Chapter 16: Netflix

After entering the banquet hall,

Ronan immediately saw the Big Three of DreamWorks,

And hurriedly went over to say hello to David Geffen, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and Steven Spielberg,

Although these three said a few polite words in response,

it would be difficult to remember him as he was not yet well known.

Coming out of the circle of the Big Three,

He didn't hide, instead, he tried his best to do everything he could and kept talking with people.

Ronan talked to the production director of Warner Bros about the "Harry Potter" series which they got last year,

And talked to the Japanese executives of Sony Columbia about the upcoming "Godzilla" movie.

He had drinks with the deputy director of distribution at Paramount Pictures,

He asked the executives of Miramax about the integration of the copyright of the "Lord of the Rings" series,

And inquired William Morris's agent about the remuneration of the third-tier stars...

A large number of people surrounded the Big Three, expressing their admiration.

Ronan didn't go there anymore but just watched them from the outside for a while.

The Big Three were ambitious and wanted to break the near-monopoly of the Big Six in Hollywood.

Unfortunately, this road simply couldn't work.

The most important thing is the Distribution and the Industrial chain, especially the former.

DreamWorks has established a relatively complete distribution network in North America,

But it was helpless to do anything in the face of a broader overseas market.

The overseas distribution of its films could only be handed over to the six major companies,

Plus with some other factors, Dreamworks ended sadly.

In the traditional distribution industry, the biggest cake has always been firmly held by the six major companies.

It is too difficult to break this situation.

DreamWork's model doesn't work.

Ronan was very sure of this,

Fighting against an enemy who has the advantage of the right time, place, and people,

The chance of winning is extremely low.

If he wants to break the situation of the monopoly of Big Six companies, he can only find other ways.

If one day, Sand Sea Entertainment faces this situation, what should it do?

He doesn't know why this sudden thought flashed through his head and spread uncontrollably.

With the current situation of Sand Sea Entertainment, this was an unreachable goal, even it could be called a fantasy.

But who doesn't have a little fantasy?

Ronan shook his head.

At this stage, I can only think about it.

For the time being, it is better to be pragmatic.

"Good evening" Someone greeted him next to him.

"Good evening," Ronan responded immediately.

This man was in his thirties.

He had a simple and honest-looking face which gave him a sense of reassurance.

He held the wine glass and gestured to Ronan.

Ronan did not take the wine and simply nodded in greeting.

A waiter passed by, Roger took a glass of wine, raised a gesture to the man, and took a sip.

"Are you Mr.Anderson?" The man spoke up.

Ronan looked at the other party's honest face.

If this person followed him to Abu Dhabi, he felt that he would have been able to get an investment of another 10 million dollars.

"Yes I am Ronan Anderson," He replied softly.

The man introduced himself, "I am Edward Buck, An agent in Moore's Brokerage Company."

Ronan shook his hand and said, "It's nice to meet you."

Edward Buck smiled honestly, "I read the newspaper a few days ago,

Mr. Anderson's company is hiring directors and actors?"

He came here tonight, mainly to look for opportunities, but for an ordinary broker, it is a bit difficult to sell unknown customers to big projects.

He had already sought a good position for a certain client, but that unreliable guy made unreliable demands, causing the cooked duck to fly away.

The unreliable guy was the most likely to succeed under his hand.

He can only look for opportunities again.

In this case, he can only spread the net as wide as possible, maybe he can catch fish.

Ronan could guess the purpose of this agent, and simply asked, "Does your company have any suitable candidates?"

Edward Buck did not answer.

Instead, he pointed to a place where there were relatively few people in the banquet hall, and invited, " Shall we talk there?"

Ronan nodded: "Okay."

The two came to the large banquet hall near the terrace.

There were not many people nearby.

There were only five or six people in a circle.

There was a man in the middle who was talking about something.

It sounded like he was pulling an investment or selling something.

Edward said: "I have read the newspaper reports on Sandsea Entertainment and the "Human Removal Project".

It seems that Sandsea Entertainment has financial difficulties?"

Ronan no longer cared about the other side, and replied, "Your news is out of date, I succeeded in the financing, and Sand Sea Entertainment has sufficient funds."

Hearing this, Edward's honest face smiled even more honestly, "The "Human Removal Project" budget cost is 11 million dollars?"

Ronan smiled but did not answer.

If there is a budget of 11 million US dollars, the threshold of Sand Sea Entertainment would have been broken by the entertainment agents long ago

This broker was well-informed.

Edwards had heard of some situations in that Sand Sea Entertainment had continuously rejected multiple intentional offers from the brokerage companies.

So the budget cost of the "Human Removal Project" definitely would not be 11 million dollars.

This was good news,

The competition will be much smaller.

His client is in desperate need to direct movies and to increase his resume, the salary doesn't matter for now

"There is a director among my clients, who may be suitable,"

Edward said in a low voice, "He has written scripts for "The Boy Next Door" and "21 jump street",

and he has also served as an assistant director and executive producer in three TV series.

