Nancy Brill rolled her eyes at Simon as Ahrendts once again couldn't suppress a chuckle, and the three of them went into an adjacent conference room.
They each sat down, and Nancy flipped to the end of the document she had just shown Simon, saying, "According to this statistical report from the analysis team, in Blockbuster's video rental and sales revenue, the top 100 films on the North American box office chart released within the last year only accounted for 37% of the total revenue. Because film studios take a higher share from popular new releases, the gross profit share from this content is even lower, only 29%".
Simon looked at the document in front of him, noticing that Angela Ahrendts also leaned in.
He nudged the folder towards her and asked Nancy, "What are you trying to say?"
Nancy reached over with a slender index finger and underlined the key data, saying, "These data show that the 80/20 rule, where 20% of popular films in the theatrical market account for 80% of box office share, is ineffective in the video market.
In fact, as Blockbuster continues to expand and its content becomes richer, the corresponding data will reverse. The 20% of films that provide 80% of box office revenue for theatres will still only bring in 20% of the revenue for the video industry".
Simon thought back carefully, and indeed, he had some vague, similar memories in his mind, so he looked up at Nancy, waiting for her to continue.
Nancy then said, "The percentage of North American households owning VCRs was only 2% in 1980, but now it's close to 70%. Industry forecasts predict that over 80% of North American households will own VCRs in the next few years. Furthermore, the output value of the North American video industry is also rapidly increasing.
Three years ago, it just surpassed the domestic box office, and last year, its revenue reached $8.3 billion, almost double the box office revenue. Although the North American video market will reach saturation in the next few years, its total revenue will still be at least 2.5 times that of the domestic box office, and the potential of the global video market should be comparable to North America".
After Nancy finished speaking, Simon nodded and asked, "So?"
"Therefore, I suggest the company enrich Daenerys Entertainment's film library resources through acquisitions. Because the rise of the video industry has been so rapid, the home entertainment distribution of many classic films still holds significant commercial potential.
Just like Universal's 'E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial', which was released in 1982 and only had its video release in October last year, in just six months, global sales have surpassed 11 million copies.
I believe Orion Pictures is a very suitable acquisition target. It owns the copyrights to hundreds of film and television works, and the quality of its content is very high.
By accumulating a collection of excellent film and television resources, combined with Blockbuster's retail channels, we can regularly and proactively promote this content through planned marketing activities, just like Disney continuously re-releases classic animations".
Although the success of 'Run Lola Run' and 'Pulp Fiction' still couldn't stop Orion Pictures' decline, as Nancy said, the quality of the film and television copyrights held by the company was indeed very high.
Over the past decade or so, Orion not only released a large number of films that were both box office hits and award winners, such as 'Amadeus' and 'Platoon', but also owned the rights to popular commercial films like 'The Terminator', 'RoboCop', and 'First Blood'.
Woody Allen's recent films have also been collaborations with Orion.
The reasons why this film company, which should have been vibrant, found itself in trouble were very complex.
Overly eager to pursue parity with traditional Hollywood major studios and blind expansion, an increase in the number of films released by the company led to unstable box office performance, executives who were skilled in filmmaking but not in corporate management, a chaotic financial system with uncontrolled production costs, and even the overall deterioration of the entertainment industry environment.
Orion's cautionary tale was right before their eyes.
If it weren't for the foundation of several successful films last year and the stable income from TV reality shows, Simon would absolutely strictly limit Daenerys Entertainment's expansion pace.
Moreover, Simon's strict control over Daenerys Entertainment's finances, his emphasis on marketing, and his management of the company culture were all aimed at avoiding repeating the mistakes of companies like Orion as much as possible.
Inside the conference room.
Simon also strongly agreed with Nancy's suggestion to expand Daenerys Entertainment's film library resources.
In the early 1980s, Hollywood studios didn't pay much attention to their film libraries.
When Michael Eisner first joined in 1984, he valued Disney's film library at only $200 million.
However, with the rapid rise of the video industry, the classic animated film 'Cinderella', released years earlier in 1950, sold over 7 million copies, bringing Disney more than $200 million in revenue, and the value of Disney's film library soared tenfold as a result.
In the original timeline, due to the success of 'Sleepless in Seattle', a 1950s romance film repeatedly mentioned in the movie, 'An Affair to Remember', also unexpectedly benefited, selling 2 million video copies, much to everyone's surprise, a windfall for the film studio.
Furthermore, not only through video, but films in these libraries can also continue to generate substantial returns through re-releases, remakes, cable television broadcasts, and other channels.
It can be said that the film library resources held by major Hollywood studios are actually valuable gold mines.
Closing the document in front of him, Simon said, "I will seriously consider this, Nancy. From now on, some important data reports from the analysis company can be sent to my office. Now, take me to see the film data database you've been preparing".
Nancy didn't press Simon to move forward with this matter this time.
She was also aware of Daenerys Entertainment's current financial situation.
Although the company's cash flow was very abundant, it was not enough to acquire Orion.
The reason she made this suggestion was because she was confident that Simon was continuously earning large profits in the Japanese financial market, and that money should be sufficient at that time.
