called her and the phone rang.

Aunt Zhao immediately heard the ringtone melody of "You Are in the Distance" coming from the other side.

Aunt Zhao asked in surprise: "Oh, Sister Li, your ringtone is great! What song is it? So exciting?"

Aunt Li smiled proudly: "'You Are In The Distance'! You can check it out on the Mobile Dream Network APP. You have to buy it separately for three yuan. This song is very popular now. Young people like it!"

Aunt Zhao was not willing to be outdone. After returning home, she opened China Mobile Dream Network and spent three yuan to subscribe to the ringtone of "You Are With Me Far Away".

The next night while dancing, she deliberately made a call on her cell phone and let her sisters listen to the ringtone.

"Oh, this song is nice! It makes me feel energetic when I listen to it!" Sister Li next to her smiled and praised, "Ah Zhao, you are really good at choosing ringtones!"

Aunt Zhao said proudly: "I learned this from young people. This kind of ringtone is popular now. You should also change one to show that we are fashionable!"

Many middle-aged women have subscribed to their own personalized ringtones.

Aunt Zhao used the song "You Are in the Distance", while Sister Li changed to the gentle "Waiting for the Wind and the Rain". After comparing with each other, they were quite satisfied with their choices.

In the conference room of the Ringback Tone Business Department at the headquarters of China Mobile, a group of senior executives were gathered in front of a large screen, with looks of disbelief on their faces.

Displayed on the screen is the latest ringback tone data report, especially the revenue of three popular songs.

"This...is this data wrong?" Liu Bin, Vice President of the Marketing Department, half opened his mouth, with a hint of shock in his tone.

He pointed at the number on the screen and said, "Five million? Five million in just half a month?"

Xiao Chen, who was in charge of data analysis, couldn't help rubbing his eyes, fearing that he had seen it wrong.

He confirmed it again and again, and said in a trembling voice: "Yes, the total revenue of these three songs in half a month has exceeded five million!"

“The number of paid subscriptions has skyrocketed, and the growth rate is almost unbelievable!”

Yang Zhen stood in the main seat, his hands resting on the conference table, his expression serious yet with a hint of excitement that was hard to conceal.

He said in a deep voice: "Everyone, the ringtone sales data of these three songs have exceeded our expectations, more than twice as high."

"Five million in revenue in just half a month. The potential of the ringback tone business is greater than we imagined."

Liu Bin, the vice president of the marketing department, pursed his lips and continued, "This profit is really too exaggerated. But we can only split it in half, and Ze Meng wants to take 50%."

As soon as he said this, there was a sudden silence in the conference room.

Several people looked at each other with complicated expressions. Everyone had some indescribable feelings in their hearts.

Yang Zhen, who was sitting in the main seat, sighed softly and said with a wry smile: "Who could have thought of that?"

"When we signed the agreement, everyone was still skeptical about whether these songs would become popular. Ze Meng asked for a 50% share, and we thought it was just a test, so we just gave it to him."

Liu Bin said unwillingly: "Yeah, I never thought there would be such a result!"

"Five million a month, if it all belongs to us, it will greatly increase our performance."

"But now, if we insist on giving half of it away, then Ze Meng will easily earn 250 million!"

Copyright director Wang Lin couldn't help but interrupt, shaking his head and sighing, "Ze Meng really got a great bargain this time."

"Lu Shan is really good at foresight. He negotiated the copyright deal perfectly. He gave us a 50% share, no more, no less. It's just enough for us to be reluctant to let it go but have to pay for it."

Yang Zhen said helplessly: "Since the contract has been signed, there is no point in complaining now." "Ze Meng provided us with a real hit song and promoted the recovery of the ringtone market. They really deserve half of the credit this time."

As he spoke, he turned to look at Manager Zhang from the Finance Department and said, "Sort out the income statement and notify Zemeng's Finance Department as soon as possible to transfer the funds to them according to the contract."

Manager Zhang nodded and silently wrote down the instructions, with a distressed expression on his face.

After all, this is a huge sum of money!
Yang Zhen added: "When we send a message to Ze Meng, we can also pass on the data feedback of the ringtone market so that they can know the results of the cooperation."

"With such a good start, they should also be interested in continuing to explore this market."

Liu Bin couldn't help but sneered: "I think Lu Shan must be so happy! He made 15 million from us so easily, or we did such a good job in marketing..."

Before he finished speaking, Yang Zhen coughed, and Liu Bin quickly stopped complaining.

At the same time, in the office of the music department of Zemeng Company, the atmosphere was quite different.

Xiao Li from the Finance Department rushed into the Music Department with his cell phone.

He shouted excitedly: "Boss Wei, Boss Wei! I just received a call from the mobile company. Their revenue data is out!"

Upon hearing this, Wei Xing, the head of the music department, raised his head and put down the documents in his hand.

With an expectant expression: "What data? How is the ringtone revenue?"

Xiao Li said excitedly: "Five million in half a month! According to the contract, the mobile company will give us half of it, which is 250 million!"

