Rebirth 2010: I taught Mr. Lei how to make a mobile phone

Chapter 632 "Scraping the Bone to Treat the Poison" Baidu
April 4st, April Fool's Day.

On this day, no matter whether users open Toutiao to browse the news, watch short videos on Bilibili or Douyin, or log in to the game platform, as long as they come into contact with the products of the Bi'an series, the figure of Bi'an search will inevitably appear wherever they can see.

People were surprised to find that the products of the Bi'an system had already penetrated into every corner of their daily Internet life like spring rain.

With the synergistic efforts of Bi'an's powerful product matrix, Bi'an Search is like a wild horse that has broken free from its reins, sweeping across the entire Chinese Internet with overwhelming force.

Countless users who habitually want to use Baidu search, either because they remember the recent negative news about Baidu or because they have a natural liking for the Bi'an brand, all have the same idea: why not try Bi'an search?

Once you try this, there’s no going back.

All users who have experienced Bi'an Search have left messages on Zhihu, Bi'an Weibo, and even Baidu Tieba, giving it high praise:
"I've never seen a search engine that can automatically answer questions. Is it this amazing?"

"It's so nice to get answers to simple questions directly. In the past, it took at least three steps to check the exchange rate, calendar, and weather on Baidu. Now, you can get what you want in one step. It's awesome."

"Professional questions are automatically linked to high-quality answers from Zhihu. This is a great combination!"

"I originally thought that Baidu Beyond was just an ad-free version of Baidu, but I didn't expect it to be a fully upgraded version. I love it!"

"There is no threshold to get started. It is simple and convenient. All you need is a hand. Bi'an Search is afraid that everyone will not be used to it, so it even takes the layout and interface into consideration. It is so thoughtful. I am crying."

"Haha, mom, you don't have to worry about me not being able to find the answer anymore. You can find everything you search on the other side. It really searches for whatever you want. You are so smart, just like Xiaomo."

“I don’t know if the other side of the intelligent answer has moved Xiaomi’s Xiaomo. I feel like I can chat with him for a whole day.”

"The other side, awesome! Baidu? I suggest just changing the name to 'Me and My Advertiser Dad', it would be more appropriate, no need for dogs!"

These spontaneous word-of-mouth communications enabled Bi'an Search to complete a stunning transformation from a "fresh attempt" to a "daily necessity" in just 24 hours.

Baidu, the former search giant, is slowly losing its aura of dominance amid the ridicule of its users.

All major media outlets have simultaneously focused their cameras on this challenger who suddenly emerged:
A newspaper published an article titled "A Belated Internet Enlightenment" that detailed the technical ethics behind the search engine.
The cover story of a certain magazine was printed with the eye-catching headline “Technology is not guilty, profiteering is the original sin”;

Someone in the industry has keenly captured the strategic layout of "one search connecting the whole situation, and the ecological matrix on the other side is revealed."

The most impactful report was the special report by 36Kr: "This is not a simple product iteration, but a 'search equality movement' - when technology no longer serves capital, users can experience undistorted real information for the first time." This report was forwarded crazily in the circle of friends and became the hottest industry observation of the day.

This marketing storm presents a textbook-level communication matrix:

The promotion of platform products, media reports, hot searches on the charts, discussions among netizens, and the strong recommendations from KOLs (key opinion leaders) and KOCs (key opinion consumers) among internal beta users.

I don't know how many ways it worked together, but it directly detonated the Chinese network
Through the spread of billions of traffic, Bi'an Search's PV (page views) exceeded 3 million on the first day, and UV (unique visitors) exceeded 5 million, nearly times the initial number when it was launched, directly increasing from millions to billions.

The above figures shocked the industry - it turns out that the media resource package of the other side has such a terrifying traffic diversion capability.

In comparison, "Wolf Warrior", invested by Bian'an Pictures and directed and acted by Wu Jing, was released a day later, but compared with the search war, it was just a small ripple in the waves.

Perhaps because the media and the public loved the film, the box office exceeded 5000 million on the first day, and then the box office of the film continued to rise, just like the market share of Bi'an Search.

In just one week, the total box office of "Wolf Warrior" exceeded 3 million yuan. As time goes by, it continues to create box office records for domestic military films, promote the commercialization of military genre films, and verify the marketability of main-theme films. Wu Jing also became famous with this film.

The results on the main battlefield were even more fruitful. The PV of Bi'an Search reached 20 billion, UV reached 2 million, and the market share reached 31%, directly surpassing Sogou and 360 to become the second only to Baidu.

The already poor families of 360 and Sogou were hit even harder, but the biggest casualty was Baidu, the former industry leader.

You should know that before the launch of Baidu Search, the average daily PV was about 60 to 70 billion times/day, and the UV was about 3.5 to 4 million people/day.

According to CNNIC's "2014 China Search Engine Market Research Report", by the end of 2014, Baidu covered more than 85% of Chinese netizens, consistent with its 83.6% market share. The average daily active search users accounted for more than 50%, and Baidu's global search requests accounted for 7.5% (second only to Google).

However, after the launch of Bi'an Search, these numbers began to drop drastically:

Even though Baidu Search urgently adjusted the proportion of advertising, its corresponding market share was still rapidly eroded by Bi'an Search.

In just one week, Baidu's PV dropped sharply to 50 billion, UV fell below 3 million, and its market share dropped from more than 80% to more than 60%, losing nearly a quarter of the market.

