After get off work, Simon rushed directly to George Norman's house in Bel Air.
Simon revealed his intention to Jennifer on Wednesday. Simon received a call from James Raybould early yesterday morning. The two chatted for more than an hour, during which James Raybould listed a long list of reasons to persuade Simon to give up. He and Norman were responsible for the east and west coast ideas respectively, saying that he was capable of doing this job himself and was more professional.
After careful consideration, Simon agreed.
They were still busy with movie matters during the week, so the Rayboulds rushed over today, planning to discuss more details with Simon over the weekend, and used Norman's house to send Simon a dinner invitation.
Now that he had agreed to James Raybould, Simon did not tell his personal lawyer his original idea without going out of his way. After all, George Norman is a civil lawyer and is indeed not suitable to help Simon manage the assets of the Westeros company.
Because he didn't know that he had missed some opportunities, George Norman was also very enthusiastic in the evening and congratulated his brother-in-law on being able to reach a cooperative relationship with Simon. Everyone was enjoying themselves, but it was Jennifer who had a face when facing her uncle. Occasionally she would show some guilty expressions, but she knew very well that her father had taken away the opportunity that should have belonged to her uncle.
It's a new year soon.
In recent weeks, Simon has paid his 1987 personal income tax and various taxes for his two companies. Of course, the main thing is the taxes of the Westeros companies.
After the tax settlement is completed, the main assets under the name of Westeros Company are the stocks of those 26 companies.
It is worth mentioning that when Simon applied for a Westeros company, he confirmed the nature of the company as a limited liability company (LLC). The biggest advantage of an LLC type company is that it can avoid double-layer taxation. The income of the Westeros Company is equivalent to Simon's personal income. He only needs to pay income tax once, and Simon can enjoy the profits he deserves. Of course, LLC-type companies also have their own disadvantages, such as the inability to go public.
Fortunately, Simon has not thought about taking Westeros Company public.
In comparison, for the sake of future listing and financing, Daenerys Pictures is classified as a joint stock company (Corp). This type of company needs to pay taxes on its own profits and shareholder dividends.
As the North American stock market gradually emerges from the haze of the stock market crash in October, and technology stocks have become popular due to the exposure of the 'Westeros Combination', the technology stocks held by Westeros companies have continued to appreciate during this period.
According to the latest statistics from Simon's private accountants after the stock market closed today, the total value of technology stocks held by Westeros has exceeded US$1.67 billion. Relative to Simon's initial investment of US$1.1 billion, the cumulative appreciation has reached 51%.
The appreciation of these stocks is equivalent to making up for all the huge taxes paid by Simon.
On the other hand, Westeros Company’s 4.9% stake in 26 technology stock companies can basically squeeze into the ranks of major shareholders of these companies, but it cannot obtain board seats and share the power of a company. Not that easy.
However, these companies have benefited from the influence of the 'Westeros Combination' in recent months and their stock prices have soared. Obviously, they cannot hope that their own stocks will be sold off. It is still possible for Simon to get a seat on the board of directors of these companies. very big.
After consultations over the weekend, James Raybould, who was authorized by Simon, officially sent an application to join the board of directors of all technology companies held by Westeros Company. The media who learned the news quickly paid attention to this matter.
New week.
The most watched thing in Hollywood is undoubtedly the announcement of the nominations for the new Golden Globe Awards.
At nine o'clock on Monday morning, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced a series of nominations for the 45th American Film and Television Golden Globe Awards at a press conference in the banquet hall of the Sunset Tower Hotel in Beverly Hills.
Since the "operability" of the Golden Globe Awards is much greater than that of the Oscars, which has many judges, it is no surprise that "Run Lola Run" won the best picture in the drama category, the best director, the best actress in the drama category, the best screenwriter and the best drama. With five nominations for Best Score, it has become a favorite at this Golden Globe Awards.
Simon also knows that unless the Hollywood Foreign Press Association completely abandons its moral integrity, his nomination for best director will definitely only be one. As for the best film in the drama category, the winner in my memory should be Bertolucci's "The Last Emperor", and Simon doesn't think "Run Lola Run" can compete with this long-established European film master.
Of course, it is something to be happy about after all. Simon had been fielding a combination of calls from all sides throughout the morning.
This goes on until noon.
At a restaurant in downtown Santa Monica, as the host, Simon arrived ten minutes early, and Bill Gates arrived soon after.
