Reading a business plan is a very time-consuming and energy-consuming task.
Because a business plan implies cooperation, and business cooperation involves money, so a contract must be signed.
Having said that, although Igarashi Runa was overwhelmed by the huge figures when it came to contracts worth over 10 billion, she was still able to remain calm when examining contracts worth hundreds of millions or even billions.
Kurosawa Hikaru was in a good mood as he flipped through the selected business plans.
He felt like the boss of a big company. He usually traveled around and took time out to visit the company. He had a beautiful secretary by his side to help him deal with the piled up contracts.
"yes."
"I need to ask Mr. Lingshi first. I wonder if he is free."
Igarashi Runa received a call. After a brief conversation, she put her finger on the receiver and said:
"Kurosawa, Sony said they want to talk again tomorrow."
"Give me the phone."
Kurosawa Mitsuru, who was sitting with his legs crossed and reading a business plan, was silent for a while and then stretched out his hand.
"Who are you?"
After answering the phone, Kurosawa Mitsuru was the first to ask.
"Mr. Reitoki, I'm Takeda Ema. We met this morning."
The person on the other end of the line was Takeda Emma, one of the three people who came to negotiate the contract on behalf of Sony this morning.
"I'm free tomorrow morning, but whether we can have a face-to-face meeting depends on the conditions you offer and whether you are sincere."
After confirming his identity, Kurosawa Kan spoke bluntly without any hesitation.
"Mr. Lingshi, we have absolutely no intention of teasing you. The conditions this time will definitely satisfy you."
"Oh? What conditions did Sony offer this time?"
Hearing her tone that sounded like a guarantee, Kurosawa Mitsuru curled the corners of his mouth and asked.
"The minimum contract price has been raised to 30 billion, and other conditions and requirements remain unchanged."
Takeda Ema is not afraid to speak up when facing his problems and is full of confidence.
It is indeed better to negotiate the terms first, then have a meeting, further discuss the details, and then sign the contract, which will not waste the time of both parties.
The contract has a guaranteed minimum of 30 billion yen, which is a huge contract that is enough to shock the industry worldwide.
Because Kurosawa Mitsuru turned on the loudspeaker, Igarashi Runa, who was standing next to him, heard the number 30 billion and her beautiful eyes widened.
The conditions and requirements remained the same, but it was rejected once. In less than a day, the price soared to 30 billion... No wonder Kurosawa said that Sony was not sincere.
“Is this considered sincerity?”
However, when Kurosawa Mitsuru heard the price, he was still not satisfied and frowned.
He thought that after being rejected once, Sony would realize the problem and would take a serious attitude when seeking cooperation the second time. But this is the result
"Isn't this considered sincerity?"
Takeda Emma, who was originally full of confidence, became unsure of herself because of his dissatisfied and questioning tone.
The board of directors discussed for an entire afternoon and finalized the requirements and conditions of the new contract. They also conducted repeated research, submitted the materials for approval, and when they finally came up with this price, she was shocked.
Because she had never seen the upper echelons make decisions so quickly... Perhaps it was because of the two powerful rivals, Apple and Penguin, who were eyeing them covetously.
“Not really.”
Kurosawa Hikaru said with certainty.
"Then what does it take to be sincere?"
Takeda Emma felt that her world view, outlook on life, and values had collapsed, but based on her professional instinct to communicate, she still asked patiently.
"If it is in accordance with your company's requirements and the price is increased several times, I might agree."
Kurosawa Hikaru made a rough estimate, but he was still unsure.
“How many times?”
Takeda Ema took a deep breath and felt her head buzzing.
A few times of 30 billion, wouldn't that be hundreds of billions? Did he think the money came from the wind
Not to mention 100 billion, even if it was 30 billion, she had never seen so much money in her life.
"If you don't want to pay this price, you can lower your requirements appropriately. According to your company's requirements, this is my price, and I may not agree to it."
Kurosawa Mitsuru didn't think that his words were shocking, he was just expressing his own thoughts.
"… "
Takeda Emma realized that he didn't seem to be joking and was speechless for a moment.
"This is not something you can decide. Just convey my request. If your company is willing to agree to my request, then call us. If not, then don't call us."
Kurosawa Hikaru knew that her position and status were not high, so he didn't waste any more time talking to her and hung up the phone forcefully.
"Kurosawa, are you serious? 30 billion needs to be multiplied several times."
Seeing him hang up the phone, Igarashi Runa couldn't help but ask.
"Of course I'm serious."
Kurosawa Hikaru nodded and confirmed.
"How could they possibly agree to such conditions..."
"They are likely to agree to it because they conservatively estimate that they can earn hundreds of billions from the contract Sony has proposed."
“Can they make that much?”
Igarashi Runa didn't understand and was shocked.
"Let me give you an account, and you will understand it after listening."
