Chapter 837 Take Me as the Standard (5K)

The iPhone will be released on June 29 at 6:00 p.m.

In addition to brand fans, digital geeks, passers-by who have been attracted by Apple's recent publicity, and several related online and offline media, I'm afraid that Yike and T-Mobile are the ones who pay the most attention to it.

According to the news received by Fang Zhuo, manufacturers in the mobile phone industry have not shown obvious attention.

Or, their attention has not been shown in public channels.

At 3:00 p.m., Fang Zhuo, Yu Hong, and Pan Ben, one of the heads of the European market, held an online meeting to review recent work and inevitably talked about the release of the iPhone.

Among them, one of the key points is advertising.

When the meeting was about to end, because the cooperation negotiations with the operator were relatively smooth, everyone discussed their own advertising style more easily.

A large-scale advertising push for the iPhone is to hold the phone in one hand to operate, which is very simple and unpretentious.

Of course, it is not that Apple cannot shoot gorgeous advertisements, but touch-screen mobile phones are still new to consumers. At this time, it is necessary to use pragmatic "explanatory advertisements" to let more people understand what is going on.

But for Yike, the promotional choices can be more unrestrained.

"Google contacted us specifically to ask about the arrangements for August, and wanted to put an ad on YouTube for us in mid-August."

Yu Hong talked about the situation of the partners.

The reason why we are talking about advertising today is because of Google's serious contact.

YouTube is the hottest video website on the Internet today. Since it was acquired by Google, it has been growing almost every month. August is the time when it plans to test the profitability of the website, and will run a 10-15 second ad before the video is played.

Because it is the first time to try to put in an ad, Google is afraid of a backlash, and does not plan to let Yike Mars push it in the first place, but put it in the second time in the middle of the month to observe the user's reaction first.

When Fang Zhuo saw Google's thoughtful explanation, he really sighed from the bottom of his heart - it is so thoughtful, it is really a honeymoon period in the honeymoon period.

After a group of people discussed for a while, Pan Ben, who was in Europe, laughed and said, "In fact, we already have an advertisement."

"When Deutsche Telekom opened pre-sales two days ago, they directly cut a clip from the press conference. I feel that this is the first advertisement of Yike Mars."

"I took a look and the effect is really good."

Pan Ben knows more details than Silicon Valley.

"Oh? Then send it to me after the meeting, and I will take a look." Fang Zhuo was curious.

Pan Ben nodded in agreement.

The meeting came to an end.

However, just as Fang Zhuo and Yu Hong were discussing the iPhone situation and watching the advertisement sent by Pan Ben from Europe, Secretary Liu Zonghong promptly sent Nokia's response to the sales of smartphones in Finland.

"Deutsche Telekom opened pre-sales 4 hours after the press conference. It's okay to rush to cut the press conference clips in these 4 hours, but they even added Finnish. It's really efficient." Yu Hong commented on Deutsche Telekom's operation.

Whether it was Lai Tu or the European headquarters, they explained the pre-sales of Duzou vaguely.

But looking back, it seemed like it was planned for a long time.

"Well, it's a $10 million business after all. The project that is tested and leveraged with this $10 million is worth at least several hundred million dollars. This project is related to a huge 3G communication market. If it were me, I wouldn't be as hasty as I said." Fang Zhuo drank tea and opened the faxed document handed over by his secretary.

Deutsche Telekom's pre-sale of 100,000 units is a deposit of $99 per unit, and the total amount collected is $9.9 million in pre-sale money.

Now Yike and Deutsche Telekom are talking about a step-by-step sales volume based on 3 million units. This starting point alone involves $597 million, and this contract price also involves at least two years of phone packages.

As for the 3G market, this is related to Deutsche Telekom's overall strategy to save its declining performance and profit.

"Please give instructions, Mr. Yu." Fang Zhuo briefly read Nokia executives' comments on the pre-sale in Finland, and smiled as he handed the document to Yu Hong.

Yu Hong took it and looked at it, frowning slightly, and suddenly a similar statement that Mr. Fang had said to Sony appeared in her mind.