After discussing this matter, the three of them went up to the third floor together.
This was where the film data database team was located.
The film data database Nancy was planning was, of course, not a traditional paper-based archive, but a computerized electronic archive.
"For the film data collection, I assigned some efficient student part-timers in Los Angeles to complete it, which saves a lot of costs", Nancy said, leading the two through the office area, and also visiting the Sun workstation in the third-floor computer room.
Coming out of the computer room, Nancy couldn't help but complain to Simon again, "According to your request, we used Oracle's database software, and the result was truly terrible. That Larry Ellison is simply a big liar.
Not only does the software always have bugs, but every time our technical staff calls to ask for a solution, he equivocates, saying they've already found the problem and are working on improvements.
I think if we hadn't given feedback, he wouldn't even know how poor the quality of his software is. That guy also wants to get some orders for Blockbuster's database software, and he's been constantly calling to bother me recently".
Simon hadn't expected his female executive to see through Larry Ellison's 'essence' so easily, and he nodded with great satisfaction, saying, "However, sometimes liars are always more likely to succeed than ordinary people".
Nancy walked side by side with Simon, and upon hearing this, she slightly tilted her head and gave him a disdainful glance, as if classifying her boss.
Angela Ahrendts walked on the other side, noticing this subtle little interaction between the two, and found it very interesting.
Although she had only had one lunch with Simon, Angela Ahrendts could still feel the indifference and detachment he inherently had towards others, but towards Nancy, he showed a clear indulgence.
Just like the Blockbuster matter earlier.
Angela felt that if she hadn't received tacit approval or authorization, she would never have dared to interfere with the management of a subsidiary on her own initiative.
She believed that Simon was definitely not the kind of person who liked his executives to act that way.
But Nancy had silently 'appointed' herself as a senior operations consultant for Blockbuster, and Simon had merely smiled it off.
The three entered an office, and Nancy called over a weekend duty employee to demonstrate the details of the database to everyone.
Simon had previously provided Nancy with a memo based on the IMDb website model, however, the film data database in front of them was vastly different from the IMDb he remembered.
The creation of this database had only one purpose—utility.
Therefore, all the features Simon mentioned in the memo, such as trivia, reviews, and message boards, were absent.
The film data only listed relevant information that could assist Daenerys Analysis Company, such as story synopsis, film genre, core creative team, box office data, and media reviews.
Furthermore, although the database's interactive window featured a graphical interface similar to the web browsers he remembered, the film data was entirely in text mode, without a single image.
In addition to basic movie data, the technical team responsible for database creation also planned to develop a comprehensive analysis software that would integrate regular feedback from Blockbuster's terminal data management system.
In short, Nancy Brill had no intention of replicating an IMDb that could serve the general public. Her objective was very clear: to combine this series of resources to achieve the ultimate goal outlined in her original report; to improve Blockbuster's operational efficiency, reduce operating costs, and enhance corporate competitiveness.
Compared to the convenience of big data era websites, which can directly analyse user behaviour through backend access data, the methods currently employed by Daenerys Analytics, in Simon's view, were still very primitive. However, this concept was already far ahead of its contemporaries.
As Simon listened to Nancy explain a small case study about the surge in Stephen King horror film sales last month, driven by the release of 'Pet Sematary', and Blockbuster's timely response based on terminal feedback data, he couldn't help but recall 'An Affair to Remember'.
One of the biggest advantages of Daenerys Analytics was its ability to facilitate more refined allocation of film and television resources, and to do so with a reaction speed far exceeding that of its competitors.
It's conceivable that if 'Sleepless in Seattle' is released as scheduled in the next few years and boosts sales of 'An Affair to Remember' videotapes...
While competitors in the industry were still reacting, Blockbuster, through user demand feedback provided by Daenerys Analytics, would be able to quickly procure and distribute 'An Affair to Remember' videotapes.
At that time, among the 2 million potential demands stimulated by 'Sleepless in Seattle', Blockbuster would undoubtedly seize the largest share of the pie thanks to its first-mover advantage.
Not only that, as consumers gradually discover that Blockbuster can always provide the content they want at the first opportunity, the company will certainly become the first choice for users looking to buy or rent videotapes. Blockbuster's competitiveness will also increase through this subtle process.
Ultimately, the adage "details determine success" also applies to business operations.
Simon spent an afternoon at the Daenerys Analytics headquarters. Besides confirming that his investment would be worthwhile due to the company's achievements, he was also inspired by the movie database to realize that now was the time to start planning for the internet.
In fact, Simon's preparations in this area had already begun long ago.
Most of the technology companies in which Westeros Inc. holds stakes are closely connected to the upcoming internet era.
Furthermore, beyond publicly listed companies like Microsoft, James Raybould had previously completed an investment in Cisco, acquiring a 15% stake. Recently, he also successfully facilitated the renaming of Quantum-Link, the predecessor of America Online, in which Westeros Inc. holds a 25% stake, to American Online.
Cisco, as a network equipment provider, and America Online, as a network service provider, are perfectly positioned to provide the technical foundation for the rise of the internet.
