Chapter 370
Qin Shaoyan did not expect that Zhang Chaoyang came to him specifically to ask about Qvod.com.
But after thinking about it, I understood.
The hottest topic right now is video websites, bar none.
When the news came out that Microsoft had acquired YouTube for US$2.3 billion, the entire Internet industry was abuzz, especially the video website industry.
That's US$2.3 billion.
The US dollar during this period is quite valuable. US$2.3 billion is nearly 19 billion RMB. The domestic Internet industry has not yet entered a stage of great expansion.
In China's Internet industry, including listed companies, the market value exceeds US$2.3 billion and can be counted with just one slap.
A video website easily skipped the IPO stage and directly made the founders and investors a large amount of cash. Who wouldn’t be jealous?
Although YouTube has gained a dominant position in the video track on the Internet in the United States, Microsoft spent a lot of money to acquire it.
It is impossible for domestic websites to achieve the same results.
However, YouTube spent US$300 million to acquire Yiku.com.
What kind of grade is Yiku.com? That kind of stinky fish and rotten shrimp can be worth 300 million US dollars.
Although the "China Internet Development Research Association" has praised Yiku.com, it seems to be the next star in the domestic video website field after Qvod.com.
This kind of report is fine to fool ordinary people and Internet laymen, but to the owners of video websites, the report is pure nonsense.
They are all in the same industry, so no one knows who the other is.
Although I don’t know the other party’s real data, I can still make a rough estimate based on my own situation.
What's more, the data in the report by the "China Internet Development Research Association" are all false except for Qvod.com, and it can't be false anymore.
When the secretary-general of the association came to them to ask for data, everyone had a tacit understanding to optimize their data.
They didn’t dare to add more. At most, they added between 100% and 150%.
But after the report came out, the above data was watered down based on their optimization.
However, everyone has chosen to remain silent on this matter. Anyway, the report is meant to deceive netizens and laypeople, as well as investors. It is beneficial to the entire industry, so why should everyone be disappointed.
Of course, this report is not without merit.
These people on the video website can also roughly estimate the situation of other peers based on the reported data.
Yiku.com’s outrageous data can actually be sold for 300 million US dollars.
No one cares about the lack of money at all.
Many entrepreneurs dream that a big boss can acquire them, so that they can freely use their money and wealth.
Whoever wants to do the business of starting a business can do it, but I won’t do it anymore.
Even if we don’t have 300 million US dollars, it’s okay to give our video websites a 20% discount, and as time goes by, the valuation of video websites will also increase.
So when news of two consecutive acquisitions of video websites emerged in the industry, all domestic video websites instantly became popular and sought after by various venture capital investors.
Many websites have received investment more or less and can survive for a while.
Nowadays, the video website track is full of vitality and everything is competing.
Since the video website emerged, it has attracted the attention of large companies in the industry.
Qin Shaoyan doesn’t need to brag about video. Everyone knows that it is one of the future development trends of the Internet.
Evolve from text to pictures, and then from pictures to videos.
So no one wants to miss the track in this field.
It’s just that it’s still in a rough and tumble stage, and major domestic Internet companies are still waiting and watching.
They are not like the Internet giants ten or twenty years from now. With their abundant funds and channels, they can join without thinking and then use brute force to push forward.
The big Internet companies in this period have not yet formed the BAT Big Three. Instead, they are led by three US stock listed companies, the three portals Sohu, NetEase, and Sina.
Coupled with Penguin, which is already showing signs of rising, and Baidu, which has mastered the search engine as a huge traffic portal, Alibaba is also integrating in the e-commerce field.
The current richest man on the Internet is Shanda Chen Tianqiao, who started his career through online games.
At present, these large Internet companies do not have the strength of giants, so everyone chooses to take a look before talking.
Of course, taking a look and then talking does not mean doing nothing.
For example, Sohu established a video website early and is gearing up to choose a good time to do something big again.
But what Zhang Chaoyang didn't expect was that before the good opportunity he was waiting for came, something went wrong in his own backyard.
First, Sohu president Gu Yongqiang ran away, and later became Youku.
Then Li Shanyou, senior vice president of Sohu, ran away and started Ku6.
Later, Wang Jianjun, senior vice president of Sohu, also ran away and went to 56.com.
This series of defections made Zhang Chaoyang almost vomit blood, and he was almost depressed.
Do you think of me as the Internet Whampoa Military Academy?
Resigning one by one to start a business obviously doesn't take me, Zhang Chaoyang, seriously.
