Entertainment mogul: Starting his business with the internet

Chapter 107 CCTV Negotiation
After more than half an hour of fussing, Cai Yi-nong led everyone in completing the film crew's opening ceremony.

Finally, director Wei Hantao unveiled the red silk covering the cameras and other equipment to ward off evil spirits, officially announcing the start of filming.

Liu Shishi stood in the crowd, sometimes looking around curiously, sometimes clapping enthusiastically with the crowd, looking like an adorable newcomer.

She put on beautiful makeup and changed into her costume early this morning. Now, dressed in exquisite ancient costume, her clothes fluttering, she is as light as a swallow, standing out among the actors.

Tangren Media has always paid attention to details. The costume worn by Liu Shishi is elegant and ethereal in color. The collar, cuffs and hem are embroidered with delicate patterns, such as flowers, birds, fish and insects, or clouds, water and Zen. Every stitch reveals Tangren's pursuit of high-quality film and television works.

Liu Shishi's hairstyle is also a highlight of her ancient costume look. Her hair was cleverly woven by the stylist into a complicated antique-style bun.

Her long, flowing hair, adorned with delicate pearls, jade hairpins, and other ornaments, complemented her beautiful features, adding to her classical charm and making her even more beautiful than the flowers.

Cai Yinong stared at his leading lady in her costume, scrutinizing her closely, and immediately showered her with praise.

Hu Ge and Yuan Hong, two fellow disciples, were also greatly amazed by Liu's beautiful ancient costume. They never expected that their usually naive junior sister would be so dazzling and outstanding in ancient costume.

Liu Shishi, who was participating in the worship ceremony for the first time, was a little excited and asked curiously, "Old Hu, does the company always make such a big fuss when filming?"

Hu Ge had a similar experience and was familiar with Tangren Media's startup procedures.

"Several directors who have collaborated with our company are from Hong Kong. Sister K also worked there before and was deeply influenced by her."

That's the prevailing sentiment in Hong Kong and Taiwan; people tend to believe in this kind of thing, so the opening ceremonies are always quite grand. Besides, a grand ceremony is a form of publicity.

Liu Shishi nodded as if she understood, but it was her first time attending such a grand opening ceremony. When she filmed "Moon Shadow and Lotus Breeze", the opening ceremony was just a perfunctory formality.

The sense of ceremony is worlds apart from that of "Young Warriors of the Yang Clan," not to mention the "Nightclub" crew, who didn't hold any opening ceremony at all except for a press conference.

Just as I was about to ask another question, Cai Yinong and the director started distributing thick stacks of red envelopes to everyone, from the lead actors to the crew members and even the media reporters who came.

Cai Yinong was very honest and kind. Although the amounts in the red envelopes varied, no one in the crew was left out. Everyone who received a red envelope had a bright smile on their face, and the whole crew was in a harmonious atmosphere.

Liu Shishi looked with delight at the red envelope Cai Yinong had just slipped into her hand, which was printed with four large golden characters that read "Great Fortune Upon Launch," a festive and auspicious sign.

Curious, I opened it and found a hundred-yuan bill inside. Although it wasn't much money, it was a good omen and a token of my goodwill, encouraging the entire crew to work together as one.

Liu Shishi glanced furtively at Hu Ge's red envelope beside her and saw that he had also pulled out a hundred-yuan bill. She nodded in satisfaction.

Song Ci had told her that she was the top female star at Tangren Media, and her official treatment couldn't be worse than that of the top male star.

If she gives Hu Ge a hundred yuan in opening bonuses and Hu Ge two hundred, wouldn't that make others look down on her as the top star? So Sister K can't be biased and must treat everyone equally.

After handing out red envelopes, Cai Yinong called the main actors to take costume photos, and then gave an interview to reporters.

Although Liu Shishi's period costume look was indeed eye-catching, the media's focus was still on He Rundong and Hu Ge, who were busy interviewing the two, completely ignoring the other main actors, including Liu Shishi.

The only thing that could comfort Liu Shishi was that a reporter from Toutiao Entertainment asked her a few questions and took some beautiful photos of her in her makeup. Given Toutiao's current traffic, the news release would likely give her some exposure and increase her popularity.

Assistant Jiang Yuanyuan has been preparing for this for a long time. She's just waiting for her work to air and gain some fame before she creates her own online forum.

After a busy morning of worshipping the gods, distributing red envelopes, taking photos, and conducting interviews, the film crew finally finished their work. The reporters, having received the news and their perks, left satisfied.