What is currently missing are network content providers and a global internet concept that unifies these three elements.
If he remembered correctly, Tim Berners-Lee, the founder of the internet concept, would formally propose the World Wide Web (WWW) concept this year.
Then, the electronic computer network, which had been brewing since the 1960s, would officially take off.
On the first day Simon returned to work after the weekend, he instructed Jennifer to help him gather all sorts of information related to computer networks.
Since network equipment providers and network service providers were already in place, Simon's next step was to gain an early advantage in network content…
Burbank.
Rene Russo drove away from Universal Studios, feeling a bit disgusted as she recalled the innuendos from the nearly seventy-year-old director she had just auditioned for.
He had no decision-making power, yet he still wanted a free meal.
Did he think I was easy to fool?
He should take a look at his own foolish self.
Today was Friday, May 12th, 1989.
Unbeknownst to her, a week had passed, yet many details of that night became even clearer in her mind.
Moreover...
Touching the Gucci floral scarf still tied around her neck, a strong sense of resentment inexplicably arose within her.
She had originally thought that the experience of that night would improve her situation in Hollywood, but nothing had changed.
That hateful young man.
Scoundrel!
Jerk!
Villain!
The lead role in 'Ghost', which Demi Moore was pursuing, was still undecided, so naturally, she couldn't even dream of it.
It really was just a dream.
She drove slowly for a while, growing angrier the more she thought about it. So, she untied the scarf from her neck, and when she passed a trash can, she stopped the car, rolled down the window, and prepared to throw it out. She hesitated for a moment, noticed the owner of the roadside newsstand staring at her, and managed to find a plausible excuse to pull the scarf back in.
She casually pointed to a copy of the "Los Angeles Times," took out some change, and handed it over.
She seemed to have seen the name Daenerys Entertainment in the newspaper, and her curiosity was piqued.
Lately, she couldn't help but pay attention to this company's affairs.
She took the newspaper and drove to a nearby outdoor cafe, where she parked.
She got out, found a seat, ordered a cup of coffee, and casually opened the newspaper.
It turned out to be news about Daenerys Entertainment and ABC Television Network's new contract for the second season of 'Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'. Did a TV show really need to make headlines?
However...
She glanced at the subtitle and discovered that Daenerys Entertainment had lost a whopping $80 million in profit with the signing of this new contract.
Tsk.
Her mood instantly brightened.
So, she waved over the waiter and ordered another dessert.
Her figure could wait.
She'd celebrate this first.
Sipping her coffee, she carefully read the article in the newspaper.
Then she couldn't help but click her tongue in amazement.
Oh my goodness.
A simple quiz show could actually earn $250 million. Was it a robbery?
Even after conceding $80 million in the new season's contract, that guy still seemed to earn a bit more than ABC.
Hmm.
170 million dollars.
She couldn't help but start fantasizing.
If she had $170 million, how would she spend it?
The thought quickly faded as she rationally dismissed it; there was probably no hope for that in this lifetime.
She had always been a rational person.
Raised solely by her mother, she rarely indulged in unrealistic fantasies. She dropped out of school at 16 to work and help support the family. Later, she unexpectedly became a model and even gained some fame, but she was always plagued by the life pressures that had accumulated since childhood. At thirty, realizing her modelling career had completely stalled, she hastily attempted to transition into acting.
She started in community theatre and even enrolled in acting classes, but it wasn't until two years ago that she landed a small role in a TV series.
Things were finally looking up a bit.
She still understood that age was her biggest disadvantage.
Last month, her first film, a baseball story called 'Major League', finally premiered. She played a woman who returns to a playboy several times after being dumped, which she felt was incredibly foolish. In real life, if she met a guy like that, she would never give him a second chance. If he dared to bother her, she'd beat him up first, then call the police.
Hmm.
She seemed to have already met one.
That one doesn't count.
'Major League' did quite well at the box office, grossing over $30 million in its first month.
She also successfully landed new audition opportunities.
But she was disgusted.
Having experienced the world, she was well aware of the various dark sides of these circles, and she wouldn't normally react this way. Perhaps it was because of that experience last Friday night.
Alas.
That hateful young man.
Lost in various thoughts, she finished her coffee and read the entire newspaper, managing to only eat a few bites of the dessert.
As dusk fell, she was about to leave after paying the bill when her pager in her bag rang.
She took it out and glanced at it. Her agent wanted her to call back, urgently, so she walked towards a payphone booth.
An inexplicable sense of anticipation arose within her.
The call connected, and the other end relayed that Simon Westeros wanted her to go to an address in Beverly Hills at 8 PM.
Her agent's tone was very excited.
She herself was perhaps a little excited, and also a little resistant.
She wasn't the kind of woman who would come at a moment's notice.
However, seeing as he still remembered her, she would go and see. But tonight, she definitely couldn't let him succeed again; men never cherish things they get too easily.
She hung up the phone and checked the time. It was already 6:50 PM.
She quickly walked towards her car.
She still needed to go back to her place to get ready. This, well, was just for politeness, as the clothes she was wearing were for the afternoon audition and weren't very flattering.