Audiences and fans who had just finished watching the finale were shocked by this news.
Everyone knew Meiyou had launched a new high-end brand!
Everyone knew Liu Shishi was endorsing Le Zhenyou!
Zhenyou had only just made its public debut, yet it was already an instant hit!
One could only say that Wang Yi's choice to officially announce Zhenyou during the finale of "Bu Bu Jing Xin" was perfectly timed.
As a result, many female fans learned about Zhenyou and were looking forward to new Zhenyou products!
After all, Meiyou was already so successful, having beaten HM and ZARA.
So, it wouldn't be impossible for Zhenyou to go further and compete with GUCCI, LV, and Prada.
Besides their brand, big names also depend on design.
Zhenyou's brand might not be as well-known as international big names, but its design was ten years ahead of them!
It could totally compete!
For a time, many female users were excited and looking forward to it.
There were also many discussions and speculations about Zhenyou on Weibo.
Some even discovered that Zhenyou's official Weibo account had been launched, and they followed it one after another.
Even more people, feeling they couldn't buy new Zhenyou products for now, simply went to the Meiyou mall and bought some Meiyou clothing...
Women's spending was like June rain, coming as soon as it was mentioned.
In a good mood, spend!
In a bad mood, also spend!
In a neutral mood, still spend!
In short, there were ten thousand reasons to spend...
Wang Yi didn't pay attention to these things; he just went to sleep.
Tomorrow, he still had to negotiate screens and storage chips!
However, the number of Meiyou users began to increase dramatically.
Many viewers of "Bu Bu Jing Xin" and fans of Liu Shishi were not originally Meiyou users.
Through the Zhenyou event, they learned about Meiyou, downloaded the Meiyou APP, and became Meiyou users!
Upon seeing Meiyou's beautiful "pure desire" style dresses and autumn wear, they felt like they had discovered a new continent!
They were so excited that they went on a shopping spree overnight!
You know, night is the easiest time to be impulsive!
Consequently, user growth soared, and Meiyou Mall's revenue and profit also surged again.
Overnight, the Meiyou APP gained another 1 million users, breaking through 27 million total users!
And it was still continuously increasing.
Wang Yi was not surprised by this.
Today, the 28th, Meiyou users breaking 30 million by night would be no problem!
And it would continue to surge dramatically in the next few days!
No other reason, "Bu Bu Jing Xin" was too hot right now, and Liu Shishi was too popular!
Even hotter than "Love Is Not Blind" and Ye Xiaohe.
After all, a movie is just one showing.
People get excited right after watching it, but after a few days, that excitement fades away.
But "Bu Bu Jing Xin" was different; it aired for so long continuously, with people staying up late to watch it every day.
Its influence was naturally much greater than the 90-minute "Love Is Not Blind"!
And the current Liu Shishi was much more famous than Ye Xiaohe.
Furthermore, "Love Is Not Blind" required paying to watch in cinemas.
Even if it grossed 500 million at the box office, only about 17 million people had seen it.
But "Bu Bu Jing Xin" was free and aired daily, so its audience was not tens of millions, but hundreds of millions!
Even after its initial TV broadcast ended, there were second, third runs...
On video platforms, it continuously stayed on the on-demand charts, with people watching it every day!
Hundreds of millions of viewers and fans, even if only a portion converted into Meiyou users, would be an astronomical number!
Precisely because "Bu Bu Jing Xin" and Liu Shishi had greater influence, Wang Yi had Ye Xiaohe endorse Meiyou and Liu Shishi endorse the more high-end Zhenyou!
"Love Is Not Blind" and Ye Xiaohe alone added nearly ten million new users to Meiyou.
So, how many new users would the even more formidable Liu Shishi bring to Meiyou and Zhenyou?
Ten million would definitely not be the limit!
With this wave of traffic, Wang Yi would once again win big!
With the two hottest endorsers of the year, Meiyou's user base breaking 30 million was just the beginning, and 40 million was only a matter of time!
Wang Yi was in a great mood and had breakfast with Takizawa Denichi.
Originally, Wang Yi planned to change hotels, but Takizawa Denichi disagreed, insisting that Wang Yi stay there.
After all, an order for 10 million units had been signed, the first payment had already arrived, and all subsequent batches would also be prepaid!
Such a generous super-client had to be taken seriously by Takizawa Denichi, who was also hoping to continue cooperation next year!
"Chairman Wang, after dinner, I'll take you to experience the local customs of Japan!"
Takizawa Denichi said with a smile, but Wang Yi refused:
"Sorry, Mr. Takizawa, I have to go to Toshiba to discuss mobile phone screens."
Only after chatting with Takizawa Denichi last night did Wang Yi realize a fact.
Currently, JDI was still being formed!
In 2009, Japan's official investment company, Innovation Network Corporation of Japan, promoted the integration of the small and medium-sized LCD display divisions of Sony, Toshiba, and Hitachi into a new company called "Japan Display," which is the famous JDI!
But too many interests were involved, so progress was slow.
