Chapter 752

For a film company, for a film company that wanted to develop and move forward instead of following behind a big company, the film library would always be the most important thing. As long as there was enough film library, even if it suffered a heavy blow, it would still have the capital to rise again. On the other hand, it was easy to be controlled by others.

Building a film library wasn't easy. There were many ways to make one's own films, buy others', or clarify the copyright ownership at the time of distribution. There were many ways, but there were also many competitors. In the end, it was still money that had the final say. Miramax had been around for more than 20 years, but only had 700 films in its library. Although Bosworth had been around for a longer time, it had always been second or third tier. There was not much difference in their library. New Line had even fewer films, only 500.

A library of nearly 2,000 films was not bad for a medium-sized company, but it wasn't enough compared to a big company. Which of the seven major film companies didn't have a library of thousands of films? Even Universal, which was at the bottom of the list, had more than 3,000 films. Now that AC Media had acquired Universal, it had more than 5,000 films in its library. It could basically be ranked in the top three.

If that was all, Adriaan wouldn't be as satisfied as he was now. Other than the 5,000 films in the library, TBS still had a lot more. As early as the early 1990s, Ted Turner had wanted to buy MGM, but for some well-known reasons, the deal was stalled. However, Turner did not give up. He took the opportunity to loot more than half of MGM's film library.

As everyone knew, there were seven major film companies in Hollywood. Before the 1980s, there were eight, including United Artists. This small company, first established by Charlie Chaplin and his friends, took more than ten years to grow, and finally reached its peak in the 1930s. Although it had experienced ups and downs, it had always been firmly in its position.

Unfortunately, there were always unexpected accidents in this world. At the end of the 1970s, United Artists invested 40 million in "Door to Heaven." In the end, it lost everything and was merged by MGM. They were both first-tier film companies, and they had the same experience. One could imagine how much MGM's film library had been enriched.

However, MGM soon followed in the footsteps of United Artists. Although it didn't face the danger of a merger because of an investment mistake, its gradual decline was unstoppable. Moreover, it had a boss like Clyne. Therefore, after only ten years, it faced the danger of being acquired by TBS. Although it had finally escaped the danger, it had paid a huge price.

Of course, a golden brand like "007" could not be sold, but Turner had taken the rights to at least 3,000 films. Therefore, today, AC Media had nearly 9,000 films in its library!

"This means we are invincible," Adriaan said to Claude.

A library of nearly nine thousand movies could generate tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of RMB in revenue every year. Even though they still had to split the profits with other copyright holders, it was still a considerable amount of profit. Think about it, a large sum of money would fall on you just by sitting still. That was why Adrian said that DreamWorks was in an invincible position. If DreamWorks had such a large library when it was being squeezed, it would not have collapsed.

In addition to the film library, there was also a library of cartoons, TV series, and so on. TBS had not only gotten the film rights from MGM, but also half of the rights to "Tom and Jerry" and many cartoons. Now it seemed that it was the right decision to acquire TBS and ABC, even if they had to raise funds from Wall Street.

"Very good. Then we should prepare to lose money," Claude said.

"Now?" Adriaan raised his eyebrows, slightly surprised. "Isn't it a little early?"

"Oh? What do you suggest? "Claude asked.

"Don't you think?" Adriaan looked at him. "Isn't the IT market a little overheated? Cisco's market value is about to exceed 100 billion, and Microsoft's market value is even higher. After the release of Win98, it once surpassed General Electric. "

"So what?" Claude shrugged. "Since the birth of Apple, the IT industry has been creating miracles. Why wouldn't it happen now? Speaking of which, Steve Jobs is really a great guy. Apple actually made a small profit this year. "

"Come on, Krau, I'm serious." Adriaan interrupted him. "You know, I was the one who came up with that plan. At first, only we were doing it covertly. But now, how many people are doing it?"

"Well, what are you trying to say, Eide?" Claude spread his hands. "The IT market is going to collapse?"

"You have to admit, it's possible, and it's quite likely." Adriaan shrugged. "I just don't know when it will happen."

"So …"

"Push it back a little. Let's wait until the middle of 2000. How about that?"

Claude didn't speak. He just looked at Adriaan with interest. After a long time, he said, "Do you have any premonitions, Eide?"

"No, I'm just worried." Adriaan smiled. "Even someone like me can see the uncertainty. I don't believe you can't see it. Don't you want to …"

He made a gesture and didn't speak again. Claude didn't either. Then a moment passed.

"There's no need to do this. We just need to be covert. It's just a little troublesome." Claude said, "I'll pay attention. If that happens, I won't be polite."

"Since you say so, then everything will go according to your plan," Adriaan said after thinking for a few minutes.