It is still online media.

Compared with the speed of paper media, the Internet is increasingly able to spread its tentacles to all walks of life.

This time, Yike Mars raided Nokia's headquarters after the press conference. It was not taken seriously at first, but after the media interviewed Nokia executives, it received a clear response.

"Nokia has always welcomed challenges."

"But I haven't really heard of Yike."

"Oh, no, did the boss of this company buy an NBA team? I have an impression of that."

"A touch-screen phone? It's an interesting attempt."

"There will indeed be some consumers who are curious and want to try it out, but it won't work just with a touch screen and some gimmicks."

"Once consumers have passed the curiosity period, they will find that the mobile phones they hold are full of all kinds of immature problems. Once they have played enough with toys, they will still find out what kind of mobile phone is indispensable."

"Every year, mobile phone manufacturers will come up with all kinds of whimsical gadgets, including our Nokia, but the products that are truly launched on the market must be rigorous."

"Market competition is cruel."

"I am very curious about what Yike will do after consumers have passed the trial period?"

"If I had to make a prediction, I might have to regretfully judge that there is not much time left for Yike."

Hollerton is Nokia's head of corporate strategy. He was interviewed by online media and made a blunt judgment - Yike will definitely feel the cruelty of the mobile phone market.

Established mobile phone manufacturers have advantages in brands, funds, patents, customer groups, etc., which are difficult for new entrants to compare with.

Nokia is the king among mobile phone manufacturers and is fully qualified to evaluate a company that makes mobile phones like toys.

After reading the document, Yu Hong said hesitantly: "The pre-sale of 100,000 units was sold out so quickly. It seems pretty good. Why did they..."

Fang Zhuo responded with the words of a Deutsche Telekom executive: "Nokia's sales are measured in billions. If Yike's market share can reach 35%, I can jump on T-Mobile's desk right now and kill a lot of people." The excess hair was pulled out one by one."

He added: "Besides, Deutsche Telekom did not announce the sales volume in this test. If an elephant vaguely hears the movement of ants, will it lower its head and observe carefully?"

Yu Hong nodded slightly: "Sell it for 3 million first, and then we can talk to Nokia."

As soon as the Deutsche Telekom people came to Silicon Valley, they raised their sales targets.

Three million units, even if some operators are willing to provide subsidies to users, is still a challenge in the current market. Considering that the two huge markets of Europe and the United States are combined together, there is still hope.

The sales target for the second level is 6 million units, which is quite difficult.

The last level is 9 million units, which has been regarded as a beautiful vision by both parties.

"Nokia..." Fang Zhuo said thoughtfully, "Let's first achieve the small goal of 3 million units and sit at the same table with Nokia to have fun."

Completed 3 million, two moves with Nokia.

Achieved 6 million and competed with Nokia.

Completed 9 million and faced off with Nokia in court.

He closed the document and asked his secretary to fax it to Pan Ben. If he needed to respond specifically and how to respond, he didn't have to come forward.

In fact, Yike has taken the blame for Deutsche Telekom's operations in a small way. The planned pre-sale must be more cautious and detailed, and the time is initially set to be after October. How can it be so impatient...

After all, it is also a listed company, so if you do this, you will be in a hurry.

Fang Zhuo and Yu Hong discussed the general strategy for the European and American markets. They raised their wrists and looked at their watches. It was already approaching the launch time of the iPhone.

"I don't know if Steve Jobs is nervous or not." Yu Hong suddenly mentioned her competitors.

"Probably not today. If it were me, I might be a little nervous when browsing the regular sales documents." Fang Zhuo speculated.

At the same time that he and Yu Hong were discussing this, Jobs almost talked about Yike and Mars at the pre-launch meeting.

"Yiko is once again using a tried-and-true trick that has proven effective in the past."

“What is the actual use effect of Android system?”

"Is the performance of Qualcomm chips better than the Samsung chips we carry?"

“Is there a $100 difference between iPhone and Mars?”

Jobs' tone was more solemn and he asked questions again and again.

The 4G version of iPhone is 4ars for only $399, and it also has 8G storage.