Seeing that she didn't understand, Kurosawa Hikaru thought about it and decided to explain it to her clearly so that she wouldn't be shocked all the time.
"good."
When Igarashi Runa saw that he wanted to explain, she naturally listened attentively.
After a pause, Kurosawa Hikaru organized his thoughts, took a pen and paper from the table next to him, and explained to her in detail while writing:
"The apparent benefits of Sony's contract are the copyright of 10 songs, 50% of the album sales profit, and the promotion of streaming music software.
First of all, there is the song copyright. The physical record market is sluggish. Sony's revenue last year was 770 million US dollars, or about 100 billion yen, which can be converted into Sony selling 30 million albums.
Let's assume that my album sells 3 million copies per year, and 30 million copies in 10 years, and according to the 55-50 split, a simple and rough calculation would mean a profit of 50 billion.
But in fact, Sony's contract does not ask me for the copyright of an album or 10 songs, but 60 songs. "
“60?”
Igarashi Runa was confused and couldn't help but interrupt.
Aren't you buying 10 songs? How come it became 60
"Sony's requirement for me is to do at least two promotional shoots a year, that is, to be the spokesperson. I will release a new album every two years, and if each album has 10 songs, that would be 50 songs."
Kurosawa Hikaru glanced at her and explained.
He underestimated the sales volume because the performance of his perfect piano was so explosive.
Now, even if he puts aside the classic masterpieces of his previous life, any music he plays sounds like heavenly music.
"I see."
Igarashi Runa looked at the diagrams he was drawing circles on as he spoke, and immediately understood.
Immediately, Kurosawa Mitsuru continued to explain to her.
"Even if there are five albums, and each album sells 10 million copies, that would be 50 million copies sold, which translates to 160 billion in sales."
"Sony's streaming media revenue last year was $6.37 billion, or 875.4 billion yen. This market is far greater than the physical album market and is a trend of the times. The bigger the number, the harder it is to calculate. Let's assume that my album sales are 10 billion in revenue a year, that's 100 billion.
However, for Sony, the most valuable aspect of this contract is that it can help Sony consolidate its position as the number one streaming media player, and its value is difficult to estimate. "
"180 billion?"
Igarashi Runa was shocked when she saw him write down the calculation (500+800+500=Sony's profit) on the paper.
There is no such thing as a quick buck without a profit. Because Sony took the initiative to contact her to seek cooperation and actively communicated with her, she could actually vaguely feel that Sony must have some plan and that it could make money.
But what she didn't expect was that Sony could make so much money.
"Now you understand why I said they were insincere, right?"
Kurosawa Hikaru found her shocked expression funny and cute.
"Understood."
Igarashi Runa nodded.
Kurosawa's calculations this time, coupled with the illustrations, were tantamount to stuffing the answer into her mouth.
No wonder Kurosawa felt that Sony had no sincerity after hearing the offers of 13 billion and 30 billion, and that the prices were too low.
Suddenly, she thought of another level, and her heartbeat couldn't help but speed up.
Because Sony and Zero Hour split the profits 55:50, which means that whatever profit Sony makes, Zero Hour also makes the same.
"Sony can earn at least 180 billion. It is totally wishful thinking to expect 150 billion for a 30 billion. And this is my conservative estimate. Sony's profit from signing this contract with me is at least 300 billion."
Seeing that she really understood this time, Kurosawa Mitsuru did not forget to add.
“Is this still conservative? What if it’s an aggressive estimate?”
Igarashi Runa was once again shocked by the number he said and asked again.
"For Sony, the value of cooperating with us is at least 600 billion."
Kurosawa Hikaru thought about it for a moment and made a bold guess.
Sony's music division, Sony Music Entertainment, had sales of 1.37 trillion and profits of 265 billion last year.
Putting aside the superficial numbers, market influence, equity, corporate image, industry status, comprehensive copyright operations and other comprehensive aspects, for Sony, the value of cooperating with him is 600 billion, which is not an exaggeration at all.
"Wow… "
Igarashi Runa didn't know what expression to use to react, she just looked stunned.
She had expected that working with a super company like Sony would definitely make a lot of money... But isn't this too crazy? Is this how money is made
"Anyway, I'll be the one making the decision on this contract, and you can just watch over it."
Seeing her shocked expression, Kurosawa Mitsuru found it a little funny and also gave her a warning.
It is no exaggeration to say that this cooperation is the most important one for Zero Hour Agency.
He couldn't say that he had a complete grasp of his own value. After all, he had been a hands-off boss for a long time, was not an industry insider, had little time to investigate, and didn't know much about the entertainment and music circles.
However, after taking over the business plan and conducting market research based on his knowledge of finance, he had a rough idea of his own value.
Just want to eat the cake with him for 30 billion, how can this be considered sincerity
You know, there is market competition between Sony, Apple and Penguin.