The so-called preparation for a loss did not mean that his company would actually lose money. Only a fool would do that. Claude meant to deal with the data on the books and make the company look like it was losing money in order to deal with the tax bureau and the public. This was not illegal. It was just that the calculation method was a little special. The principal, expected profit, and actual profit were all different. As a result, it was actually making money but showing a loss on the books. Basically, all American companies did this, so there was nothing to worry about.

Now, with the foundation completely fixed, AC Media had entered a relatively stable development area. Claude would naturally seek greater profits.

But Adriaan had more ideas. As he said before, once the foundation was laid, it was time to turn to the construction of the castle. He couldn't build a thatched hut on top of a solid foundation, right? Adriaan knew his strengths and weaknesses, so he left these matters to Claude. Claude was only responsible for his own opinions.

It turned out that Claude did a very good job. Not to mention the company's several acquisitions, after deciding to cooperate with traditional media groups, whether it was the Hearst Group or the Newhouse Group, they all had a very good cooperation. However, contrary to Adriaan's expectations, the Hearst Group and AC Media had a closer cooperation.

The Hearst Group was not only a giant in the publishing industry, but it was also involved in many other areas. For example, they had launched their own channel and had previously cooperated with ABC. Naturally, they were very concerned about the olive branch extended by AC Media. Claude didn't let go of this opportunity. He fully cooperated with them on television. It was his proposal to broadcast "Will and Grace" on their channel. The Hearst Group needed AC Media in this area, so the cooperation was very close.

On the other hand, the Newhouse Group completely focused on newspapers and magazines. Several of its famous magazines, such as "The New Yorker", "Vanity Fair", "Vogue", and so on, were all needed by AC Media. Therefore, they could deal with Claude with ease. However, the Newhouse Group was also currently entering the Internet, and AC Media had invested a lot in IT. Therefore, the cooperation between the two parties was not bad, but it wasn't as close as the Hearst Group.

Although he didn't achieve his expected goal, Adriaan didn't take it to heart. After a few years after the millennium, this situation would quickly disappear, and the current intimate relationship would only become more intimate.

In any case, Adriaan needed Claude to take the helm, so he would always inform him of any plans he had. However, this time, he couldn't say it clearly. The profit and loss on the books was just a prelude. Then, step by step, he would lead the topic to what he wanted to say. After all … it wasn't easy to be a prophet. It was dangerous to jump a tightrope.

He was satisfied with Claude's answer. Adriaan had prepared a lot of things to say. After all, next year was the craziest year, and this was just the beginning. Even those on Wall Street who were ready to shear the sheep were not sure when the bubble would burst, let alone Adriaan, who had never been good at finance.

Well, no matter what, this matter was still very far away. Even if Adriaan had a huge acquisition plan, and Claude had promised to keep an eye on it, he turned his attention to other aspects.

"Stop, Ivy, stop. Do you know that right now, you're like a monkey that just came out of a cage?" Adrian shouted to Ariel, who was doing somersaults in the room, as he listened to Erik Norton's words.

"You're the monkey, Eide!" Avril, who finally stopped after a few somersaults, waved her fists and shouted threateningly. Immediately, everyone laughed.

"Well, even if I'm a monkey, I'm still the Monkey King. But you, you should be the monkey in the circus," Adriaan said unceremoniously.

The girl's face immediately darkened. She bit her lip and glared at Adriaan, as if she would rush up and bite him at any time. Without smoky makeup, T-shirt, ripped jeans, and canvas shoes, Avril now looked no different from an ordinary Western girl. But she was very cute, especially now, so Adriaan couldn't help but tease her.

Seeing that the girl was getting angrier and angrier, Adriaan changed the topic. "Alright, Avril. Eric told me that you've decided on your path. Tell me, are you really sure?"

Sure enough, as soon as the topic of music was brought up, the angry Avril immediately smiled. "Of course, don't you think rock is cool?"

"Just cool?" Adriaan looked at her and asked.

"Not just cool, but very … very … very …" The girl frowned and couldn't think of a suitable adjective for a long time. Finally, she waved her hand impatiently. "Anyway, I like rock! As a singer, of course you should choose the music you like and work hard, right? "

"Alright, then it's settled." Adriaan sighed in his heart.

Frankly speaking, from a long-term point of view, rock was not completely suitable for Avril. In her memory, although it was very popular and outstanding in the early stages, it started to fall behind later on. But then again, there were many factors that led to such a situation. Besides, there was more than one type of rock music. Since she liked it and "still" chose it, Norton also thought that she had a bright future in it, so he decided to do well.

Just as the girl said, it was definitely a terrible thing for a singer to not choose the music they liked and work hard in.