It was only recently that everything was thoroughly negotiated, and the official announcement of their merger to form JDI was coming next.
However, the three major companies were still operating independently, and JDI would not officially start production until April next year!
So Wang Yi's screens could only be chosen from Sharp or Toshiba.
As for Sony, although it also had 720-resolution screens,
720 screens were considered new technology at the time, Sony's production capacity was limited, and most 720P screens were allocated to Sony's new mobile phones.
The quantity Wang Yi required was too large, and Sony was willing but unable!
"Oh, right, you're on a tight schedule for making phones."
Takizawa Denichi suddenly realized:
"Then I'll arrange a car for you, along with a driver familiar with Japan!"
"How can I trouble you so much?"
Wang Yi said with a smile.
"It's my honor! Chairman Wang, you are always my best friend! Sony's best friend!"
"Thank you."
Wang Yi was very satisfied with how sensible Sony was.
The large lens order next year would still go to Sony!
After all, Samsung's lenses were worse, and there was a risk of supply chain disruption, so Sony's lenses were clearly more appealing.
One's position determines one's stance!
Samsung phones were number one in global sales and would always be Samsung's main business.
No matter how profitable other components were, they had to make way for the phone business.
If it threatened Samsung's phones, Samsung would rather pay a penalty for breach of contract and still breach the contract to cut off supply!
But Sony was different!
Sony's phones were underperforming, their market share consistently in "others."
In another two years, Sony's phone business would suffer losses every year and eventually shut down completely...
It could be said that Sony's mobile phone division was Sony's most loss-making department, while the lens division was Sony's highest-earning department.
Later, Sony simply had a change of heart, abandoned its mobile phone business, and focused on selling lenses as its main business!
Therefore, cooperating with Sony, Wang Yi didn't have to worry about supply chain issues at all.
Similarly, the same applied to Sharp and Toshiba.
Their mobile phone businesses were also underperforming and were gradually abandoned, with their main business becoming selling components!
Cooperating with such a supply chain would be much more reassuring.
Like Samsung, which sells both phones and components,
being both a supplier and a competitor, no one felt at ease!
Takizawa Denichi directly arranged an Alphard and a driver for Wang Yi, serving him throughout.
They drove Wang Yi all the way to Toshiba headquarters.
"Thank you for driving us here."
Wang Yi smiled, wanting the driver to go back first.
But the driver waved his hand:
"Chairman Wang, you just go talk. After you're done, I'll drive you back!"
"How can I trouble you so much?"
"It's fine, Chairman Wang. The president instructed that my task for the next few days is to be your driver! If you send me back, I won't be able to report back!"
"Alright. Thank you for your hard work!"
Wang Yi patted the other's shoulder and walked towards Toshiba headquarters.
The four most core components of a mobile phone are: chip module, screen assembly, memory + flash memory, and camera module!
They are also the four most expensive components.
Among them, the chip module is the most expensive!
However, Qualcomm processors were still very cheap in 2011; the MSM8860 was only about 150 yuan.
But three years later, the Snapdragon 810, 820, rose to 60 US dollars, over 400 yuan!
In contrast, the 845 dropped to around 300 yuan.
The Snapdragon 855 was also around 400 yuan.
A major event occurred in 2019: a competitor was sanctioned, and Qualcomm began to act recklessly, raising prices aggressively.
The Snapdragon 865 launched that year directly increased in price by 50%, selling for over 600 yuan.
The subsequent Snapdragon 888 even directly surpassed 1000 yuan.
The later Snapdragon 8 Gen1 was around 1100 yuan.
You know, the total cost of the first-generation Xiaomi was only about 1300 yuan, and later it dropped to around 1000 yuan!
Yet, a single Qualcomm chip years later cost 1100 yuan!
No wonder Xiaomi phones sold for 2999, 3999, or even 4999 yuan, up from 1999 yuan...
It wasn't that Lei Jun forgot his original intention; it was mainly because Qualcomm chips increased in price too drastically!
If they still sold for 1999 yuan, they would definitely lose a lot of money!
And the current Qualcomm MSM8860 chip was only about 150 yuan.
Adding three other chips, such as dual power management chips, it was only 40-45 US dollars, within 300 yuan.
It was truly cheap!
Likewise, screen assemblies weren't as expensive back then as they would be years later.
A complete 4-inch, 480-resolution screen assembly for Xiaomi cost around 30 US dollars.
However, Wang Yi wanted a 4.3-inch, 720-resolution screen, which was a step up, so it would definitely be more expensive.
What price he could negotiate then would be the question.
Zhu Changlin had already contacted Toshiba before leaving, so someone was already waiting at the door.
"Chairman Wang, hello, I am Taiichi Ohashi, Director of Toshiba's Marketing Department. Welcome, Chairman Wang, to Toshiba for inspection!"
Taiichi Ohashi smiled and extended his hand.
Ever since learning that Wang Yi signed a large order for 10 million lens units with Sony last night, Taiichi Ohashi had been too excited to sleep.
He had been waiting for Wang Yi all day today!