In terms of pure hardware, judging from past competitive experience, I am afraid that the parts selected by Yike Company are indeed world-class as claimed in the press conference.

In this way, the cost to the other party is not difficult to estimate.

Therefore, Yike once again lowered its profit margins to seek competitive advantages.

This is very annoying and annoying.

The annoying thing is, it works.

Does Apple have a special selection of parts?

Not yet, although it is also a first-class part.

Could an exclusive system cost consumers $100 more?

Jobs saw the demonstration at the Yike conference and was unsure about the front-facing camera, the trend of uniting Internet companies, and the Open Mobile Phone Alliance formed by Google...

He even suspected that the hardware purchase price within the Open Handset Alliance would create a huge advantage.

It’s not even easy to fight a price war.

The only good thing is the support given by the operator AT&T. The scale of T-Mobile jointly owned by Yike is not huge.

But AT&T not only provides support, but also puts pressure on them, preventing them from accessing 3G. This gives competitors a huge publicity point.

"A troublesome opponent."

Steve Jobs couldn't help but feel this way.

If I had known better, I would have raised the price more when I was able to acquire Yike.

However, that guy probably didn’t really want to sell it that time.

Just when Jobs wanted to have a serious discussion about the retail price and operator contract price, he was suddenly handed the news he had just received.

——Yike has launched pre-sales in Finland, Europe, and is suspected of reaching a cooperation with Deutsche Telekom.

Jobs frowned again, and the only thing he was happy about was not that happy anymore.

The iPhone is not currently available in the European market, and it is very complicated and difficult to negotiate with operators there. Currently, we are in contact with O2 in the UK and Orange in France, and the progress is very slow.

Deutsche Telekom is also an alternative operator for the iPhone, but Yike obviously completed the cooperation first by virtue of its relationship with T-Mobile.

"We need to have a psychological expectation of the retail price and a plan for timely adjustment."

Jobs ended the meeting with this sentence. 499 was the price announced at the conference, but the current competitive situation requires sensitive flexibility and cannot lose competitiveness rigidly.

Afterwards, he discussed with several executives the news that Yike was suspected of cooperating with Deutsche Telekom.

"Jobs, can we ask Schmidt?"

Jobs thought this was a good idea, and he asked Schmidt for information.

However, with the emergence of the Android system, the relationship between the two sides has become more delicate.

Jobs did not contact at the meeting. He waited until he was the only one left in the conference room before calling Google's CEO to ask about Yike's news.

"Deutsche Telekom? I don't know, isn't it in Europe?" Schmidt was confused and asked naturally, "When will the iPhone be sold in Europe?"

Jobs was about to answer, but suddenly fell silent.

He learned from Schmidt that the name of the Yike phone is Mars, that the Yike phone is 3G, that there are problems with the progress of the Yike phone, and that the cost range of the Yike phone... But which side is this independent director of Apple on now?

Jobs thought about the price of Yike 399 and the rumored cooperation model between Yike and T-Mobile. After another silence, he said directly: "Schmidt, under the current circumstances, are you no longer suitable to be a member of the Apple board of directors?"

Schmidt immediately became indignant: "Jobs, you didn't use this tone when you invited me to the press conference!"

"There was no Android at that time." Jobs did not say the second half of the sentence without evidence. He now has some doubts about Schmidt's character.

Schmidt was furious: "What do you mean? Are you questioning me?"

Jobs named him: "After all, you are an Apple director, Google CEO, and a close partner of Yike. I certainly won't question you, but Fang Zhuo is not necessarily the same. Will the outside world also discuss the relationship between the three of us? This may damage your reputation."

Schmidt said word by word: "Jobs, I will seriously consider your friendly suggestion."

He ended the call.

It's impossible to be an Apple director.

Schmidt was in the office, and he called Fang Zhuo with some disappointment and informed him: "I plan to resign as an outside director of Apple. Considering that this position is not conducive to the cooperation and competition between our three listed companies, it is better not to keep it."

Fang Zhuo said curiously: "Don't, this outside director is so good, Apple's partners regard you as Apple's own."