"Very well, then I will ask them to arrange formal lessons for you soon. Don't be lazy when the time comes." Adriaan followed up. "Also, don't fall behind on other lessons that you have already taken."

"Got it, I will work very hard!" Avril immediately puffed out her chest.

"Anyone would say something like that. Although I am very busy, I will definitely take the time to check on you. If you don't meet my requirements, Avril, you are dead!" Adriaan crossed his arms and leaned down, looking down at her from above. He was half threatening and half joking.

"You are very long-winded, just like an old …" The girl made a face at him, then rolled her eyes and grinned evilly. "… just like an old man, Uncle ED."

"What … did you call me?" Adriaan choked and coughed a few times, then stared at Avril with the corner of his eye twitching.

"Uncle d * mn, is there something wrong?" Avril blinked innocently and confidently.

"This …" Adriaan was speechless, while the others around him tried their best to hold in their laughter.

"That's it, Uncle ED, I have to leave." After looking at the time, Avril said with a smile, proud of herself, obviously happy that she had vented her anger.

"Okay, I will ask the driver to take you back." Adriaan let out a long sigh, trying to look as calm as before.

After saying goodbye to the others, Avril walked to the door and waved to him. "Thank you, Uncle ED."

When she said the last two words, she deliberately raised her voice, which sounded especially funny, and the people in the room suddenly burst into laughter.

Damn it! Damn this little girl! Adriaan rolled his eyes and began to wonder if it was the right decision to bring this little rock and roll witch from Canada.

After Adriaan returned from Napani, MU Records sent someone to test Avril. Needless to say, they offered her a training contract. Then when the summer was over, Avril came to Los Angeles in the name of an exchange student. With Adriaan's power, it was too easy to settle this kind of thing. He even arranged a host family for her, which was the home of Julie, the head of the editing department.

In fact, at first, Adriaan wanted to arrange for her to stay with the producer Melanie, who was Scarlet's mother. The two girls were the same age, so there should be a lot to talk about. Scarlet also had an older brother, an older sister, and a younger twin brother. Avril should like this kind of family with more children. However, Melanie often went back to New York, and more importantly, this was a divorced family, so after thinking about it, he gave up.

Then, Julie's home became the first choice. Their family was very harmonious. Although the somewhat androgynous daughter was only seven years old, she was carefree, easy to get along with, and also liked music very much. So after asking Avril's opinion, they finally settled on their home.

The actual situation was similar to what Adriaan had expected. Although Avril was half the age of Kristen, she got along well with her, and often played the guitar and sang to her. Although she felt a little uncomfortable for the first two or three days after arriving in the United States, the girl quickly settled down and made a few good friends in school. Then, she began the most basic training until today.

"I'll leave this place to you, Eric. Dig out her potential." Adriaan patted Norton on the shoulder and walked out.

"No problem, she will be as good as Britney and Christina," Norton replied. After a pause, he said while holding back his laughter, "Frankly speaking, I think Avril's name is very suitable for you."

The room suddenly burst into laughter again, and a few staff members leaned on the table. When he reached the door, Adriaan turned around and glared at them. He mouthed, "You're all a bunch of b * stards," and quickly left.

It was impossible to say that he wasn't angry, but it wasn't because the staff members were making fun of him. He wasn't a petty person, but the way Avril called him was indeed troublesome, from a psychological point of view …

"Don't worry, don't jump to conclusions so quickly. Who can say that it's definitely a bad thing?" Adriaan whispered to himself as he opened the door to his private lounge.

As soon as he closed the door, a pair of hands reached out from behind and hugged his waist. Then, a slightly shrill voice came from behind, "Oh, I missed you so much, Uncle Eide."

"Alright, Bubu, you don't look like it at all." Adriaan laughed and pulled the girl out from behind him.

"Why?" Britney asked, a little surprised. "My voice is already very shrill."

"Yes, very shrill, but it's not that easy to cover up your characteristics." Adriaan sat on the sofa and patted his thigh. "That wonderful, sweet, magnetic voice, I can recognize it immediately."

His words made the girl smile, and she immediately jumped onto the sofa and burrowed into his arms.

"When did you pick up this name?" Adriaan asked again.

"When Avril left to call you, the door was already open. Everyone in the hallway heard it. I was nearby, so of course, I heard it too." Britney giggled. "Uncle Eide, that's an interesting name."

She moved closer to Adriaan and exhaled flirtatiously, her eyes sparkling. "Do you want me to call you that too?"

It was a tempting suggestion. He had already eaten Britney, skin and bones, if … But Adriaan quickly shook his head and put on a half-smile. "What are you planning, Bubu?"