Chapter 909 Absolutely No Problem

"Eric, I haven't seen you for a while, you're so beautiful recently, I hear your name every day in San Francisco," Larry Ellison greeted him as soon as he walked into the restaurant agreed upon in Venice Beach. , hugged Eric warmly, and said so.

Eric let go of the unshaven Larry Ellison and said with a half-smile, "You are also very handsome. I heard that you have raised a lot of money recently. What are you going to do?"

"Hey, Eric," Larry Ellison brought Eric to a seat and couldn't wait to defend: "You must have heard some kind of messy gossip, look, you have a phone call, Didn't I come from San Francisco right away."

"If I don't call, you will definitely come to see me after you buy the apple, right?" Eric sarcastically took the menu from the waiter and looked down.

"Misunderstanding, this must be a misunderstanding," Larry Ellison immediately denied, saying, "I have to take care of the company and fly around the east and west coasts during this time, so I have some feelings for you. negligence."

Eric ordered a dinner, closed the menu, looked up at Larry Ellison, and smiled: "If you are really busy, I still understand, I heard that Oracle has recently competed fiercely with informix, Has that billboard they put up outside the Oracle building gone?"

In Eric's original memory, Oracle was basically in a state of dominance.

But now, Oracle is far from Microsoft's market position that dominates the desktop operating system. In North America, there are still two database software companies, informix and sybase, which are comparable in size to Oracle. Among them, sybase also operates a server business in addition to database software, and informix is ​​a company that focuses on database software like Oracle. The competition between the two sides is also extremely fierce. ix even bought a billboard outside the Oracle headquarters building with a sentence on it. The slogan "Dinosaurs crawled over here", Eric doesn't know what this is, but it's definitely not a good word if he thinks about it.

Recently, seeing that the funds raised have been enough to buy Apple, Larry Ellison did have the idea of ​​​​putting Firefly aside and buying Apple alone. In addition to the encouragement of his friend Jobs, he also understood that if Firefly was involved, even if the other party was in Among them, it only holds 10% of the shares, but at that time, the right to speak is no lower than that of him, the initiator of the acquisition. If he can get rid of Firefly, the control of Apple will definitely fall into the hands of him and Jobs.

However, when Eric's voice fell, Larry Ellison immediately felt a little hairy.

Of course he wasn't stupid enough to think that Eric was just teasing him when he mentioned the informix billboard.

Firefly Investments, whether it is Yahoo, America Online or the recently emerging Amazon, is a super-large customer that any database needs to strive for. What's more, Yahoo also controls a Yahoo Technology Alliance, which has become an Internet platform. rule maker.

Eric deliberately mentioned informix, and the warning could not be more obvious. Now is the most critical moment in the competition between Oracle and informix. If all the Internet companies under Firefly's system fall to informix, the original situation of the two database companies being evenly matched will be broken immediately.

Some attributes of database software companies and operating system software companies are actually similar. If the two sides widen the gap and are affected by the Matthew effect, the advantage of the leading party will only become more and more obvious. The situation is known.

Larry Ellison is a proud man, as the whole of Silicon Valley knows. But he is definitely not the kind of person who will show his arrogant character in front of anyone, otherwise Oracle will not develop to the current scale. At this moment, in front of this young man opposite, he just lost all his arrogant capital,

There is even a sense of powerlessness that fate is being held in the hands of the other party. Raising his hand and touching his forehead, Larry Ellison did not dare to be perfunctory and said earnestly: "Eric, well, this is indeed what I did wrong. However, the acquisition negotiation has just begun. , I promise that everything in the future will not be hidden from Firefly's investment side, if you are worried, you can send someone to join the negotiation team."

Eric listened to Larry Ellison's resignation, shrugged his shoulders, and said: "I said before that I have no interest in acquiring Apple. I just think that Jobs is a very interesting guy, so he will participate in this project. After the acquisition is completed, I will not intervene in Apple's management, just treat it as an ordinary equity investment. But if you dare to play with me, I don't mind putting this rotten apple on your Oracle and smashing it together. ."

"Eric, don't worry, this kind of thing will never happen again," Larry Ellison felt that there was something wrong with the grammar of Eric's last sentence, but he didn't point it out, just realized that Eric Ke didn't mean to hold on to this matter, so he grinned and echoed.

Eric glanced at this fellow, and suddenly realized that being able to become friends with Jobs, these two guys still have something in common, that is, they are both bastards.

Some thoughts suddenly appeared in my heart, and Eric said, "Larry, do you think this is the end of the matter?"

"Ah, this, Eric, what else do you want to do?" Larry Ellison, who had already relaxed, became vigilant again.

Eric didn't bother to talk nonsense with this guy, and said, "So, do you know that Firefly is preparing for "Iron Man" recently?"

Larry Ellison was stunned for a moment, consciously understood something, and said excitedly: "Eric, you want me to play Tony Stark, no problem, absolutely no problem, I also think I'm quite suitable, um , we can discuss the remuneration."

Eric glanced left and right, but couldn't find a guy who was suitable to knock on the hairy face opposite, so he had no choice but to say, "No Tony Stark, Tony Stark's driver, can you do it?"

"Don't, Eric, even if you let me play the villain, the driver will lose face," Larry Ellison seemed to have a sudden madness, and he bargained with seriousness.

"Okay, then the driver, I will let you know the shooting schedule," Eric knocked on the dining table, making a decision.

Larry Ellison thought that Eric was just about to say something that caught him off guard, but when he heard that he was only making a cameo appearance in a movie, he had no scruples, nodded in agreement, and deliberately made a gag.