Competitive pressure will invisibly raise prices. For these three companies, signing a contract with him is definitely a win-win as long as the price is not too outrageous.
In fact, Zero Hour Agency could have avoided cooperating with the three companies and instead sold albums independently, thus keeping all the profits in its own hands.
It’s a pity that Zero Hour Agency is too small and has just been established, so there are not many employees. It is very difficult to produce and release albums independently in many aspects.
In the first ten years, we will cooperate with one of these three major companies to maximize profits.
By the second decade, when they have enough funds and connections, they can choose to sell independently, and Zero Hour Agency will be able to transform itself into a giant in the music industry.
"You decide... How much do they want to pay for you to be satisfied? 100 billion yen is not a small amount. Even for big companies like Sony, Penguin, and Apple, it's not easy to get them to pay all at once."
Igarashi Runa realized the importance of this collaboration and completely put aside the idea of interrupting or interfering, and just felt curious.
She really wanted to know what the outcome of this cooperation would be.
Although she had never worked at Sony, she knew that the amount of liquidity a company actually had available was not as much as people imagined.
During this period, in addition to being busy with work every day, she has been reading books and looking up information to recharge herself, hoping to become a qualified boss.
"100 billion yen may seem like a lot, but it's actually just that. They can get more by just acquiring a company than from this kind of cooperation."
Kurosawa Hikaru has a different opinion on this.
Perhaps 100 billion yen is a huge sum of money that many companies in Japan cannot afford.
But for Sony, Penguin, and Apple, this little money is nothing.
"indeed."
Although Igarashi Runa was shocked, she agreed after thinking about it.
If you think about it carefully, the companies she knows are not even on the same level as super companies like Sony, Penguin, and Apple.
However, what she didn't realize for a moment was that... this concept was actually unequal.
You know, for any large enterprise, acquiring a company is a strategic decision and a major strategic move.
"In fact, their offer is not the most important thing. The key is other conditions, such as the sales commission. If a company can offer a ratio of 73 or 82, let alone 30 billion, I will sign the contract even if it is 13 billion. After all, we are not in a hurry to use the money."
The more Kurosawa Hikaru thought about it, the clearer his thoughts became.
A buyout at a fixed price is just a stepping stone to cooperation. It is good enough to see the sincerity in cooperation.
The bulk of the profit from this cooperation still comes from profit sharing.
Of course, if there is a company willing to pay an extremely high price, he can just sell it as a package.
Just then, Igarashi Runa's cell phone rang, and she picked it up and took a look.
"Is it a penguin or an apple?"
This cooperation is of great importance, Kurosawa Mitsuru asked with concern.
Although he said he was not interested in money, he was still very interested in a lot of money.
After all, the balance in his bank card is not so much that money is just a number.
"It's Chizuru, should I answer it?"
Igarashi Runa shook her head and pointed the phone screen at him with the side of her wrist, letting him see it, a little nervous.
"Of course I answered it. Why not? We are working, not in bed. Are you afraid that she will catch you cheating? Besides, she knows that I am with you. I told her last night that I will talk about work with you today."
Kurosawa Hikaru discovered that the note was indeed Chizuru, and when he noticed her nervousness, he immediately laughed.
"You should have said so earlier."
Igarashi Runa reacted and realized that there was no need for her to be nervous. She coughed twice to cover up her embarrassment and rolled her eyes at him.
Immediately, she answered the phone and took the initiative to speak:
"Chizuru, what's wrong?"
"Runa, how was the contract negotiation today?"
Although there was no amplification, Kurosawa Hikaru had a keen sense of hearing. He pricked up his ears and heard Chizuru's voice coming from the microphone.
"The talks weren't very good. Sony, Penguin, and Apple weren't sincere. We have to wait and see what happens next."
Igarashi Runa shook her head and responded.
"Good things take time. Don't worry. Is Kurosawa with you? Or has he gone back?"
"He's with me. He hasn't come home yet."
"Tell him to check his phone. I sent him a message, but he didn't read it."
"Did you call me just to let him see the message you sent?"
"right."
"You're going too far. You called me but ended up calling someone else."
At the same time, hearing their conversation, Kurosawa Hikaru took out his mobile phone from his pocket and opened Line to read the messages.
Because he has too many girlfriends and is always with the same girl, in order to avoid being seen and making others jealous, he rarely checks messages unless he is free or returns home.
Upon seeing this, he discovered that Chizuru had indeed sent a message:
"Kurosawa, the Mercedes dealership sent me a message saying that they contacted you, but you didn't answer the call or reply to the message."
"The car dealership said the Maybach we ordered will arrive at 5:27 this afternoon, and asked when you will pick it up."
"Tomorrow."
When Kurosawa Hikaru saw these two messages, he was moved and replied immediately.
Just kidding, now that the ordered car has arrived, of course the sooner I drive it the better.