Traveling through time and space.

Chapter 207 Cultural IP Incubation and Operation Strategy of Cultural Companies

After successfully driving the family business's cross-industry investment strategy, Mu Yang immediately focused on the core development of his cultural company—the incubation and operational strategy of cultural IP. He understood that in today's fiercely competitive cultural market, developing influential cultural IP was crucial for driving the vigorous development of a cultural company's content industry and maximizing the commercial value of cultural resources. Driven by his passion for culture and his desire for commercial success, Mu Yang resolutely embarked on this cultural journey fraught with both challenges and opportunities.

Mu Yang arrived at the Cultural IP Creative Studio, where a rich artistic atmosphere permeated the space. The walls were covered with creative sketches and character designs, ranging from adorable cartoon characters to grandiose scene depictions. Colorful sticky notes, laden with novel ideas, lay scattered across the conference table, like seeds of creativity waiting to be nurtured and germinated. The creative studio members gathered together, enthusiastically discussing new IP ideas, the air thick with the sparks of intellectual exchange.

"Hello everyone, let's take a look at our progress in incubating cultural IP today. We want to dig out unique treasures from the vast cultural resources and create cultural IP that can conquer the market. This is not only for the company's commercial interests, but also to leave a unique mark in the cultural field, inherit and innovate excellent culture." Mu Yang said to everyone with a smile, his eyes full of desire and expectation for creativity. His words were like a spring breeze, inspiring the enthusiasm of every creative staff.

Young creative planner Xiao Li stood up excitedly, waving a collection of ancient myths. The pages looked a bit worn from frequent reading, yet the richness of its meaning was evident. "Mr. Mu, I recently found inspiration in this collection. We can adapt the ancient myth of Chang'e's flight to the moon, portraying her as a woman who bravely pursues freedom and her dreams. We can also incorporate modern technological elements into the story, such as Chang'e using advanced spacecraft to reach the moon and establish a fantastical lunar base. This creative adaptation preserves the essence of traditional culture while appealing to modern audiences. Imagine Chang'e interacting with various high-tech devices in the lunar base, exploring the mysteries of the universe. What a captivating story that would be!" Xiao Li spoke with growing excitement, his eyes gleaming, as if he could already see the explosive scene when this idea became a reality.

Everyone nodded in agreement. However, Lao Zhang, a senior creative staff member, expressed his concerns: "The idea is very good, but the initial investment cost of incubating cultural IP is huge. From character design and story script creation to later animation production and publicity and promotion, a lot of capital investment is required. Preliminary estimates show that at least 50 yuan will be required for character design and story script creation alone, not including subsequent production and promotion costs. Moreover, we cannot guarantee that this IP will be successful in the market. If the initial investment cannot be recovered, it will put great pressure on the company's financial situation. Although the company's current cash reserves can support the start of the project, if the project fails, it may affect the normal development of other businesses." The contradiction between the initial investment cost of cultural IP incubation and the later licensing income has begun to emerge.

Mu Yang pondered for a moment and said, "Lao Zhang, your concerns are valid. But we can't let risk hold us back. We can develop a detailed budget and strictly control every expense. Regarding character design, we can organize our internal creative team to conduct multiple rounds of screening and optimization to ensure the most appealing image and avoid unnecessary design changes that increase costs. For story writing, we'll hire professional screenwriters and solicit feedback from all parties to improve script quality. For animation production, we'll compare prices with multiple production companies to select the most cost-effective partner. Furthermore, during the IP incubation process, we'll focus on market research and adjust our strategies based on market feedback. We can conduct small-scale market tests at different stages of the project to understand audience acceptance and preferences for the IP, allowing us to make targeted adjustments. We must believe that if we create a strong IP, the subsequent licensing revenue will be substantial. Just like many of Disney's classic IPs, while the initial investment is substantial, the long-term benefits are immeasurable. Disney's Mickey Mouse IP, from its initial animated character to its current multifaceted reach across films, theme parks, and peripheral products, has created enormous commercial value. We should also strive towards this goal."

Leaving the creative studio, Mu Yang arrived at the Copyright Operations Management Department. The staff were busy sorting through various copyright documents. File cabinets were filled with neatly arranged folders labeled with the names and copyright information of various IPs. A computer screen displayed a complex copyright information management system, updating the IP's copyright status and related data in real time.

"Copyright is the core asset of our cultural IP. We must strictly register, protect and evaluate the copyright of every cultural IP we incubate. We must ensure that our IP maximizes its value under the premise of legality and compliance. Any small copyright loophole may cause us huge losses." Mu Yang said to the copyright operation manager, his tone revealing his high attention to copyright work and his eyes showing unquestionable determination.

Xiao Wang, the copyright operations manager, responded earnestly, "Mr. Mu, we've always strictly followed procedures for copyright management. We've already completed copyright registration for several key IPs. However, we've encountered some challenges in developing our licensing strategy. During the licensing process, there's been a fierce struggle with our licensing partners regarding licensing fees, scope, and profit-sharing ratios. For example, a toy manufacturer wanted to license toys based on one of our popular IPs, but the fee they offered was far below our expectations, and their profit-sharing ratio was also very demanding. They were only willing to pay 5% of sales, while the industry average is between 8% and 12%."

