Chapter 237: HD DVD Formats

Maki Horikita, Meisa Kuroki, Mirei Kiritani, etc. were originally from Sweet Power talent agency, and it seemed Charles had an impression of Maki Horikita.

"Naoyumi Okada seems to be able to find resources for her artists. She's quite capable," Charles said with a smile, sitting on his chair.

"As a manager, she should have her own resources and connections," Lin Chi-ling echoed.

"Have her come in!"

Soon, Lin Chi-ling called Naoyumi Okada in. At 38 years old, Naoyumi Okada was ambitious and wanted to turn Sweet Power into a female version of Johnny & Associates.

Unfortunately, the conditions did not allow it. Even though it had been established for several years, they only recently started signing artists and carrying out entertainment activities.

"Boss, you were looking for me?" Naoyumi Okada bowed respectfully and asked.

"East Asia International Japan is an independent subsidiary. You even have 10% shares, and now there's about 200 million yen in the account, enough to develop several drama series!"

"Boss, do you mean we invest and produce TV dramas ourselves?" Naoyumi Okada had always been searching for investors, so she had never developed projects on her own.

The production cost for each Japanese drama episode was about 1 to 3 million yen. If the television station's time slots and relationships were not good, it could result in poor ratings.

"If we don't develop ourselves, how can we grow?" Charles tossed her a file. "This is a list someone recommended to me. I know you like working with female artists - they are all women!"

Naoyumi Okada looked at the list. The first ones were Ayase Haruka and Ishihara Satomi from Horipro; afterward, exclusive models like Nozomi Sasaki from Pinky magazine; and first-generation members of the AKB48 group like Atsuko Maeda, Mariko Shinoda, Haruna Kojima, Tomomi Itano from AKS.

Naoyumi Okada frowned. The AKB48 members were simpler since AKS had been supporting their transfer to enhance their talent management and increase media exposure opportunities.

As for magazine model Nozomi Sasaki, it was not difficult, similar to the newly joined Keiko Kitagawa.

The challenge for Naoyumi Okada was to get Ayase Haruka and Ishihara Satomi's contracts from Horipro.

"We can use resource exchange. East Asia International Japan is no longer a small agency. It is a company with a background and future development. You can immediately develop two to three drama series and use Horipro's actors. Capet International Pictures also has movie investments. Takahashi will take care of you. Aren't these resources your confidence?" Charles reminded her. He wasn't asking for Kyoko Fukada; how difficult could it be?

"Boss, Capet Pictures will support us. Shouldn't we use more of our own actors?" Naoyumi Okada valued the Capet Pictures project since its influence was not limited to Japan.

Charles smiled, "My films need real actors, not just idols. If you can train a real actor, I can take her to Hollywood. Do you have that ability?"

Naoyumi Okada awkwardly shook her head. However, with capital backing, her ambition also grew. It was not impossible for East Asia International Japan to surpass Horipro.

"Boss, I will take care of it!"

After Naoyumi Okada left, Charles pulled the translator Lin Chi-ling into his arms and whispered in her ear, "Is managing a company interesting? Do you want to learn from Naoyumi Okada and become a shareholder manager? How nice would that be!"

Charles was not comfortable commenting on Lin Chi-ling's acting skills. Acting might not suit her as much as being a trophy girlfriend.

"I don't know how to, and Naoyumi Okada seems pretty capable too. I don't have any experience in film and television right now," Lin Chi-ling said, kissing Charles's lips.

Charles responded while unbuttoning her blouse and caressing her chest.

...

Meanwhile, at the Sony headquarters in Minato, Tokyo, CEO Howard Stringer's office, Sony President Ryoji Chubachi explained with a worried expression, "Our notebook lithium battery overheating and fire incident has alarmed Dell, Toshiba, Hitachi, Fujitsu, and other manufacturers;

Perhaps, we can only conduct a global large-scale recall of the lithium batteries, or it will greatly impact Sony's global image!"

Howard Stringer frowned as well. Sony had not been having the best of years, and now, another year with battery fire incidents.

"Right now, we need to focus on Blu-ray DVDs. Even though our Blu-ray DVD player was delayed by a few months and Toshiba took advantage of the timing with HD-DVD players, the main battleground is still Hollywood studios," Howard Stringer was betting on the DVD format war. If the new generation of high-definition DVD formats won, Sony could immediately enter a glorious period.

We own the film libraries of Columbia and MGM, and Disney has clearly stated its exclusive support for our Blu-ray DVD," Ryoji Chubachi sighed. "Unfortunately, Universal exclusively supports the HD-DVD format."

As for other movie companies, they would produce high-definition DVDs in both formats based on the situation.

"New movies, we need newly released blockbusters to release Blu-ray high-definition DVDs. I heard Charles Capet of Capet Entertainment is in Japan?" Howard Stringer asked.

Ryoji Chubachi nodded, "Yes, he has been in Asia recently, earlier in China, and now in Japan, probably for the Asian market layout."

"The Da Vinci Code grossed more than 700 hundred million dollars globally, and The Devil Wears Prada has now over 200 million dollars globally. Capet Pictures has big movies like the live-action Transformers and Iron Man scheduled for release next year," Howard Stringer sighed.

"Surely a Hollywood genius. Has Donna Langley shown any preference? Are they leaning more towards HD-DVD?"

"I don't think so. Like Paramount, they're waiting for bids from both sides," Ryoji Chubachi had talked to many Hollywood studios. Exclusive support required significant costs.

"How much is Paramount asking for?" Howard Stringer inquired.

"After acquiring DreamWorks, Paramount's asking price is no less than 150 million dollars," Ryoji Chubachi felt uneasy. That was the price for Paramount's exclusive support for Blu-ray high-definition DVDs.

"The HD Alliance also seems to be making moves!"

Sony's current electronics business mainly relied on LCD TVs and digital cameras, not to mention the delayed release of the PS3 gaming console and the substantial competition pressure from Nintendo.

"Agree to Paramount's terms, and go meet Charles Capet over the next few days. Capet Pictures' movies are very popular now. We need to take him seriously!"

Sony had already started selling some assets to gain cash flow. Howard Stringer and Sony's board were mainly focused on Blu-ray high-definition DVDs.

*****

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