Apparently having done some homework, after the meeting, Gates politely expressed his congratulations on the Golden Globe nomination for "Lola Run". The two sat down at the dining table, each looking at the other calmly.
Bill Gates is only 32 years old this year. He wears a pair of black-rimmed glasses with large lenses. He looks younger, even a bit like a middle school student, and he is the type of nerd who is often bullied by school bullies.
Just by looking at his face, Simon could understand why his classmates in many biographical movies and TV shows were often bullied by his peers, Steve Jobs.
but.
After opening his mouth, Gates showed no sign of being a bitch.
After ordering the meal and waiting for the waiter to leave, Gates said bluntly: "Simon, I hope you can explain why you are interested in Microsoft stocks?"
Simon ignored Gates' questioning gesture and said in a relaxed tone: "Bill, it should be said that I am very interested in the entire electronic information industry, and Microsoft is just one of them."
"If that's all," Gates took out a fax page from his briefcase and handed it over, "I'm afraid I can't agree to the Westeros representative's request to join the Microsoft board of directors."
"Actually, I don't really want to join the Microsoft board of directors. I'm very busy. However, since I have invested so much money, in order to get more returns, I still hope to provide some personal suggestions for the development of these companies," Simon picked up the page. The fax glanced at it, then put it down. He sat up straight and stared at Gates opposite, and said, "Bill, you own nearly 45% of the shares of this company. Are you still worried that I will compete with you for control?"
"Okay, let's be honest," Gates said in a relaxed tone: "Simon, if Microsoft rejects Westeros' request to join the company's board of directors, will you sell your stock?"
"I have already answered you, my main purpose is investment. If I can make more money by continuing to hold Microsoft stock, I will definitely not sell it. As for the Microsoft board of directors, if I feel the need to join, maybe I will Keep buying stocks and increase your stake to 10% or more until you agree."
"What if I insist on saying no?"
"Except for you and Paul Allen, Microsoft's outstanding shares should be 30%," Simon said with a smile: "Maybe I can buy out all of Microsoft's outstanding shares. By then, you, me, and Paul... Allen, the three of us can discuss the future of the company together."
After Microsoft went public last year, Bill Gates and Paul Allen still hold about 45% and 25% of the shares respectively, and the proportion of Microsoft shares in the circulating market is 30%. According to the fact that Microsoft's stock price still has a total market value of only more than one billion U.S. dollars after its rebound, Simon can indeed buy up all the outstanding shares.
According to regulations, once the number of circulating shares on the market drops to a certain proportion, Microsoft can only delist.
Bill Gates looked at the young man across the table and found that he could clearly feel the strong eagerness in the other person's tone when he said what he just said.
He would really do such a thing!
After a moment of silence, Gates finally said again: "Simon, I don't like you, you are a lunatic."
"Everyone knows this. I'm not sure whether I've recovered or not." Simon smiled nonchalantly and then said seriously: "Okay, Bill, why don't we talk about Windows? I've been I am studying Windows 2.0, which Microsoft has just launched. To be fair, it is still very bad. However, your idea is right. Compatibility is a necessary development strategy for an operating system to expand rapidly at this stage. Moreover, the graphical interface The system can also promote the rapid popularization of personal computers in the mass market. Only by selling personal computers to mass consumers can the entire electronic information industry develop rapidly. Just like video recorders, there were less than 1 million households in North America with video recorders ten years ago, but now , but this number was 50 million. As a result, North American video tape sales exceeded box office revenue last year. In my opinion, the market capacity of personal computers far exceeds that of video recorders, and due to the need for standardization, this market will be difficult to reach in the future. There are too many types of operating systems. In this regard, Microsoft does not have an advantage because you do not produce hardware. Companies such as IBM can easily throw Microsoft away. Therefore, while maintaining compatibility, Microsoft must also develop certain An advantage that is unique to you.”
When Simon said this, he stopped at the right time.
Bill Gates, who had already begun to listen attentively, saw that Simon suddenly stopped talking, and subconsciously asked: "What kind of advantage?"
Simon raised his finger and pointed at the fax page just now: "Give me a board seat first."
Bill Gates insisted: "You say it first."
Simon asked: "Do you have a pen?"
Bill Gates took out a pen from his briefcase and handed it over. Simon wrote something on the back of the fax paper, and then handed the pen and paper over together, saying: "A suggestion, change the board seat. In fact, I feel If you have lost money, maybe you can sell me some of your stocks at a discount."
Bill Gates ignored Simon's words and picked up the fax paper directly. There was only one strange word on it: Wintel.