Mu Yang frowned and said, "When negotiating with cooperating licensing companies, we must stick to our bottom line while also being flexible. We must fully demonstrate the market potential and value of our IP and let them know that collaborating with us is mutually beneficial. Regarding licensing fees and profit sharing ratios, we can make a comprehensive assessment based on factors such as the popularity of the IP, market prospects, and the strength of the partner. If the other party does have strong market channels and marketing capabilities, we can make appropriate concessions in certain areas, but the premise is to protect our core interests. We can show them preliminary market research data on our IP, such as the attention it receives on social media and the size of its potential audience, so that they can recognize the commercial value of this IP. At the same time, we can also impose some additional conditions, such as requiring them to fully reflect the characteristics of the IP in product design and highlight the IP's image in publicity and promotion to increase the IP's visibility and influence."

To promote the licensing of cultural IP, Mu Yang visited a partner licensing company—a well-known film and television company. The company's office building was magnificent, its glass curtain walls reflecting the sunlight, making it particularly dazzling. The hallways were lined with posters for various film and television productions, from popular commercial blockbusters to independent films with a strong artistic flavor, showcasing the company's rich creative output.

"Mr. Li, we are very much looking forward to cooperating with your company in the adaptation of cultural IP into film and television. Our cultural IP has rich story content and vivid character images, which is very suitable for adaptation into film and television works. This IP has attracted a certain amount of attention on the Internet with its unique cultural connotations and wonderful plots, and has great market potential." Mu Yang said enthusiastically to Mr. Li of the film and television company, his eyes revealing his sincerity in cooperation and confidence in the project.

Mr. Li agreed, "Mr. Mu, we're also very interested in this IP. However, during the cooperation process, we hope to expand the scope of authorization. For example, we hope to obtain not only the adaptation rights for movies and TV series, but also the adaptation rights for derivative works such as web series and animated films. We believe that this will fully tap the value of the IP and create a diversified film and television universe."

After some thought, Mu Yang said, "Mr. Li, the expansion of the scope of authorization means we have to bear more risks. We need to re-evaluate the licensing fees and profit sharing ratios. For the adaptation rights of online dramas and animated films, we need to make separate calculations based on the market characteristics and potential returns of these two fields. At the same time, we are also very concerned about the image preservation and quality control of the IP during the adaptation process. We hope that your company can form a professional creative team to ensure that the adapted film and television works are faithful to the core value of the IP. We can clearly stipulate in the contract that the script of the adapted work needs to be reviewed by us to ensure that the story content and character image meet our expectations."

During the discussion, competition and conflict over the allocation of company resources between different cultural IPs gradually emerged. A copyright operations manager raised the question, "Mr. Mu, several of our IPs are currently vying for limited promotional resources and manpower. These IPs all have great potential, but resources are limited, and we're unsure how to allocate them. For example, newly developed science fiction IPs and rising historical costume IPs both want more social media promotional resources to expand their visibility."

Mu Yang said: "We need to conduct a comprehensive assessment based on factors such as the IP's market potential, development stage, and expected returns. For those IPs that already have a certain market foundation and promising prospects, we can appropriately allocate resources. For example, historical costume IPs that are on the rise have already accumulated a certain fan base. By increasing promotional efforts, they may achieve rapid growth and bring greater returns. For newly developed science fiction IPs, although they are currently less well-known, if they have great creativity and market potential, we can also provide certain resource support in the early stages to help them open up the market. At the same time, we must formulate a reasonable resource allocation plan to ensure that each IP receives the necessary support. We can establish a resource allocation evaluation model to regularly evaluate the performance of each IP and adjust resource allocation based on the evaluation results."

At the same time, the differences and conflicts in the concept of cultural IP creation between traditional cultural elements and modern creative adaptations are also reflected in actual operations. One creative staff member said: "When adapting traditional cultural IP, some veteran artists think that our adaptations are too bold and destroy the original flavor of traditional culture. However, we believe that only by incorporating modern elements can traditional cultural IP be revitalized in the modern market. For example, when adapting the story of Chang'e's flight to the moon, the inclusion of modern technological elements such as aircraft caused some veteran artists to feel that this did not fit the traditional artistic conception of the myth."

Mu Yang said seriously: "We must find a balance between inheritance and innovation. When adapting traditional cultural IP, we must respect its core cultural values, while also innovating in line with the aesthetics and needs of modern audiences. We can invite veteran artists and cultural experts as consultants and listen to their opinions to ensure that our adaptation can retain the essence of traditional culture while meeting the needs of the modern market. We can organize a cultural seminar and invite people from all parties to discuss the adaptation direction of traditional cultural IP, and find the best adaptation plan through communication and collision. For the adaptation of Chang'e's flight to the moon, we can retain Chang'e's core qualities such as bravery and kindness, and cleverly incorporate modern technological elements to make the story have both traditional charm and modern vitality."

Through a series of efforts, the company's cultural IP is gradually gaining market recognition. The animated character based on the story of Chang'e flying to the moon has been a huge hit with audiences. Sales of peripheral products, ranging from adorable dolls to exquisite stationery, have become popular items. Film and television adaptations are also on the horizon, and collaborations with film and television companies are progressing smoothly, with the series expected to be released next year.

"I feel extremely happy to see our cultural IP becoming increasingly popular. This is not only a commercial success, but also a victory for cultural inheritance and innovation. We must continue to work hard to create more outstanding cultural IPs and let our cultural company shine more brightly in the content industry. In the future, we will continue to expand the IP industry chain, extending from film and television, animation to games, theme parks and other fields, to build a huge cultural IP empire." Mu Yang said confidently at an internal company meeting. His words were full of power, inspiring every employee to work hard for the future of the company.

In the days to come, Mu Yang will continue to lead the cultural company to continuously explore and innovate in the incubation and operation of cultural IP, and contribute more to the development of the cultural industry.