Hugo Rhodes asked, "I heard Jerry Black say that Apple is going to release a new product that will make Polygram Records a lot of money?"

Jerry Black is the CEO of Apple Inc. UK. Pen Fun Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 ｉｎfo

"Yes, Mr. Hugo Rhodes, absolutely! This will benefit not only Polygram Records, but all record labels!"

As he spoke, everyone had arrived at Hugo Rhodes' office.

When Hugo Rhodes heard this, his curiosity immediately increased, "I wonder what kind of product can make a record company a lot of money?" he couldn't help but ask.

The secretary poured two glasses of water.

Li Zetian picked up the water, took a sip slowly, and deliberately didn't rush to tell him.

From the very beginning of the meeting, negotiations have already begun.

Whoever is more urgent will be left behind.

Li Zetian did not immediately answer his question, but asked rhetorically: "May I ask Mr. Hugo Rhodes, what is the main profit of the record company?"

Hugo Rhodes replied: "The main way for record companies to make money is to make money by publishing records!"

"May I ask Mr. Hugo Rhodes, how much can a well-known singer sell records?" Li Zetian continued to ask with a smile.

"Millions of records are already very good, and some of the top singers have sold more than 10 million ...... records."

"Great! If there's a product that can increase sales of records, do you think the record companies will support it?"

"Alright, Mr. Li, please stop selling it, please tell me what this thing is!" said Hugo Rhodes.

Li Zetian knew that the other party couldn't hold his breath, so he smiled and took out the Walkman tape Walkman Walkman and music tape from his bag.

"Those are the two things!"

In 1963, the Dutch company Philips developed cassette tapes, which developed rapidly due to their lightweight, durable, and interchangeable advantages.

"What is this?" he asked, pointing to the Walkman.

"Tape Walkman!" Li Zetian explained, "You can play songs by putting the tape in here, and you can put on headphones to listen to the effect! You can also play songs without headphones, but the effect is slightly worse than that of headphones." ”

Hugo Rhodes said: "Then I'll listen to it with headphones on." ”

"Well, that's for the best!"

When Hugo Rhodes put on the headphones, Li Zetian put the tape into his Walkman, and then smiled at the other party, "Attention, it's going to start!"

As he spoke, Li Zetian pressed the play button.

Suddenly a beautiful song came from the headphones, and Hugo Rhodes was very surprised. After a while, he took off his headphones and said to Li Zetian: "It's indeed a great product, but the sound quality is much worse than vinyl!"

Li Zetian said with a smile: "You get what you pay for, vinyl records are very expensive to manufacture, and the manufacturing cost of cassette tapes is relatively low! Mr. Hugo Rhodes, the Walkman tape Walkman Walkman can be carried around, and it will definitely be sought after by many young people, which will undoubtedly create a huge market for music tapes. ”

Li Zetian thought that the other party would be very happy after seeing the product, but unexpectedly, Hugo Rhodes frowned.

"Mr. Li, you may be right, but this will have a big impact on the vinyl record market! People who buy Walkmans and music tapes will naturally not buy record players and vinyl records!"

Tapes are low in profits, vinyl records are in high profits, even if you sell ten tapes, you may not be as profitable as one vinyl record, and distributing music tapes may cause huge losses to the record company!

Li Zetian thought for a while, and quickly understood what the other party was worried about, he organized the language, and said: "Mr. Hugo Rhodes, the sound quality of the Walkman is indeed very different from that of vinyl. I believe that people who like music are still willing to buy vinyl records, but they are also willing to buy Walkman and music tapes because they can be taken outdoors to listen to songs. Think about it, is this adding extra revenue to the record company? As for the vinyl market, you say...... Yes, I have to admit it, but if music tapes sell far more than records, I think record companies can make more money. ”

"The premise is that the Walkman is very ......popular," reminds Hugo Rhodes.

"It's not doubtful whether the Walkman will catch fire. What do you say, Mr. Hugo Rhodes?" asked Li Zetian with a smile.

Hugo Rhodes was silent, because he was involved in the music industry, so he knew the users very well, and the Walkman tape walkman had a great attraction for them.

Li Zetian continued: "I believe that once the Walkman becomes popular, more manufacturers will inevitably follow suit and make similar tape Walkmans, and then develop the Walkman market into a huge market, and even many record players will adopt music tape standards." There is no doubt that by then, music tapes will be a global phenomenon. Li Zetian paused, raised his voice a few decibels, and said, "Whether you choose to embrace music tapes or stick to vinyl records completely, this will determine the fate of the record company!

Hugo Rhodes listened to Li Zetian's words, and his heart was very entangled!

"Mr. Li, I can't make a decision right away yet, I have to conduct a detailed analysis with my team before I can give an accurate answer!"

Li Zetian frowned slightly, and said in a deep voice: "I won't stay in the UK for too long!"

"Don't worry, we will get back to you as soon as possible. ”

"Alright then......"

This is the end of the first contact.

Li Zetian walked out of Polygram Records, depressed, and found that things were not as simple as he expected!

Three days later, Polygram Records finally gave Li Zetian an answer, saying that Polygram Records had a big business, and vinyl records were the company's main source of income, so they did not dare to take risks. However, they did not completely refuse, and when the music tape was really unstoppable, they naturally chose to join the camp.

Obviously, this is a very conservative decision.

"Mr. Li??" Seeing that Li Zetian's expression was not quite right, Jerry Black, the CEO of the branch, called him in a low voice.

Li Zetian waved his hand and said, "It's nothing, Polygram Records rejected us this time, maybe it's their loss." This afternoon, I'm going back to the United States, and you have someone to book my plane ticket for me!"

"Okay, Chairman!"

Li Zetian returned to the hotel, packed his luggage, and lay on the bed and slept for a while.

In the afternoon, Jerry Black came to the hotel and picked him up at the airport.

Early the next morning, at about 7 o'clock, the plane arrived in San Jose.

Li Zetian got off the plane, first went to the pet store to pick up the puppy Simba, and then went home. After that, I didn't take a break and went straight to Apple.

Tian Shuai and others received a phone call from Li Zetian yesterday, knowing that the cooperation with Polygram Records had not been negotiated, and they received Li Zetian's order to hold a meeting the next morning.

In the conference room, the atmosphere was a little heavier than before.

Li Zetian sat in the first place and said: "Polygram Records' refusal has disrupted our previous plan, and now we can only use a backup plan! From now on, send the company's senior management to many large record companies around the world to discuss cooperation, and I believe that there will be record companies willing to support us." Also, broadcast the Walkman commercial on TV as soon as possible so that the people at the record company know how much users like our products!"

"Now we are begging for the record company, but one day it will be the record company begging us to !!"

Li Zetian couldn't help but say this in the end, although whether it is the tape era or the CD era in the future, the record company has the dominant power, but when it enters the Internet era in the future, you can see whose era it is!!