Rebirth Tokyo 1986

Chapter 457 WCG
"A very accurate judgment, but there's no rush now, let's wait and see."

Economics is always inseparable from politics, so Masato Takeshita could not possibly act before Wall Street in the United States.

"Yes, President!"

After briefly summarizing the general trend in South Korea, Shinji Kikuno began to talk about the industries and companies he was optimistic about.

"I think South Korean internet companies are very worthwhile investments. Their valuations are low, and they can be acquired at a very low cost."

"Another option is semiconductor and electronics companies. Giants like Samsung and KT are excellent investment targets."

The internet in South Korea is still in its infancy.

Apart from Xinghai Group's QQ chat and Baidu search, all other projects are led by local companies.

It's somewhat similar to China, where, apart from the communications and search sectors monopolized by Xinghai Group, all other projects belong to domestic internet companies.

Therefore, investing in South Korean internet companies is very promising and can better influence internet public opinion in the three countries.

As for the semiconductor and electronics industries, there's no need to elaborate.

The mere fact that it's a Samsung is enough to demonstrate its prestige.

This is a giant company that is becoming a world-class enterprise and has already established itself in the semiconductor and electronics fields.

In the semiconductor memory market, Samsung has surpassed former giants such as NEC, Fujitsu, and Toshiba with its ultra-low prices.

"Sure, I trust you to handle things. But let's wait until you get back and have organized the documents before we talk about the investment."

"Yes, Chairman, I understand."

After discussing investment matters, the young man quickly changed the subject.

"Kikuno-san, what's the situation at Hoshikai Internet Cafe over there? Are there any serious corruption issues?"

"The Xinghai Internet Cafe is also doing very well here, and it's packed every night."

“I went to check, and it takes an average of half an hour to get a seat.”

Speaking of Xinghai Internet Cafe, Shinji Kikuno felt immense admiration for its president.

Who would have thought that simply opening an internet cafe, like an arcade, could generate such insane profits?

If you find a suitable location to open an internet cafe, you'll definitely recoup your costs within three months. Even selling white powder might not earn you this much.

The key point is that opening an internet cafe is very easy; all you need is some spare money.

He even opened two stores with his friends.

Of course, he's the type who just invests money, takes a share of the profits, and doesn't manage the business.

"As for the problems, they are probably due to the economic crisis, but they are not major. A simple overhaul will make them perfectly fine."

The Asian financial crisis was such a powerful bomb that it caused widespread fear and insecurity in workplaces across East Asia.

Everyone is afraid of suddenly losing their jobs, so no one dares to make any big moves.

Of course, the minor problems at Xinghai Internet Cafe are also related to the difficulty of its operations.

There are only so many jobs available in internet cafes, and very few opportunities to get hands-on experience.

It's nothing more than stealing peripherals, or occasionally sacrificing a perfectly functioning memory stick or similar component.

This loss is so small that it can be ignored.

"I see, that's good."

The young man smiled contentedly, then, feeling that everything was fine, prepared to hang up the phone.

"Okay, I won't disturb your rest any longer. We can talk about it when we get back. Bye."

"Yes, President!"

After hanging up the phone, Shinji Kikuno sat back down and closed his eyes.

He needed to organize his thoughts so that he could better explain to the chairman his reasons for wanting to invest in these companies.

South Korea and Japan are very close, and the group returned to Tokyo in just half a day.

Masato Takeshita, who personally greeted everyone, didn't engage in too much formality. After a simple greeting, he spoke very sincerely.

"Everyone must be very tired after being away on business for so many days."

"So, starting tomorrow, everyone will have a week off."

Before the young man could finish speaking, everyone cheered loudly.

"Wow, that's great."

"Great, it's a perfect opportunity to go camping with the kids."

"Hehe, now I can leisurely sleep in at home."

Everyone wore a happy smile, including Shinji Kikuno.

Who wouldn't want a long break after a hard day's work?

"Okay, then I won't keep you all from resting any longer. Dismissed!"

Masato Takeshita was very decisive and simply had the company jet take everyone home.

As for the celebration banquet, a week later is perfectly fine.

Of course, this is an employee benefit.

Shinji Kikuno and Kalinsky will give a more detailed report on their trip to Korea at tonight's meeting.