Not to mention that they were suspected of competing with Sohu Video when they set up a video website. Several senior executives left, and suddenly there were vacancies in the business they were responsible for, leaving Sohu in a hurry.
Zhang Chaoyang spent a lot of effort to put things in order, and now he finally has his hands free.
Coupled with the great news of Microsoft's acquisition of YouTube, Zhang Chaoyang was also very excited, thinking that Sohu should also take action.
Although he does not understand video websites, there are not many people in the entire industry who understand video websites.
But it doesn't matter, he can ask someone for advice.
So Zhang Chaoyang came directly to Qin Shaoyan to talk.
Who knows more about video websites on the Internet today than Qin Shaoyan.
Zhang Chaoyang said that he wanted to ask about Qvod.com. Qin Shaoyan pondered for two seconds and said slowly: "What does Mr. Zhang want to know?"
"Mr. Qin talked about the prospects and prospects of video websites. Development." Zhang Chaoyang said straight to the point.
Qin Shaoyan smiled and said, "Mr. Zhang, you really praise me. You are a senior of the Internet and the boss of Sohu. Aren't I just trying to do what I do best?"
"Besides, I can't do anything like Qvod.com. We have invested money, and there are dedicated people responsible for the specific management. It is a bit inappropriate for you to ask me to talk about Kuaibo." "Mr. Qin is being humble." Zhang Chaoyang waved his hand, "Currently, your Kuaibo.com is the only one in the country. Other video websites are simply not enough to watch.”
“Quabo.com was founded by you, and the planning and development of the entire website were made by you.”
“If you don’t understand, then no one will.”
Zhang Chaoyang suddenly smiled, "Mr. Qin single-handedly created YouTube in the United States and sold it for 2.3 billion U.S. dollars. This achievement alone cannot be matched by Internet people in the entire world."
“Mr. Qin has really made a huge fortune.”
The relationship between Qin Shaoyan and YouTube cannot be hidden from interested people in the industry, not to mention that Zhang Chaoyang returned from studying in the United States, where The edge is also relevant.
Zhang Chaoyang estimated that Qin Shaoyan made at least one billion U.S. dollars from this transaction, which made him envious and jealous for a while.
That’s a billion dollars.
Qin Shaoyan chuckled and said casually: "How can I get rich? I'm just a passing god of wealth. I'll just grab some bones to eat."
Zhang Chaoyang was not interested in who the boss behind Qin Shaoyan was, so he came here specifically to ask for advice.
"This also shows that Mr. Qin is very capable." Zhang Chaoyang said with emotion, "It was a big business of 2.3 billion US dollars as soon as it was launched. It can be said that no one has ever achieved such results as YouTube, a video website. , it will be difficult for anyone to come later.”
“The video website track is called the track. It can be said that it was founded by Mr. Qin. No one knows this field better than you.”< br>
"This..." Qin Shaoyan was a little bit dumbfounded. Zhang Chaoyang kept giving him high hats, which made him very surprised.
After all, the other party is also the boss of the three major portals and a big boss of the domestic Internet.
Zhang Chaoyang didn't care at all. Anyway, he said he was obedient and didn't cost money.
Besides, Qin Shaoyan is not a nobody. He has two powerful tools, campus network and fast broadcast network. Although he is not on an equal footing with him, his strength should not be underestimated.
What's more, Qin Shaoyan's real strength is not as simple as it appears on the surface. Zhang Chaoyang is very clear about the base of the young man in front of him.
The Facebook network in the United States and the newly sold YouTube were both founded by Qin Shaoyan, and they are both nominally major shareholders.
The market value of these two heavyweight websites is so much higher than that of Sohu alone that I don’t know where it is.
Beginning on April 16 this year, Sohu’s stock price fell by 3% at the close of Nasdaq. Its market value was surpassed by TOM Online, and it fell out of the top three portals.
Sohu is not favored by Wall Street. Its market value has been hovering around US$600 million for most of the year, ranking last among a dozen Chinese concept stocks.
In terms of performance, Sohu’s revenue has also declined for three consecutive quarters.
The stock price has stayed around US$17 for a long time, and Sohu has been repeatedly criticized recently.
Zhang Chaoyang declared to the outside world that it was nonsense to talk about Sohu’s strategic transformation.
Sohu will still adhere to its established strategy: balanced development, pentathlon, and then seek breakthroughs.
At this time, Zhang Chaoyang insisted that Sohu continue to make acquisitions.
From 2000 to 2005, Sohu has made five acquisitions, some of which can produce short-term benefits, and some of which are to "build future competitiveness."