Most importantly, the capital market reacted more violently: Baidu's stock price plummeted 25% in just seven trading days, from a high of $200 per share to $150, and its market value evaporated by $200 billion in an instant, eventually falling from the original $700 billion to the $500 billion mark. Wall Street analysts lowered their ratings one after another, and Goldman Sachs even said in a research report: "The sustainability of Baidu's business model faces severe challenges."

Some media even claimed that the emergence of Bi'an Search was a milestone in China's search market, no less significant than Google's withdrawal from China.

For the first time since Baidu was founded in 2000, a challenger with equal technology but opposite values ​​has emerged in the Chinese search market.

With its minimalist model of "zero advertising interference + AI precise answers", Bi'an directly challenges Baidu's business foundation of "paid ranking" and has achieved remarkable results.

What shocked the industry the most was that this contest, which was thought to be evenly matched, turned out to be one-sided.

As one Internet observer who wished to remain anonymous said: "We thought we would see a protracted battle, but Baidu was defeated in the first round."

In this Internet search drama, the person who is most restless is not Li Yanhong, but Zhou Hongyi of Qihoo 360.

When he noticed that Baidu, which he thought was extremely powerful, was beaten by the other side and had almost no chance to fight back, he was so angry that he slapped his thigh - isn't this the same trick that 360 Security Guard used back then?
"Speculating on concepts and de-commercialization, I'm familiar with this routine!" Zhou Hongyi paced back and forth in the office, getting angrier the more he thought about it.

If I had known it was so simple, why would I bother with this? I remember how 360 and Baidu fought to the death two years ago and even went to court, and in the end, was caught crawling data. Oh, the more I think about it, the more unbearable it becomes.

Seeing the boundless success of Bi'an Search, Zhou Hongyi felt so frustrated that it was a hundred times more painful than missing out on stock trading.

What’s even more infuriating is that now that the eldest and second oldest are fighting, he, the third oldest, not only doesn’t get to share in the fun, but gets beaten up instead. How can he seek justice?
But now he has no choice but to commercialize it? The other side has been the first to do so, and now they need to follow suit. The most important thing is the other side's intelligent question and answer, which takes time to develop, and now there is no time for it.
He can only comfort himself now. I feel bad, but there are people who feel worse than me. Compared to the other side, he wants Baidu to die more. This is the lesser of two evils.

Hmm? No, now is a good opportunity for me to have a share of the spoils. Isn't Baidu rich?

Didn’t Bi’an try to bind Bi’an Search to 360 Browser some time ago?
Talk! Now we can talk. As long as the money is in place, everything will be fine!
Zhou Hongyi immediately called everyone to a meeting and prepared to package 360 ​​Search and sell it at a good price.

Anyway, he has thought it through. With the current situation, he can't even beat Baidu, and he has no courage to challenge the other side.
On the other side, the atmosphere in the conference room on the top floor of Baidu Building was stagnant.

Li Yanhong's eyes were fixed on the technical team's report like a hawk, and he spoke slowly, "So, your conclusion is that the crawler system of the other side is completely self-developed? Our existing shielding methods are ineffective?"

Liu Jun, the vice president in charge of search technology, swallowed his saliva and said, "Yes, Robin, the trick we used on 360 before is ineffective on Bi'an."

"Then find me another way." Li Yanhong suddenly interrupted and turned to the other end of the conference table, "What's the current situation in the stock market?"

Li Xinyi, the CFO, immediately straightened his back and reported professionally and calmly:
"The current market sentiment is generally skeptical and wait-and-see about Baidu, and many overseas institutions are increasing their short selling efforts. The current situation is very serious. According to our stress test model, if this situation continues, the stock price may fall in the worst case scenario."

"Cut in half?" Li Yanhong suddenly replied, with a cold smile on his face.

Li Xinyi glanced at the phone on the table and nodded slightly: "Yes, my wife is coordinating with Goldman Sachs and other investment banks to ease the short-selling pressure. I suggest that the market value management plan be immediately launched, including but not limited to: accelerating the stock repurchase plan, releasing the Q1 performance forecast in advance, and Baidu needs to make adjustments to release signals to boost market confidence."

Li Yanhong raised his hand to signal her to stop, "Got it."

Everything went wrong and he was in a passive position in all aspects, which made his brows furrow into a shape of a "川" (river) and he was furious.

When he flipped to the end and saw the latest statistical report, he suddenly slammed the folder on the table, rubbed his eyebrows, and whispered,

"Xiang Hailong, if I remember correctly, I previously instructed that the proportion of all advertisements be reduced to 50%, and all advertisements in sensitive industries be removed from the shelves.

But with this data, why are there still so many ads, especially those in specific industries? You better give me a reasonable explanation."

Li Yanhong's originally low voice suddenly rose, "Are you obsessed with money?"

The boss was furious and the meeting room fell silent.

"." Xiang Hailong's Adam's apple rolled, but no sound came out.

"What? Are you feeling guilty now?" Li Yanhong's eyes were as cold as ice. "Who gave you the courage?"

"It's me." A female voice suddenly came from the transatlantic phone on the conference table, with unquestionable majesty.

Then a cell phone rang, which was unusually harsh in the quiet conference room. Li Yanhong glanced at the caller ID.

For the first time in more than a decade since the company was founded, he answered the phone call from his wife in front of all the executives.
(End of this chapter)