Kyoto.
Guang Nian Entertainment.
Chairman Li Hongyi paced anxiously around his office.
Ring, ring!
The phone on his desk rang.
He picked it up with some annoyance.
"Hello," Li Hongyi said in a low voice.
A weak voice came from the other end of the line, "Mr. Li, I'm calling you about something I'd like to discuss with you."
Li Hongyi refused without thinking, "No!"
Silence fell on the other end of the line for a few seconds, then a soft voice said, "It seems other cinemas have already called you. In that case, I'll get straight to the point. With the massive success of 'The Road to Finding,' we need to change the previously agreed-upon screening schedule."
Li Hongyi frowned and said sternly, "We've cooperated for so many years. Are you going to ruin our relationship over one movie?"
"Mr. Li, what are you talking about? Isn't 'The Road to Finding' also a film you invested in?"
"Hmph, in any case, I do not approve of increasing the screening for this movie."
Li Hongyi snorted coldly.
He had been receiving several such calls every day for the past few days.
All of them were from cinemas calling to request an increase in the screening of 'The Road to Finding.'
At first, Li Hongyi was baffled.
He didn't understand why this movie with a cliché plot had become popular.
After he looked into it, he was shocked and speechless.
It wasn't the movie that was popular, but the theme song within the movie.
These people were buying movie tickets just to listen to the song.
How utterly boring!
"Ahem... Mr. Li, there's no other way. If we don't increase the screenings, others will. No one will turn down money, right?"
Just like everyone else before him.
Li Hongyi's opposition had no effect.
Cinemas still insisted on increasing the screening for this movie.
Even those cinemas with good relationships with Guang Nian Entertainment had to go along with it when they saw their competitors increasing their screenings.
After all, it was about capturing market share.
Many consumers have habits; they are likely to return to the cinema where they watched a movie last time. If they lose consumers to competitors due to screening arrangements, it would be a huge loss for the cinema.
"Whatever!"
*Slap!*
Li Hongyi hung up the phone.
He took a deep breath, his head aching.
Speaking of which, he had also invested in this movie.
Even if the screenings were increased, he would still make money.
However, according to the gambling agreement he had signed, no matter how profitable the movie was, he would only receive three hundred million.
This wasn't even the most infuriating part. What was truly infuriating was that another movie he invested in, 'The Era,' was also being released at the same time.
An increase in screenings for 'The Road to Finding' meant a decrease in screenings for 'The Era.'
The investment for that movie was twenty times that of 'The Road to Finding'!
If the market share was encroached upon, let alone making a profit, it would be difficult to even recoup the investment!
At this moment.
A knock sounded on the office door.
"Enter!"
Li Hongyi said, and the office door opened.
The person who entered was the chief director of 'The Era,' Song Rentou.
"Mr. Li..."
He looked somewhat flustered, his previous confidence gone.
"Director Song, you know about the situation, right?"
Li Hongyi glanced at him and said in a muffled voice.
Song Rentou said with a wry smile, "A movie that was guaranteed to make money, I never expected such an absurd situation to occur..."
Li Hongyi continued, "Are there any solutions?"
Song Rentou pondered for a moment, "How about we spend money and have major influencers promote it again?"
Li Hongyi immediately got angry, "Spend more money? Are you trying to make me lose all my capital?"
Currently, although other cinemas were not giving him face and were increasing the screenings for 'The Road to Finding,' Guang Nian Entertainment's own cinemas were holding firm, primarily promoting Song Rentou's big-budget production.
Based on the market, recouping the investment was at least not a problem.
However, if they spent more money, Guang Nian Entertainment might truly suffer losses this time.
And although Li Hongyi was the chairman, he had a board of directors behind him, and he would not be able to explain himself to them.
"Actually, our popularity is still quite good. Although market share has been divided, the movie's reputation has been relatively stable in the past few days. If we have video bloggers who explain movies promote it, we can definitely at least break even, and even make some extra money," Song Rentou said with a sheepish smile, seeing Li Hongyi's displeased expression.
He had already forgotten his previous boasts.
What he had once said, like "4 billion box office is no pressure," or "challenging 6 billion box office."
Now, Song Rentou's only thought was to try his best to break even, and if he could make money on top of that, it would be even better.
"Forget it. If I go to the board of directors now to discuss promotional funds, those people will drive me crazy." Li Hongyi said, taking a deep breath.
He didn't want to go to the board of directors now. He could foresee that those people would nag him with all sorts of things.
Just then.
Li Hongyi's phone rang again.
He didn't want to answer it at first, but seeing the caller ID, he finally picked it up.
"Dad..."
On the other end of the line was Li Zhengyong, the previous chairman of Guang Nian Entertainment, and Li Hongyi's father.
"What foolish thing have you done recently?"
Li Zhengyong's voice was aged, carrying a faint authority.
He had founded Guang Nian Entertainment with his own hands and built it into such a large commercial empire. In the Chinese film industry, he was a prominent figure.
"N-no."
Although Li Hongyi was almost forty years old, he was still somewhat timid in front of his father.
"Still no? The board of directors has already complained to me!" Li Zhengyong coughed a couple of times and continued, "You've been in this business for quite some time, and yet you've done something as foolish as going against the market. I'm truly disappointed. I don't care about your motives, but you must immediately order the group's cinemas to increase the screening volume for that movie!"
Even a novice understood the principle of following the market. Li Hongyi's mistake made Li Zhengyong very angry.
The audience is the market. What the audience likes to watch is what the cinemas play; this is following the market.
If they insisted on going against the audience, the reputation of the cinemas would collapse.
Reputation is the foundation of a company's existence. Once it collapses, no amount of money can compensate for it.
Although this incident might not cause Guang Nian Entertainment's reputation to completely collapse, who could guarantee that competitors wouldn't take advantage of the situation?
The higher one stands at the top, the more cautious they must be.
"I... I understand."
Li Hongyi broke out in a cold sweat.
After being lectured by his father, he immediately came to his senses.
He had been smooth sailing for so many years, and this was the first time he had encountered such an unexpected situation, so he had become stubborn for a moment.
Now that he thought about it, if Guang Nian's own cinemas didn't increase screenings for 'The Road to Finding' when other cinemas were, their reputation would definitely be damaged.
A single loss was a small matter, but the reputation of Guang Nian Entertainment was a big deal!
With this thought, he quickly called his assistant.
He asked him to notify the market department to increase the screening for this movie according to market demand.
After doing this, Li Hongyi slumped onto his chair.
Song Rentou, standing beside him, didn't dare to make a sound.
"Sit down." Li Hongyi glanced at him.
Song Rentou then sat down opposite him with a sheepish smile.
Li Hongyi moved the tea table in front of him aside.
He took an ashtray and a pack of cigarettes from the cabinet.
He lit one and offered it to Song Rentou.
"Mr. Li, I don't smoke..." Song Rentou waved his hands repeatedly.
"Take it!" Li Hongyi frowned.
The latter had no choice but to accept.
Li Hongyi looked at the lighter on the table. Song Rentou understood and quickly picked it up, lit Li Hongyi's cigarette, and then lit his own.
At this moment, the office was filled with smoke, and the sound of the two men coughing occasionally could be heard.