The two of them can only rest when everything is fine.

"Let's not talk about the game stuff; Starsea Games can handle that themselves."

"I want to know now how deep your research on South Korea is."

The online gaming industry is still a niche market and not worth discussing at the highest level; Xinghai Entertainment can handle it internally.

Investing in South Korea is the most important topic today.

Masato Takeshita doesn't expect the Seonghae Group to have the same level of influence in South Korea as it does in Finland, but he does hope to achieve an influence comparable to other Japanese conglomerates.

Indeed, after nearly 10 years of hard work and dedication, Xinghai Group has become the foreign company with the most profound influence on Finland.

However, this is also related to Finland's small size and population.

With only a few million people in the entire country, Finland only needs Nokia to rise to prominence for the Starsea Group to gain immense influence in Finland.

Furthermore, the Starsea Group's presence in Finland extends beyond Nokia. It also has substantial investments in companies in timber, paper, mining, and oil.

Finland has become a bridgehead for the Xinghai Group to enter the European market.

However, the small number of employees is both its strength and its weakness, making it difficult for Xinghai Group to continue expanding in Finland.

Next, the company's investment destinations will become the UK, France, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands.

The market here is much larger, and it's the true heart of Europe.

Looking at his president's expectant eyes, Shinji Kikuno said with a slightly serious expression.

"I apologize, because of time constraints, I only had a quick look around, so I hope you won't mind if I didn't say anything."

"It's okay, speak boldly. The company and I are optimistic about the future of South Korea. Even if we make a mistake in our investment, we won't lose money when we sell real estate in the future."

Because Masato Takeshita believes that the theme of the future world is peace and development, the Xinghai Group has a large number of real estate projects in countries other than Europe, America and Japan.

Not only was the office building where the branch office is located purchased with a loan, but a large number of shops and land were also bought.

The most typical example is the storefronts needed for Xinghai Internet Cafe and Xinghai Electronics. Except for North America and Europe, they were all purchased outright.

He wants to befriend time and earn more money.

“Okay, then I’ll share my thoughts on South Korea…” Kikuno Shinji then began to explain the situation in South Korea in more detail.

He wanted to please as many of the company's senior staff as possible in order to obtain more funding and authorization.

After patiently listening to everything, Masato Takeshita first led the applause to show his approval, and then smiled and spoke to everyone.

"Kikuno-san is right. There are indeed many opportunities in the Korean market right now. If you're interested, you can try investing a sum of money. The returns in the future will definitely be substantial."

Since the young man had said so, even the president of the group's subsidiary, who was still indifferent, had to show an expression of interest.

At worst, we can invest less and invest in safer projects.

The young people were well aware of what everyone was thinking.

But right now, South Korea is indeed a land of opportunity, where investment giants can make money effortlessly and also better influence the economic landscape of East Asia.

However, thinking of those bankrupt giants, Masato Takeshita suddenly issued a serious warning.

"Our investment targets should ideally be companies that can influence the lifeline of the national economy, such as Samsung or Hyundai."

"Don't invest in things that can be easily replaced unless you can invest in the entire industry."

"Also, don't even think about investing in the Daewoo Group. That company is already doomed."

After the South Korean government backed down, only Daewoo still wanted to hold on.

As a result, the company immediately became a thorn in the side of Wall Street capital, as well as the South Korean government and chaebols.

From Wall Street's perspective, you, who are already on our plate, dare to rebel. We must make an example of you.

What do you mean by this from the perspective of the South Korean government and conglomerates?
Everyone else has surrendered, but you're the only one who's so high and mighty?
Will we all become traitors to the nation after a while, while Daewoo becomes a national hero company?

No, this company must be brought down.

Therefore, Daewoo, whose debt problem is not the most serious, is now in the countdown phase.

He could only go bankrupt, and he would go bankrupt terribly.

"Yes, President!"

South Korea can only be considered an appendage; the Starsea Group should focus its efforts on its home country.

However, before that, Masato Takeshita needs to talk to Kalinsky first.

"Karin-san, let's not mass-produce those Tamagotchi."

"This thing is too easy to play, and people will get tired of it easily. Producing too much will easily lead to inventory backlog."