As a filmmaker, he has also directed several episodes of "X-Files",

He is preparing to shift from TV series to film."

Ronan nodded, having directed The X-Files, which seems pretty good.

In this era, TV dramas are far less compelling than movies.

Even the famous Rachel is transforming into the film industry,

And countless TV drama directors also want to enter the film industry.

Ronan took out a business card and handed it to Edward,

"Here is the company's address and contact information. You can bring your client over at any time."

Edward quickly put it away and answered, "I will call you before I come."

He spoke a few more polite words with Ronan and then left with a simple smile.

This trip was also a bit rewarding.

The resume of directing a few episodes of "X-Files" sounds good,

And the details can be reviewed during the interview.

Ronan was also preparing to leave at this time, but he heard something in the small circle next to him.

The man who didn't know whether he was promoting sales or investment, seemed to be a little excited, and his voice was louder:

"Blockbuster's store leasing model is bound to become a thing of the past.

They are slow to respond and lack the optimization and integration of videotape resources.

Netflix's online leasing business is the future.

Investing in Netflix means investing in the future!

Netflix has created a monthly fee system, where consumers can rent movies for unlimited times, and there is no late fee for late returns.

Netflix just needs a certain amount of capital and a good platform..."

A black-haired man with glasses interrupted him suddenly, "Excuse me, how many paying customers does your company have?

How many paying customers do you plan to develop next year?

In how many years can you go public?"

"Netflix has just been established", The man said, "Our goal is the future..."

The man with the glasses shook his head and walked away.

When Ronan was socializing just now, he was introduced to this person,

He was an executive from the Disney Investment Department.

Several other people also left afterward.

The executives of these big companies were not very interested in what this person said.

But Ronan was very interested.

He walked over to say hello and introduced himself, "Hello, I am Ronan Anderson."

The man looked here and nodded, "Hello, Reed Hastings."

He noticed Ronan just now and asked directly: "Are you interested in my company?"

Ronan said vaguely, "The pattern you said is very interesting."

Reed Hastings took a look at Ronan and said, "Obviously, this model is very powerful.

With the development of the Internet, my company can surpass Blockbuster in the future."

Ronan has done Internet video operations in his previous life.

How could he not know the famous name of Netflix?

He glanced at Reed Hastings, he suddenly turned to look at the location of the Big Three in DreamWorks.

"Can we talk?" Ronan asked.

Reed Hastings did not answer, but asked directly, "Who are you?"

Ronan understood what he meant and said, "I am the president of Sand Sea Entertainment."

"I've heard of this small company that makes videotape movies."

Reed Hastings is now engaged in film rentals and has a good understanding of many companies in the Hollywood industry.

He shook his head and said, "We have nothing to talk about."

Ronan was a little surprised and said, "I can invest in your company."

Reed Hastings said sincerely, "Thank you.

I am very grateful for you to be optimistic about my company",

He smiled apologetically and continued "What I need is not only the capital but also the support of a big company, A big platform,

Which your Sand Sea Entertainment can't provide me, and the combination of two weak companies is meaningless to the current Netflix."

Ronan roughly understood what the other person was thinking.

After all, he had read detailed information about this person in his previous life.

A few years later, Reed Hastings was desperate,

And even took the initiative to contact Blockbuster, planning to sell the company to his rival.

For Reed Hastings, Blockbuster is the enemy.

It was precisely because Blockbuster charged him late fees for videotape rentals in the past that he had the idea of ​​starting Netflix.

Ronan tried a few more times but Reed Hastings was very stubborn and flatly refused.

Indeed, Sand Sea Entertainment cannot provide Netflix with hard conditions such as the much-needed film source and platform.

Investing is sometimes about more than just money.

Ronan could not persuade Hastings to invest, but the appearance of Netflix gave him more ideas for his future development.

But now is not the best time.

His funds have just entered the stock market

So, he cannot make a large investment for the time being.

If he remembered correctly, Netflix is ​​just a start-up now, and it can only be called a grass-roots team.

Companies like Netflix burns more money in their early stage, and Hastings will not be able to survive for more than two years.

Ronan watched Hastings leave, rubbed his chin lightly, and decided to focus on Netflix from now on.

In this banquet, he gained a lot, especially from Netflix and Hastings.

Ronan wanted to walk along the side near the terrace to the south, and not far away, he suddenly saw Leonardo DiCaprio.

Little Jack has a delicate and handsome face and is pestering a blonde girl.

This girl was wearing a goose-yellow short dress, a long hair shawl, slender legs, a tall and well-proportioned body, and a delicate face with melancholy green eyes.

Blond and long legs, this is the favorite target of little jack.

But the girl doesn't seem to give him a face at all.

She looked a little impatient and even disgusted with his entanglement.