I am Hollywood

[Chapter 1043: Of Course, You'll Play the Villain]

Eric did not know about Howard Stringer's underhanded maneuvers. His response was shaped by years of adapting to the surrounding environment and following the 'politically correct' rules of American conduct.

In a society like North America, issues extend beyond racial discrimination. There are plenty of things one can do but never say. Those who voice their true thoughts were either drunk or foolish. Moreover, even if one acted on those thoughts, they would never admit to it.

Clinton, still beleaguered by the zipper scandal, was undoubtedly a master of this avoidance, though he was unlucky enough to have people hold evidence against him.

After bidding farewell to Nobuyuki Idei, Eric did not go far. After turning a corner, he instructed his driver to stop.

...

A moment later, Bill Machanick followed in a car, parking not far behind Eric. He hopped out and jogged over.

The driver exited and opened the door for him. Bill Machanick carefully settled inside and respectfully greeted, "Mr. Williams?"

"Just call me Eric," he said with a smile. Bill Machanick was about the same age as Katzenberg. However, due to his growing influence and personal factors, Eric didn't feel anything awkward about being respectful to someone like Bill. He got straight to the point. "After the deal is done, do you plan on staying?"

Bill Machanick quickly nodded. "Of course, if that's possible."

"I've looked over your work history from your time at Disney. You were directly involved in the distribution of their animation film tapes. Jeffrey also believes you could continue to lead Columbia Pictures. So, during this time, take a good think about the future direction of Columbia. The studio will continue to operate independently. I hope you can get it on the right track as soon as the deal is completed."

Bill Machanick felt a rush of excitement. With his understanding of Eric from Hollywood, if Eric didn't intend to merge Columbia into Firefly Group, his future power would significantly rise. As long as Columbia could resurge, he would undoubtedly become one of the significant figures in the major studios.

Trying to maintain calm, Bill Machanick asked, "So, Eric, what's going on with all these recent events?"

Eric thought for a moment and replied, "The news about Firefly acquiring Sony Pictures should be announced soon. However, projects that have already been produced will proceed as per the usual marketing process. Everything else, including films that have begun shooting or are in preparation, will be put on hold. Please compile a list for me when you go back."

Recently, it was crucial for Sony Pictures to finalize its production and distribution plans for the next year.

However, Bill Machanick also understood what attitude he should display at this moment. Furthermore, in terms of business scope, Sony Pictures was minuscule when compared to the other studios under Firefly. Even a complete halt wouldn't incur significant losses.

As long as he received resources from Firefly, Bill Machanick felt very confident he could revitalize Columbia Pictures. Thus, he nodded eagerly, "I'll get on it right away."

Eric was very pleased with Bill Machanick's attitude and handed him a business card, saying, "For now, here's my card. If anything comes up, feel free to call me."

Bill Machanick took the card and tucked it away. Seeing that Eric had no further instructions, he took his leave.

...

The news of Firefly's acquisition of Sony's film business was officially announced the following Wednesday.

Almost ten years had passed, yet Americans still held a grudge about the Japanese companies aggressively entering North America back then. The Los Angeles Times boldly titled it "Hollywood Regains Lost Ground," suggesting that Americans had once again seized control of the entire Hollywood landscape.

However, while part of the populace rejoiced, another segment realized that with Firefly successfully acquiring Sony's film business, it would now control four of the seven major studios in Hollywood. Such a situation had never arisen in the history of Hollywood, and given the strong stance Eric had shown towards Sony's film division over just one screenplay, various parties in Hollywood inevitably began to worry.

As a result, media discussions regarding the potential monopoly that Firefly could form in Hollywood started to intensify.

Uncertain whether it was genuine pressure from public opinion or someone intentionally meddling, one week after the announcement, when Firefly submitted a transaction application to the U.S. Department of Justice for the acquisition of Sony Pictures, they soon received a subpoena from the Antitrust Division, requiring Firefly's executives to attend a related hearing to explain the potential monopoly issues arising from the acquisition.

...

Firefly Studios.

In the Gravity set, while other crew members hustled to prepare for the next shot, Eric sat at the control panel, perusing the subpoena delivered by the Justice Department to Chris, who had just arrived from New York. He remarked, "So our president seems to think he doesn't have enough troubles, or does he believe he's about to be impeached and wants to indulge a little before it happens?"

The zipper scandal, which erupted earlier in the year, showed no signs of calming down. In fact, it seemed to intensify.

Recently, the U.S. House of Representatives had initiated the impeachment voting process against Clinton, intending to charge him with obstruction of justice and perjury. If the vote succeeded, Clinton would become the third president in U.S. history to be impeached.

At such a critical moment, Clinton desperately needed media support. He had no reason to offend Firefly Group, making the subpoena particularly perplexing.

Chris, wearing a slight smile, replied, "Before I came here, I spoke with Janet Reno over the phone. She suggested that the Antitrust Division received anonymous materials and that some pressure was coming from the Republicans, forcing them to take action. Yet this hearing is likely just a formality. If the Clinton administration wanted to target Firefly, the subpoena would have gone to you and not me."

Hearing Chris's explanation, Eric decided not to pry further. Many political matters became convoluted and messy. Besides, acquiring Sony Pictures meant that Firefly's market share in Hollywood did not reach the levels of ExxonMobil in the energy sector or AT&T in telecommunications. Even if someone were to stir the pot and introduce complications to the acquisition, the final outcome would remain unchanged.