Upon hearing that Wang Yi was coming, he even canceled other meetings and personally came to the entrance to greet Wang Yi!
Such a major client was truly too important.
There was nothing to be done; screen competition was even fiercer than lens competition!
In terms of lenses, only Sony and Samsung competed.
But screens were different!
The T0 echelon had Samsung, a super hegemon!
The T1 echelon included international giants like Sharp, LG, Sony, Toshiba, Hitachi, and Kyocera.
The T2 echelon included AUO, Tianma, and others...
Once Sony, Toshiba, and Hitachi completely merged into JDI, two more competitors would be eliminated.
But for now, they were still fighting their own battles, and competition was fierce.
After some pleasantries, Taiichi Ohashi led Wang Yi to the conference room, took out a dummy phone, and showed it to Wang Yi:
"Chairman Wang, as you can see, this is our latest Toshiba 720-resolution, 4.3-inch screen!"
Wang Yi took it, examining it carefully while thinking to himself:
'The resolution and size are exactly what I want!'
'Cool white screen, no yellowing, good screen quality, brightness is also acceptable...'
Wang Yi was very satisfied internally, but casually said:
"It's just so-so. No problem with production capacity, right?"
"No problem. Currently, there are few clients for 720P resolution, and production capacity is ample. Supplying you with one million units per month is no issue. How many do you need, Chairman Wang?"
Taiichi Ohashi was full of anticipation.
Unlike Sony, Toshiba only made feature phones and stopped production in 2007.
If Sony produced 720P screens that couldn't be sold, they could be used for Sony phones, for self-production and self-sale.
But if Toshiba produced 720P screens that couldn't be sold, they would truly be stuck with them!
Therefore, with ample production capacity, they urgently wanted to secure Wang Yi's large order of five million units!
Wang Yi smiled:
"How many depends on the price."
Taiichi Ohashi nodded:
"To be honest, 720 resolution products are the latest, so the cost is relatively expensive, much higher than 480. For a 4.3-inch screen assembly, it would be 45 US dollars!"
"How much?"
Wang Yi almost wanted to curse:
"Xiaomi buys screens for only 30 US dollars, and you're asking me for 45 US dollars, a full half more! Are you crazy?"
Taiichi Ohashi sighed:
"Chairman Wang, there's really no other way. It's the latest technology, a generation ahead of Xiaomi, so the cost is high."
"Don't talk about such useless things!"
Wang Yi waved his hand:
"I need a large quantity, so think carefully before quoting a price, don't scare me away!"
If he only needed a hundred thousand units, Wang Yi would also have to plead with everyone, just like Lei Jun.
Now that Wang Yi suddenly wanted five million units, he was the client, the sugar daddy!
He didn't need to be polite when speaking!
Instead, Taiichi Ohashi was bowing and scraping, afraid that Wang Yi would turn around and go to Sharp, Hitachi, or even Samsung...
Taiichi Ohashi thought for a moment:
"Chairman Wang, if you want five million units, I can give it to you for 42 US dollars!"
"Is that the lowest?"
"It's the lowest!"
Wang Yi nodded:
"Alright, then I'll go back and think about it!"
Wang Yi expected 720P screens to be more expensive than 480P screens, but he didn't expect them to be so much more expensive!
Xiaomi needed less, and a screen assembly cost 30 US dollars.
Wang Yi needed a large quantity, so pressing the screen price down to 24 dollars wouldn't be a big problem.
Even if 720 resolution was new technology and had higher costs, Wang Yi would accept it being 50% more expensive, at 36 dollars.
But Toshiba was asking him for 42 US dollars, a full 75% more expensive!
Damn, that's too much!
Seeing Wang Yi get up, about to leave, Taiichi Ohashi quickly said:
"Chairman Wang, it's almost noon, why don't you stay for a meal?"
Wang Yi waved his hand:
"I won't eat for now, I still have to rush to Kyoto."
"Kyoto, Kyocera!"
Taiichi Ohashi's expression changed dramatically; he knew Wang Yi was going to check out other suppliers.
In these times, Kyocera's screens were also good.
And the city next to Kyoto was Sharp, an even bigger LCD screen giant!
If Wang Yi went there, these five million screens would be snatched up by Kyocera and Sharp!
At once, Taiichi Ohashi became anxious:
"Chairman Wang, I've recalculated, if you want five million units, the price can be 40 US dollars!"
"Two more dollars cheaper!"
Wang Yi shook his head:
"It's still not low enough. You should know that as time goes on, the cost of screens will only get lower and lower. I need a large quantity, so you must lower the price to the absolute minimum!"
Taiichi Ohashi frowned tightly:
"Chairman Wang, if it's any lower, we won't have any profit!"
"What if there's no profit? Even if you don't make money on the first million screens, when costs come down later, you'll still make a good profit on the remaining four million screens! People need to have long-term vision."
With that said, Wang Yi turned and left.
As the client, he had to be arrogant.
Otherwise, this price wouldn't be pushed down at all!
As for whether Toshiba would compromise, that would depend on the psychological game!
(End of Chapter)