At noon, under the bright sun, with a command from director Wei Hantao, the actors who were to appear took their positions in front of the camera, and filming of "Young Warriors of the Yang Clan" officially began.

In the depths of winter in December, the weather in Beiping was cold and dry, with snowflakes falling from time to time.

In a conference room in the CCTV office building, Song Ci was dressed in a formal suit, which was unusual for him, but he looked somewhat listless. He was waiting for CCTV staff with Wang Jing and Zhang Zhao.

At the beginning of the month, Liu Shishi went to Hengdian to film a movie, and Shen Sisi was busy participating in CCTV's variety show "Challenge the Host" and didn't have time to bother him.

It's rare to have some peace and quiet, but unfortunately, Wang Jing dragged me to CCTV today, so I looked listless and somewhat unwilling.

Wang Jing was also helpless. "My Own Swordsman" had entered the review stage. She was the producer and executive producer of "My Own Swordsman". In the spirit of doing things well from beginning to end, she had been in charge of liaising with CCTV for this project.

Originally, Tengda Culture and CCTV Arts Center were already in the midst of intensive negotiations, and the other party was very interested in purchasing "My Own Swordsman" as CCTV-8's prime-time opening drama of the year.

However, during a recent communication, the person in charge at CCTV's Arts and Entertainment Center subtly indicated that a leader at the station wanted to take this opportunity to meet the young and legendary chairman of Tengda Group.

Wang Jing then asked Zhang Zhao to help her. The two of them spent a lot of time persuading Song Ci to come to CCTV and see what he was really up to.

The CCTV staff didn't keep the guests waiting long. The three from Tengda had only been sitting in the conference room for ten minutes when two more people arrived.

Hearing the noise, Song Ci perked up and looked up. A composed middle-aged man walked into the conference room first.

Time seems to have been exceptionally kind to him, only gently etching a few elegant lines on his face, which instead added to his mature charm.

The other person was slightly older but noticeably a step behind. His broad, square face was weathered and his expression was calm, bearing the marks of time.

His hair was a little thin, with a few strands of silver, and he was holding a notebook in his hand, looking down as if he was thinking about something. He looked like a person who got things done.

Upon seeing the visitors enter the conference room, Wang Jing and Zhang Zhao quickly stood up from their seats. Song Ci, without being arrogant or impolite, also stood up and quietly watched the two of them.

Wang Jing smiled professionally and greeted the older man first, "Minister Ma!" Zhang Zhao also greeted him politely, "Hello, Minister Ma."

The elder Minister Ma smiled gently and nodded in response: "President Wang, President Zhang, I'm sorry to trouble you two to make another trip. Let me introduce you all, this is Director Jiang Tao of our CCTV Arts and Entertainment Center."

After speaking, she turned slightly to leave the main stage to the leader, and at the same time introduced Jiang Tao: "Director Jiang, these two are Ms. Wang Jing, the producer of 'My Own Swordsman' and COO of Tengda Group, and Mr. Zhang Zhao, the general manager of Tengda Culture."

Finally, his gaze swept over the two of them and landed on Song Ci standing to the side. After pausing for a few seconds, he continued, "This must be Chairman Song of Tengda Group. I am Mark, the director of the Film and Television Department of CCTV Arts Center. Welcome."

As soon as Mark finished speaking, Jiang Tao strode confidently to Song Ci, extended his right hand, and began to praise her repeatedly:

"Chairman Song, I have long admired your name. Meeting you today, I know that what I read online was true. You are indeed a gentleman of unparalleled elegance and nobility."

The CCTV leader who wanted to meet Song Ci was Jiang Tao, because a deputy director of CCTV in charge of the financial channel will be retiring in the second half of next year, and Jiang Tao is expected to take over. Therefore, he wanted to take this opportunity to meet Song Ci, this young master of the business world.

Jiang Tao was well-informed and knew that the higher-ups had conducted a detailed investigation into Song Ci, finding him to be of impeccable character and with impeccable lineage. He then intended to establish him as a model.

He was groomed as a model representative of youth in the new century, which is why the leaders visited Tengda Group last month to conduct research and offer their regards.

Both for personal and professional reasons, Jiang Tao wanted to get to know Song Ci, so he asked his subordinate Mark to invite Song Ci to CCTV under the guise of discussing "My Own Swordsman".

Seeing Jiang Tao's politeness, Song Ci quickly extended his right hand and said humbly, "Director Jiang is too kind."