Returning the subpoena to Chris, Eric recalled his earlier question with curiosity. "By the way, who is Janet Reno?"

Chris accepted the subpoena, slid it into a notebook, and placed it into his briefcase while explaining, "She's the Attorney General. She hopes you can attend the hearing in Washington next Tuesday."

Eric immediately shook his head. "I can't stand those kinds of occasions. You can go without me."

Chris chuckled. "Then I'll go alone. Also, Yahoo's latest IPO plan has been finalized. The company's original stock was split five-for-one, bringing the total shares to 1,082,500,000. The issuance of new shares will be 150 million, with the issuance price temporarily set at $33. Based on this price, Morgan Stanley values Yahoo at about $35.7 billion. The new stock issuance accounts for approximately 13.85% of total shares, raising $4.905 billion in funds. I've already sent the detailed proposal to Ms. Haines; you should take a look when you have the chance."

Firefly had started discussion with Morgan Stanley about Yahoo's IPO plan earlier that year. However, as the Nasdaq market continued to shift, the initial concept had long been abandoned. Yahoo's eventual listing date was set for late November, roughly two months from now, so this plan was essentially the final version.

Digesting the information Chris had just relayed, Eric suddenly sighed. "Another roughly $5 billion, huh?"

Chris laughed and asked, "What, are you starting to lose faith?"

Eric honestly nodded. The more he understood the stock market, the more anxious he became about Yahoo's IPO prospects.

From his perspective, America Online was fortunate to have capitalized on the right moment.

The Nasdaq index had smoothly broken the 2000-point mark, and with Morgan Stanley's optimistic outlook on the Nasdaq, alongside the need for investment opportunities as capital flowed back from Southeast Asia and Russia, Firefly Investment had successfully reduced its stake in America Online's shares.

However, given the increasingly aggressive growth of the Nasdaq, it was very likely the index would breach the 2500-point mark quickly by the end of the year.

Selling America Online stock between 2000 and 2500 points was reasonable, but as the tech stock bubble continued to inflate, should the Nasdaq index hit the 2500 to 3000 point range, Wall Street investors would once again raise their vigilance and concerns about a stock market crash.

In this situation, Yahoo's chances of smoothly going public faced many uncontrollable factors.

Eric even worried that Yahoo's IPO could truly become the final straw that broke the back of the tech stock bubble, as some media outlets claimed. Although Yahoo's $35.7 billion valuation fell short of his expectations, it still showed significant bubble components from various perspectives.

With the successful reduction of shares in America Online, Eric increasingly realized that any high market value was insubstantial; only cash in hand truly mattered.

Chris could likely guess Eric's thoughts and reassured him. "During this time, my team has also worked with Morgan Stanley on a few investigations into the risks surrounding Yahoo's IPO. From the market feedback, as long as the overall Nasdaq does not face significant changes, the chances of Yahoo's IPO failing are low."

"What I worry about now is whether Yahoo itself may become a 'change' affecting the Nasdaq index's trajectory."

Chris clearly shared this concern, hesitating for a moment before stating, "In fact, if Yahoo's IPO were to fail, it wouldn't be the end of the world. We've already secured $10 billion from our divestment in America Online. After accounting for the expenditure on acquiring Sony Pictures, the remaining funds would still be sufficient to support Yahoo's expansion for several years."

Eric also felt he might be overthinking things. Considering his history of success, failing once didn't seem significant.

They chatted for a little longer when Nicole Frank signaled to Eric that the next shot was ready. Chris then rose, saying, "I'll head over to Culver City now; I have a meeting with the representatives from Sony."

Recently, Firefly's team had been auditing Sony Pictures' assets and liabilities, which was why Chris came to Los Angeles.

Eric stood up and accompanied Chris toward the exit of the studio, half-jokingly suggesting, "How about I take you out to some parties tonight to relax?"

"Ha, let's pass," Chris shook his head. "I'll likely fly to San Francisco early tonight anyway; Firefly Electronics is holding a board meeting tomorrow."

"Speaking of which, Sony should have contacted them to discuss the patent exchange. Be sure to tell Victor that we absolutely need to secure the mini camera module technology. Last time, Victor returned from Japan empty-handed, and if they mess up again this time, I won't hesitate to knock their heads together."

Chris pondered for a moment and responded, "Honestly, I'm a bit reluctant, too. If Sony acquires the technology for digital music players, their MD could pose the biggest threat to the Fireflyer player."

The two of them reached the studio entrance where many people were waiting. Eric had no intention of personally escorting Chris to the parking lot. He paused and continued, "As long as we restrict Sony to using only their ATRAC audio format. Given their internal troubles, I doubt they can independently promote an audio format, especially one with stringent copyright limitations. Just so you know, it took us five years from acquiring the MP2 patent to developing the Fireflyer player. Moreover, Firefly Electronics also needs a competitor. If they're at a disadvantage and still get surpassed by Sony, I'll just resign myself to it and fire all those guys."

Chris recognized Eric's firm stance and refrained from arguing further, wearing a slight smile. "Should I relay your exact words to them?"

"I'm the boss; I need to ensure I maintain my approachable image," Eric immediately shook his head, feigning righteousness. "Of course, you'll play the villain here."

Chris realized Eric was joking and nodded, smiling in return. "Alright, I'll be the bad cop."

*****

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