However, Eric obviously didn't finish his sentence and continued: "However, this is not what I just said. "Iron Man" is a science fiction movie, which is very suitable for technology companies to implant, so Oracle should also get involved. Implantation costs you $5 million."

Larry Ellison immediately grimaced again, Oracle's annual advertising and marketing budget is less than 100 million US dollars, 5 million is a large number: "Eric, you are simply extorting, Can it be cheaper, how about 500,000?"

"Yahoo plans to build a large data center on the east and west coasts and in Europe next year. I can consider handing over the database software orders for these projects to informix."

"3 million, Eric, you have to know that any decision I make as CEO still needs to be approved by the board of directors. 3 million is the limit I can promise."

"Amazon will go public at the end of the year, and it will definitely need to expand its infrastructure. As an e-commerce company, database software..."

Larry Ellison slapped the table and directly interrupted half of Eric's words, with a straightforward expression: "5 million, deal."

"Oh, and also, if you're paid $1 for the cameo Tony Stark driver, Hollywood doesn't allow people to work for free, but you have to sign three film contracts first."

Larry Ellison nodded, "Okay!"

Eric nodded with satisfaction, and added: "Also, you will have this meal."

Unceremoniously knocked Larry Ellison, which is a punishment for wanting to play with myself. After dinner, I wanted to go back to the corner manor, but the girl called and said it was from "Fast and the Furious" Several characters have been settled, Eric let the driver drive to Beverly Hills.

Coming to the girl's mansion at Trousdale Manor, Eric finds that Gwyneth Paltrow is also here.

The girl took Eric's arm, sat down on the sofa, and said, "Eric, Kate is very interested in the role of Dominic's sister Mia, what do you think?"

In the original version, the role of the "Fast and the Furious" hero's sister was played by Jordana Brewster, and Eric remembered the Latina girl's appearance when she was young was almost perfect, just don't know why, 'shelf life 'Short hair fingers don't seem to look good after 20 years old.

The thought flashed in his mind, and Eric looked at Gwyneth Paltrow. Due to changes in Hollywood history, even if "Shakespeare in Love" has not been filmed, it is definitely not so easy for Gwyneth Paltrow to have another actress. However, after all, it is the second generation of Hollywood, and Eric is curious about why she is interested in a role like Mia that is somewhat irrelevant at first sight.

"Gwyneth, I think you must have read the script. The role of Mia is just a vase, but there is no room for development. It just makes you more familiar in front of the audience."

Gwyneth Paltrow looked at Drew's appearance next to Eric, envy in her heart, but her expression was somewhat resentful, and said: "I also want a role that suits me better, but unfortunately I can't find it. ?"

After saying this, Gwyneth Paltrow looked at Eric with a hopeful face. In the past two years, she has almost appeared in three or four movies every year, and the frequency of appearances is enough to make those baseless Hollywood The newcomer is crazy with jealousy, but the family connections are unlikely to help her get any heavyweight roles, and these films have hardly caused any repercussions.

Last year, I finally collaborated with Miramax on a novel adaptation of the film "Emma". I wanted to try the Oscar strategy, but in the end I didn't even get a Golden Globe nomination. So, at the suggestion of her agent, Gwyneth Paltrow plans to change her strategy and increase her chances of appearing in big-budget movies, so as to increase her popularity as soon as possible.

Coincidentally, MGM is planning to start the "Fast and Furious" series. Considering that this is a work written by Eric himself, Gwyneth Paltrow offered to Drew this time to try one of the characters. . Before that, although the two sides were like sisters on the surface, Gwyneth Paltrow had not used the Drew relationship in the movie. Living in Hollywood, she also understood that human feelings are such things. It's okay to use it once or twice, but it won't work if you use it more. Even if it is family connections, at most it can only help her get some heroines of low-cost independent movies. If she wants to be in the top, she still has to rely on her works to speak.

Eric said that the role of Mia has little room to play, and Gwyneth Paltrow naturally understands.

But Eric also underestimated the sensation that the film he wrote personally caused in Hollywood. This is an extended series of the Secret Service Movie Universe. With the current influence of the Secret Service Movie Universe in Hollywood, even a vase character under this series. , is enough to cause many first-line actresses to covet.

Eric smiled when Gwyneth Paltrow looked like she wanted to rush over. Compared with ordinary actors struggling in Hollywood, she already had resources that no one could match. Keke would not be moved by her small pitiful expression, and said, "It takes opportunity, you are only as old as Drew, there is no need to worry, maybe you will meet a suitable role soon, um, if If you are interested in the role of Mia, you can try it."

Gwyneth Paltrow was very disappointed and wanted to refute that she was several years older than Drew, but looking at the girl's delicate face, she must have said it well.

Drew looked like he was smiling, his eyes blinked, but he did not correct the mistakes in Eric's words, saying: "By the way, Eric, I have found the two actors you mentioned, um, Paul Walker and Vin Diesel, right. I looked at it with Amy, and Paul Walker was okay, but the Vin Diesel guy was a piece of wood."

After Drew finished speaking, he said something to the twins watching TV in the living room, and Natasha quickly took a document and handed it to Eric.

Seeing Eric open it, the girl said again: "There is still an audition tape, do you want to watch it?"

Eric opened the files and looked at the files of Paul Walker and Vin Diesel. Both of them have been in Hollywood for several years, and they are not newcomers. In order to avoid the trouble of casting roles, Eric simply asked the girl to find the two people directly: "The audition video will be watched tomorrow, but the selection of actors in a movie is never the selection of the best acting, the most important thing is Fit, or Robert De Niro and Meryl Streep are the busiest stars in Hollywood." (To be continued.)