Sohu’s five acquisitions involve different fields, and are described by the industry as “attacking from all sides.”
At this time, the portal's revenue comes from five major business areas: content, search, online games, wireless value-added, and e-commerce.
In none of these five fields, Sohu has a leading advantage. No matter which field it intervenes in, Sohu faces strong leaders and has become a typical follower.
External criticism of Sohu's "big and comprehensive" layout has resulted in Sohu not having outstanding businesses, leading to unclear positioning.
As specialized companies such as games, search, and instant messaging continue to mature, Sohu The original first-mover advantage and brand effect are weakening with the "big and comprehensive" strategy.
Sohu’s big and comprehensive strategy seems to be a comprehensive follow-up, but in fact it is comprehensive but not big. The most important thing is that it can never find its own characteristics.
A portal website without characteristics is dangerous.
Income, scale and profit are hard indicators to measure a portal website. Only portals with characteristics have a future.
Of course Zhang Chaoyang is aware of Sohu's current predicament, but he still adheres to his strategy. Now he has set his sights on video websites and is preparing to find a new breakthrough point.
Sohu.com is in trouble now. Among the three major portals, NetEase has made a lot of money from Fantasy Westward Journey. It has become a standout from the three pillars.
Sina is constantly fighting within itself, and Sohu is in this situation again, so he came specifically to find Qin Shaoyan.
In hindsight, the matter of comprehensive development was a bad move, but under the circumstances at the time, no one had any plug-ins to predict the future, and they were all groping forward in the fog of the future.
No one dares to guarantee what the future will bring. Zhang Chaoyang’s all-out attack is to find a field suitable for Sohu as much as possible, because giving up a field is equivalent to giving up an opportunity for success.
"Mr. Qin, we at Sohu are very generous when it comes to pixels. We just want to have a good relationship. Coupled with the cooperation agreement between you and Mr. He Jingmei, our two families can be said to have a close relationship. "
Zhang Chaoyang began to play the emotional card again, "Mr. Xiong and I are old friends. He is also an investor in Campus Network and Qvod Network. Considering this level of relationship, Mr. Qin Don't treat me badly."
Xiong Xiaoge next to me was stunned, wondering what Zhang Chaoyang was doing, why did he drag me along?
Qin Shaoyan glanced at Xiong Xiaoge and had to sigh, "Since Mr. Zhang said it for this reason, it really makes no sense for me not to say something today."
"Then I will just say it casually, Mr. Zhang Quan Just listen to the joke, don’t take it too seriously.”
“Video is the future of the Internet, I always insist on this view,” Qin Shaoyan said slowly, “There are too many competitors in video websites, and they are developing blindly. Chaos.”
“Of course, I’m not blaming other entrepreneurs, all industries are like this at the beginning.”
“Now video websites can be divided into two models. It is the UGC model, where users upload and share content, such as YouTube, and the other is the PGC model developed by Qvod.”
"The PGC model relies on professional production to produce content. Mr. Zhang can understand the difference here, right?"
Zhang Chaoyang nodded. One is Yeluzi's content production, which has low production costs and large production volume. It all depends on users’ spontaneous uploading and sharing.
However, most of this content is rough, and the picture is not clear due to the impact of the shooting equipment. It is just for fun.
The other is to rely on professionals to produce content, which is more attractive to users. After all, everyone has come from watching movies and TV series.
However, this shortcoming is more obvious, that is, there are a large number of TV sets, and most domestic Internet users are still used to watching TV.
After all, in terms of fluency and picture quality, TV series have more advantages. The only disadvantage is that you cannot freely choose the content to play.
“So Mr. Qin’s Qvod.com is constantly buying the Internet copyrights of movies and TV series.” Zhang Chaoyang thoughtfully said, “You want to move all these professionally produced contents to the Internet.”< br>
"Yes." Qin Shaoyan said with a smile, "I am firmly optimistic about the future of the Internet. I think it will be a matter of time before computers surpass televisions, and it may only take ten years."
Ten Years are too far away, and the Internet is developing so fast now that life or death may be decided in three to five years.
Zhang Chaoyang is not interested in the next ten years, he is interested in the present, "Mr. Qin, I have a question."
"You created both YouTube and Qvod. Why did you choose two completely different models? Is it to test which model can succeed?"
"Of course not." Qin Shaoyan was very frank. He replied, "Because the national conditions of China and the United States are different, YouTube is suitable for the United States, but not necessarily for China."
(End of Chapter)