Their hands touched lightly in the air, then clasped tightly together, their eyes meeting and everything was understood without words.

After shaking hands with Song Ci, Jiang Tao continued to shake hands with Wang Jing and Zhang Zhao in a polite and courteous manner, which made people feel like they were bathed in a spring breeze and instantly created a good impression.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, the two sides took their seats on opposite sides of the rectangular conference table and began to discuss business.

As the host of this business negotiation, Jiang Tao took the initiative to speak first: "Minister Ma, please report the ministry's opinions to the three general managers of Tengda Group."

Mark calmly opened his notebook, flipped to a certain page, glanced at it a few times, seemingly memorizing its contents, and then said aloud:

"Chairman Song, General Manager Wang, General Manager Zhang, the three of you would like to report the collective opinion of the Film and Television Department of CCTV Arts Center regarding the purchase of the TV series 'My Own Swordsman'."

Song Ci, however, remained completely calm and composed, showing no signs of being flustered by any particular proposal from CCTV. He had his own ideas in mind, regardless of what proposal CCTV put forward first.

Upon hearing this, Wang Jing and Zhang Zhao immediately sat up straight, staring at Minister Ma's weathered face, awaiting his report.

"The Legend of Wulin, produced by Tengda Culture, is an ancient costume martial arts sitcom, initially planned to be edited into 81 episodes."

After review and evaluation by our film and television department, we believe that the film is well-made, humorous, and can be considered a masterpiece.

Based on the success of director Shang Jin's similar comedy, "Story of the Cooking Squad," the department believes that this film should have a certain audience.

However, considering that this was the first time a period martial arts sitcom had aired on CCTV, and there was no precedent to refer to in terms of viewership ratings, the department's final offer was...

Mark paused briefly, glancing up at the three people across the long table, as if to give them a moment to process, before slowly continuing:
"The initial exclusive purchase price is 20 yuan per episode, totaling 1620 million yuan."

Wang Jing was very disappointed upon hearing this. The company's expectation was that "My Own Swordsman" would be profitable in its first run, but it now seemed a bit difficult.

They had also contacted Beiping TV, which quoted 1800 million yuan. She was willing to let the show air on CCTV for the 180 million yuan difference.

After all, CCTV is a prestigious brand, so its viewership is basically guaranteed. If the first round of viewership is not bad, the second and third rounds can still make money.

Seeing that the three from Tengda remained silent, Jiang Tao understood that the price of 1620 million was far below their expectations. He then sincerely said to Song Ci, "Chairman Song, CCTV is very sincere in its desire to purchase 'My Own Swordsman'. The price of 1620 million is already quite high."

There's no precedent for this type of film being broadcast on the station, so we're taking a huge risk. If the ratings are poor, I, Jiang, will have to bear the responsibility.

Song Ci already had a plan in mind, and without beating around the bush, he directly revealed his entire pre-planned scheme:

"Thank you, Director Jiang, for taking on this responsibility and giving Tengda Culture this opportunity. But I have a win-win suggestion: Tengda can sign a performance-based agreement with CCTV."

"A betting agreement?" Everyone's curious gazes fell on Song Ci, eager to hear what insights this young legend had to offer.

"If the viewership rating of 'My Own Swordsman' is less than 1%, CCTV will only need to pay 500 million yuan for the purchase."

If the viewership rating exceeds 1%, CCTV will need to pay 10 million yuan. Furthermore, for every 0.5% increase in viewership, CCTV will need to pay an additional 5 million yuan, and so on.

Song Ci was well aware of the quality of "My Own Swordsman". The show was broadcast on CCTV in its previous life, and although the ratings on the first day of the premiere were only 1.95%.

But it soared to 4.26% on the second day and reached a terrifying 9.49% on the tenth day of airing, making it the drama of the year in 2006.

Although the male lead has changed from Sha Yi to Qiao Zhengyu in this life, with Qiao Zhengyu's fame, acting skills and period costume appearance, the quality of "My Own Swordsman" is no weaker than in the previous life.

With the powerful marketing and distribution capabilities of Tengda Group, Song Ci is confident that "My Own Swordsman" can achieve a 10% viewership rating.

Even though Jiang Tao was well-informed, he found the betting agreement proposed by Song Ci quite novel.

Previously, CCTV would purchase TV dramas in a lump sum. This new system, which determines the purchase price based on viewership ratings, is quite interesting.

(End of this chapter)