Trends are fleeting, and the Tamagotchi trend will soon pass.

Masato Takeshita did not want Bandai, which he managed, to end up like in his previous life, producing a large number of Tamagotchis and having to sell them off at a loss.

"Understood. The company has always taken a cautious approach to the production of Tamagotchi."

Kalinsky has a better understanding of the toy industry than the young man, and he is equally pessimistic about the lifespan of Tamagotchi.

Therefore, under his management, Bandai's production of Tamagotchi remained stable, and the company did not blindly expand due to the product's explosive popularity.

Kalinsky places more emphasis on the early childhood education toys mentioned by young people, believing that this is the future of the toy industry.

"Ah That's good."

"By the way, you should also keep trying to acquire Hasbro and Lego."

"Bandai's influence in the toy industry is still too low."

Bandai is great; it's a toy giant that has a semi-monopoly in Japan.

However, this company is too deeply tied to the domestic market and lacks development in the European and American markets.

Masato Takeshita hopes that Seikai Toys can cover the global market, making one of Lego or Hasbro inevitable.

As for Mattel in the global toy industry at this time, its prices are too high and its potential is insufficient, and acquisition would be extremely difficult, so there is no need to consider it.

"Is the acquisition planned for the near future?"

"No, this is a long-term goal, and it's perfectly possible to achieve it even if it takes 10 years."

"That's right, then I understand."

After talking about toys, the two turned their conversation to sports leagues.

"You should also pay more attention to the teams in Los Angeles and San Francisco. We can't sacrifice our investments in Los Angeles and San Francisco for the sake of the Knicks."

The Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team and the San Francisco 49ers football team are currently valued far less than the New York Knicks, a major player in the sport.

However, Los Angeles, as the second largest city in the United States, and San Francisco, as the center of Silicon Valley, are both very important cities in the United States.

Xinghai Group must leave a significant mark in these two cities to reduce the likelihood of being targeted by American capital.

"Don't worry, Chairman, we have the same attitude towards all three teams and will operate them with the best service."

"That's good. I don't ask for too much, but making the playoffs is still a must."

These three teams are all long-established powerhouses in the league, and all have won championships.

Masato Takeshita doesn't want to end up like Dolan, the Knicks president in his previous life, being constantly criticized by fans.

"Yes, please rest assured."

There wasn't much going on with Xinghai Sports, so the young man quickly steered the conversation back to Xinghai Games.

"What do you think about us hosting a world esports competition?"

"World Electronic Games Championship?"

Kalinsky was a little confused, wondering what his chairman had come up with this time.

"That's right, it's the World Cyber ​​Games, which we can call WCG for short."

"We select some highly competitive games, such as StarCraft, Street Fighter, and FIFA, to promote our computer mice and other devices, as well as our highly competitive games."

In its previous form, WCG's main sponsors were PC manufacturers, so the events were all computer games.

No console or arcade games were selected. Therefore, arcade and console games later established their own tournaments, such as EVO.

This version of Street Fighter belongs to Starsea Games, so he naturally had to add it for promotion, which would also increase the popularity of the event.

"This must cost a lot of money, right?"

Kalinsky hesitated, feeling that this was a business that would lose money but gain publicity.

"It's best to become famous early. Right now, organizing esports events is indeed a thankless task. However, once we establish our authority, we will not only have industry standing, but also more money to make in the future."

"Weren't the Grammys in music and the Oscars in film initially losses-making ventures?"

New things require time and money to cultivate, and esports is no exception.

With its first-mover advantage, Xinghai Group will fully enjoy the glory of e-sports events.

Putting aside other factors, it could at least become one of the world's top sporting events in the future, achieving a similar effect to the Olympics.

"Well, I still think it's a bit early. It's best to wait a few years."

"There's no need to wait a few more years; others will have already held theirs."

Takeshita Masato gently shook his head, deciding to act unilaterally.

“That’s settled then. I’ll draft a competition proposal first, then you and your team can study it, and we’ll try to hold the competition globally next year.”

Masato Takeshita must retain control of WCG.

He certainly doesn't want what could have been a top-tier event, the Olympics of esports, to disappear due to the inaction of the management.

(End of this chapter)