Chapter 44: Chapter 217 – Negotiations Concluded

 

Murdoch smiled with "sincerity" and replied, "Eric, everyone knows that Nielsen is responsible for the ratings statistics."

"Nielsen is a commercial market research company. It exists to make money, doesn't it?" Eric asked in response.

Since Nielsen was a commercial company, it could very easily tamper with the ratings statistics, in exchange for a sufficient profit.

Murdoch cursed in his heart. Their negotiation today might end up determining who dominates Fox TV Network in the future. How could he be willing to let it go easily?

If it weren't for Eric's countdown act, Murdoch would never have agreed to his terms. However, he was aware that since he had been defeated in the negotiation and Eric had dodged his following tricks, it is very likely that he would have to pay him the 10% equity as promised. This was because, even until now, he was unaware of Eric's bottom line. He was still not sure if Eric would be willing to default on their contract and transfer Friends to one of the other networks. He also didn't know what exact conditions the three major TV networks had offered Eric. However, conversely, Eric had figured out his bottle line. The moment he accepted his terms, Eric knew that even if he had to introduce a new major shareholder to Fox Network, Murdoch would never allow Fox to lose Friends. This alone allowed Eric to occupy an absolute advantage during their negotiation.

Since it was now irreversible, Murdoch wished to obtain as many benefits as possible. After all, he was  someone who always wanted to be in control. Even if Eric's Firefly was destined to become the second largest shareholder of Fox Network, he still regarded Fox as his personal property.

Murdoch recalled that Fox had originally wanted to be involved in the production of Friends but were rejected. He realized that Firefly couldn't be allowed to have the sole copyrights to the two new TV shows. In case, he and Eric have some irreconcilable contradictions in the future, it was obvious which side the shareholders would stand on in order to keep Fox from losing the hit shows.

After hesitating for a moment, Murdoch softly said, "Alright, Eric, I... agree. We will talk about the specifics later. But regarding the two shows you mentioned, since Firefly is about to become a shareholder of Fox, I hope that you can submit the ideas of these two programs to Fox for production."

Eric could tell that Murdoch had really agreed this time. He was secretly excited about how many folds this equity would appreciate in the future. Rather than being just a simple stake in Fox Network, this deal signified that his business empire had expanded to a whole new domain. Of course since Murdoch gave him such a positive answer, he also needed to express his sincerity.

What Murdoch said previously was actually correct. If Firefly's wants 10% equity of Fox Network, just Friends alone is far from enough.

Although he was somewhat reluctant, Eric replied, "Mr. Murdoch, I can't hand over complete control of the two shows to Fox. But, I promise that they will be jointly produced by Fox and Firefly and the investment and copyright will be divided equally."

Murdoch didn't expect Eric to hand over the two programs to Fox so easily. His purpose had been to gain some say regarding the production and copyright of the two shows, so that a repeat of the crisis with Friends doesn't happen. Eric's proposal was in line with his expectations, so he didn't have any other conditions.

In fact, during their short negotiation, Murdoch had gotten far more exhausted from dealing with Eric rather than the other way around.

"In that case, deal."

Although there was some wine in the cabinet next to him, Murdoch didn't have the energy to fetch it, so he simply raised his coffee cup towards Eric.

"Deal." Eric also brought his coffee cup up and lightly touched it with Murdoch's.

The old and the young man faintly smiled at each other, like a pair of old friends, as if the quarrel and threats had been an illusion.

They talked about a few more things for another hour before Eric left.

***

A gentle wind blew through the corridor. After taking a few deep breaths of fresh air, Eric walked down the stairs and returned to the party hall on the first floor.

It was already past nine o'clock and the party was at its climax. Countless men and women shuttled back and forth, and there was a loud buzz in the hall, but it didn't seem noisy at all. Near the band, a small group of men and women danced together on the dance floor.

Eric was about to go find Jennifer when Robert Shaye and Jeffrey, who had been waiting anxiously at the top of the stairs for an hour, found him.

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"Eric, how did the negotiation go?" Robert asked quickly.

Although there was a huge gap in his equity compared to Eric's, he was the second largest shareholder of Firefly. Therefore, the issue of Friends was closely related to his interests. Although Jeffrey was also very concerned about it, he was not as anxious as Robert.

Eric looked a bit gloomy and replied to Robert, "Robert, I have some bad news for you."

"Ah," Robert Shaye subconsciously opened his mouth. Eric had already revealed some of his plans to him, so when he heard Eric say this, he felt a little disappointed. Still, he couldn't help but ask, "Did the negotiation not go well?"

Eric shook his head and replied in a gloomy tone, "I mean, Robert, I had originally planned to pay your $60 million from the box office share of Pretty Woman, but now, that money might be used someplace else."

Robert and Jeffrey suddenly realized that Eric must have won the negotiation but had been playing a prank on them.

Pretending to be angry while lighting slapping Eric's shoulders, Robert Shaye smiled and scolded, "Brat, don't speak in circles. Hurry up and tell the truth."

Eric smiled and said, "Murdoch has agreed to give us 10% equity of Fox Network at the price of 80% before the broadcast of Friends.

The two middle-aged men stood still, wide-eyed. Robert Shaye obviously wanted Eric's words to be true, but he instinctively felt that such a thing was impossible.

Fox Network is ranked fourth in North America and has been on a bull since the broadcast of Friends. How could Robert Shaye believe that it would give 10% of its equity to them so easily?

"Eric, this is not funny. How could Murdoch be willing to give us so much equity?"

Jeffrey had known Eric for a long time, and had seen Eric do miraculous things more than once. Therefore, after a brief surprise, Jeffrey had almost completely believed him but he still asked, "Eric, are you sure you're not kidding?"

Eric took a glass of champagne from a passing waiter and raised it to two people as he declared, "Of course I'm not kidding. We are about to become the second largest shareholder of Fox Network."

After Eric's declaration, neither Robert nor Jeffrey doubted him any longer. Instead, they were both pleasantly surprised. Robert Shaye was even more excited as he raised his glass of red wine and quickly drank it.

Although he personally had only 15% of the 10% equity, as the CEO of Firefly, he could exercise control over its 10% stake in Fox Network. Since his net worth had crossed $100 million, Robert Shaye no longer cared too much about money. Instead, he cared more about power. His goal now was to become the head of a movie giant like Michael Eisner. Michael Eisner also didn't have much equity in Disney, but he still had complete control over Disney.

Of course, there was something that Robert Shaye didn't realize, or chose to deliberately ignore.

Firefly had Eric, but Disney had no such person.

After a brief moment of excitement, Eric explained, "Like I was saying, Robert, if you want, Firefly can still come up with $60 million to pay you, but this will cause Firefly's capital chain to become tense. So, I was wondering if you can wait until the end of the year. Rest assured, beyond the contract payment deadline, I will pay you with interest at the rate used by banks while giving out loans."

Robert Shaye smiled and patted Eric's shoulder as he replied, “Of course it's okay. We're a family now. I've read the financial information. Firefly can't spend too much money at the end of the year. After all, the rest of our movies will be released at the end of this year, and we will only get the returns on them by mid next year. So, just pay me then."

Robert Shaye replied, and immediately added, nonchalantly, "Actually, Eric, you don't have to pay me in cash. Just pay me in Firefly's equity."

Eric smiled, pretending not to have heard Robert Shaye's words, and turned around casually. After saying a few more words, Robert left, content.

But Jeffrey, who noticed Eric's hint, walked a step behind him and returned to Eric.

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