"Their finance department has just confirmed it and the money will be transferred soon!"

Wei Xing was stunned for a few seconds, then showed an expression of disbelief, "250 million? That's how much I got in just half a month?"

Xiao Li nodded vigorously, smiling broadly: "Yes, the mobile company said that the download volume of the three songs far exceeded expectations, especially "Distant You", which has exceeded two million downloads!"

Wei Xing was so excited that he couldn't help but pat the table and stood up excitedly: "Wow, it's only been half a month! At the beginning, President Lu insisted on a 50% profit share."

"I thought the mobile company might not agree, but I didn't expect the result to be so shocking!"

He turned around and shouted to his colleagues around him: "Brothers, did you hear that? In half a month, we got 250 million in share. Our Ze Meng really made a fortune this time!"

When the employees in the music department heard this, they stopped what they were doing and gathered around, with excitement written all over their faces.

"Is this true? You got this much in just half a month?"

"This is more than our copyright income in the past few years combined! Is the ringtone market so promising?"

"Haha, we have to thank Mr. Lu for his foresight! If he hadn't insisted on taking a share, we wouldn't have the current profits!"

"Boss Wei, our boss, Boss Lu, is really amazing! Who would have thought that the ringtone market has such great potential?"

"That's right. When we first discussed the 50% split, many people thought it was impossible. Now it seems like a stroke of genius!"

Wei Xing smiled and nodded, his eyes full of admiration.

He cleared his throat and said to everyone, "Yes, Mr. Lu's vision is indeed extraordinary."

"He not only saw the potential of ringback tone, but also arranged promotional resources in advance, allowing our music to ferment quickly in the market."

"Now, this path has been completely taken!"

Employee Xiao Wang couldn't help but interrupt: "Boss Wei, I think this is Zemeng's core competitiveness!"

"We not only have the technology, but also the content. The reason we were able to open up the ringback tone market so quickly is entirely because we have done a good job of integrating resources!"

Another employee, Xiao Liu, echoed: "Yes! Our content and operations are seamlessly connected. The market demand for these songs is getting higher and higher."

“Even square dance aunties are using our songs! Who could have imagined such nationwide coverage?”

Wei Xing was in high spirits after hearing this. He patted Xiao Liu on the shoulder and said with a smile, "That's right! Mr. Lu's strategy is to create a full-chain music ecosystem."

“Let Zemeng be more than just an operating system, but a part of users’ lives.”

Just then, Xiao Li received another call from the front desk.

After hanging up the phone, Xiao Li said excitedly, "Boss Wei, several representatives from brokerage companies just came to the front desk to discuss copyright cooperation!"

"It is said that there are a few less famous singers who also want to sign a ringtone cooperation agreement with us!"

Upon hearing this, Wei Xing raised his eyebrows, then smiled with satisfaction.

He was filled with emotion. He had never expected that the success of the ringback tone business would bring about the gathering of so many resources.

"Haha, it really is a natural progression!" Wei Xing laughed, "Mr. Lu's layout is not just about the ringback tone market, but the entire music copyright ecosystem behind it!"

"Now that we have a market position, high-quality content will naturally come to us."

He turned to look at Xiao Li and ordered, "Notify them. Let's arrange a copyright briefing for these management companies and singers' representatives today to see what their needs are."

"Convey Mr. Lu's ideas to them and let them know that Zemeng is not only a promotion platform, but also a brand new music ecosystem."

Xiao Li nodded excitedly: "I understand, President Wei! I'll arrange it right away!"

……

On the eve of the Spring Festival, the headquarters of Zemeng Group was bustling with activity.

The financial statements of major subsidiaries have been delivered one after another, and the entire finance department is working overtime to calculate the data.

As the group's financial director, Qiao Weiwei is personally responsible for compiling these reports.

In the evening, Qiao Weiwei knocked on Lu Shan's office door, holding a thick stack of reports in her hand, her face unable to hide her excitement.

She walked to Lu Shan's desk and whispered, "Boss Lu, the financial situation of each subsidiary in 2013 has come out, and the performance can be said to be a big explosion."

Lu Shan smiled slightly, motioned for her to sit down, nodded and said, "Boss Qiao, tell me in detail."

Qiao Weiwei flipped open the report and reported one by one: "First, Jiyue Company performed very well this time."

"The annual revenue reached 1.5 million RMB, with a profit margin of 30% and a net profit of 4500 million RMB."

Lu Shan nodded with a hint of satisfaction: "Jiyue really didn't disappoint me. The browser business has its own characteristics and the market feedback is very good."

Qiao Weiwei continued to report: "Next is BanSi Technology, which mainly produces semiconductor materials. Its annual revenue is as high as 8 million yuan, with a profit margin of 20% and a net profit of 1.6 million yuan."

"8 million in revenue, 1.6 million in profit..." Lu Shan was slightly surprised and smiled with satisfaction, "Companion silicon really has great potential. It seems that our investment in chip materials is worthwhile."

(End of this chapter)