Schmidt pondered for a few seconds.

Fang Zhuo suddenly understood: "Kicked out?"

"How is that possible?" Schmidt said disdainfully, "After all, the Android system has been released, so that the media will not focus on these time-wasting things in the future."

"Then come to Yike as an external director. It just so happens that Sony's Stringer is also an external director of our company." Fang Zhuo made a sincere invitation, "It can also be regarded as consolidating the cooperative relationship between Google and Yike. The relationship between us is indestructible."

Schmidt really hesitated this time: "I'll think about it."

"Okay, Yike welcomes you anytime." Fang Zhuo welcomed the Google CEO in his honeymoon period.

"The iPhone is on sale, and I heard that consumers are queuing up to buy it." Schmidt changed the subject.

"I asked the company to check it out. Some stores are indeed queuing up to buy Apple's retail machines, but it seems that AT&T stores are more lively. There is a big difference in the money spent at $199 and $499." Fang Zhuo has received the news.

199 is far more popular than 4.

Schmidt was quite happy to hear the news: "In this case, it is worthwhile for Yike to spend a lot of effort to cooperate with operators, and the price competitiveness is not inferior to others."

"Well, the actual iPhone will be available in the evening. The price is not inferior to others, and the hardware is not inferior to others. Let's see how the system is." Fang Zhuo said calmly.

Schmidt smiled and said, "It will definitely be equally excellent."

"That's it. I will have an important domestic media connection later. Mr. Schmidt, please seriously consider the invitation from Yike Company." Fang Zhuo finally mentioned the matter of external directors again.

Schmidt once again said that he would seriously consider it. He did not trust Mr. Fang's character and was worried that Mr. Fang would use his name as an external director of Yike to cheat.

Fang Zhuo hung up the phone.

It was already seven o'clock in the evening.

Soon, when the domestic CCTV Finance program was about to connect by phone, the newly bought iPhone was delivered to the desk.

Fang Zhuo played with the iPhone while answering questions from the financial reporter on the other end.

The questions were relatively routine, mainly about the release of the Yike Mars phone and when it would be launched in China.

The domestic 3G situation is slightly slow, and it will be delayed for at least half a year.

Fang Zhuo talked about his own mobile phones, the Android system, and the different 3G standards.

"Mr. Fang, some mobile phone manufacturers think that Yike phones are too radical, the touch screen is not easily accepted by consumers, and the Internet applications used are not suitable for China. What do you think about this?" The financial reporter asked a real public opinion question without trying to stir up trouble.

From Zhihu to portals, from the Internet to TV programs, there has indeed been a wave of evaluations of Yike phones in the past few days.

In particular, the "evil and heretic" evaluation of Lenovo executives, which is easy to remember, has been quoted a lot.

Fang Zhuo is busy with T-Mobile, Deutsche Telekom, Google, Apple, and Nokia every day. He knows that there are some unfriendly comments in China, but he doesn't care about those small fry at all.

However, when financial reporters ask him this question in person, things may be different. The impact of those comments may be quite large.

He thought about restraining his emotions and not being too arrogant, and answered the question: "The mobile phone industry is undergoing profound changes with the release of Yike Mars."

"Such changes will soon be noticed by practitioners and consumers with the arrival of 3G."

"A new era is coming."

"I am very fortunate to witness, participate in, and lead this era with everyone."

"I want to kindly remind my friends in China that there are new ways to play in the new era. If you are different from me, please follow my example first."

"Thank you everyone, please look forward to the sale of our mobile phones in China."

Fang Zhuo answered the question in a low-key manner and thanked the financial connection.

When he put down his phone, the selection of personnel for Yike's domestic department and the establishment of projects for its subsidiaries flashed through his mind. MStar Semiconductor and MediaTek both have teams in the Silicon Valley R&D center.

Mars, a mobile phone, actually has no intersection with the positioning of domestic manufacturers, but the popularity of entry-level models is of great benefit to Yike, which can get a share of the Android system.

You have to take me as the standard.

Those who don't take me as the standard may not be able to play in the future.