I can become stronger by paying salaries. I have one billion employees!

Chapter 280 A step earlier or later, they're not on our side! Taking over Nuomi.com?
8:30 p.m., MUSE Bar in Hangzhou.

In a luxuriously decorated private room on the second floor, Chen Yansen leaned against the center of the sofa, with Ding Lei of NetEase on his left and Zhou Shouzhi, president of DST China, on his right.

Cheng Weixing, Gao Weilin, Song Yuncheng, and Ding Lei and Zhou Shouzhi's assistants sat on the left and right sides respectively.

"Mr. Chen, I heard that the subsidy war between Didi and Kuaidi Dache is going very fierce, and Li Yanhong is getting anxious?"

Ding Lei swirled his wine glass, the ice cubes clinking softly against the glass. A hint of teasing played in his eyes behind his glasses, and a smile appeared on his lips as he asked Chen Yansen.

"To compete for market share, burning money is only the first step; mastering the fundamentals is the key," Chen Yansen replied with a smile, gently placing his wine glass on the coffee table.

He studied Didi Chuxing's passenger and driver software and found too many flaws, making it extremely easy for shady operations to find system vulnerabilities.

Cheng Weixing had mentioned to him that Kuaidi Dache could detect a large number of accounts using virtual location software and multiple accounts logged in on the same device every day, which could be described as them finding all sorts of ways to exploit customers.

Despite the robust risk control and anti-fraud mechanisms of Kuaidi Dache, some "wool party" members continue to try, resulting in countless banned devices, accounts, and IPs every day.

It is clear that the subsidies being siphoned off by Didi Chuxing, which is riddled with loopholes, amount to an astronomical figure every day.

Only then did Cheng Weixing realize that Chen Yansen had been very strict about risk control when Kuaidi Dache was launched.

Before the installation package for Kuaidi Dache was even uploaded to the app store, the internal virtual location software alone had been updated more than a dozen times, and seven or eight different simulation programs for running orders in a simulated environment had also been developed.

It could even be said that the virtual location software in the hands of gray-market studios is not as stable, covert, or secure as the software in the hands of Kuaidi Dache (a ride-hailing service).

"Didi Chuxing's technology in intelligent dispatching, geolocation, and route planning is far behind that of Kuaidi Dache, which is why DST did not invest in Chengwei."

Zhou Shouzhi smiled faintly and added on Chen Yansen's behalf.

"Luckily, Mr. Chen didn't get involved in the gaming industry, otherwise NetEase would be in trouble." Ding Lei raised his glass, clinked glasses with the two men, and joked.

"That's hard to say," Chen Yansen said, deliberately keeping a straight face.

“OK, DST will definitely give its full support whenever Mr. Chen makes a game,” Zhou Shouzhi said seriously.

Ding Lei's expression froze for a moment, then he shook his head helplessly, picked up a bottle of red wine worth tens of thousands of yuan from the table, and poured it for Chen Yansen and Zhou Shouzhi respectively.

He naturally didn't take their jokes to heart.

"Yaoyao Zhaoche went bankrupt, and Yidao Zhuanche also went bankrupt." Ding Lei leaned back, his eyes slightly narrowed, and said with a sigh.

How do I hail a taxi?

Yidao Chauffeur?

Chen Yansen had no recollection of either company, and Cheng Weixing did not mention them in his work emails.

“Boss, these are two very small ride-hailing companies, with less than 1000 orders per day. As soon as we entered the Yanjing market, their business volume plummeted, so I didn’t pay much attention to them.”

Upon hearing this, Cheng Weixing quickly offered an explanation.

"Oh." Chen Yansen nodded, not paying much attention.

Little did people know that while the ride-hailing service was already struggling, Yidao Zhuanche (易到专车) was valued at $10 billion at its peak three years later.

But now, before it could even make a name for itself, it has been crushed by Kuaidi and Didi.

The mastermind behind it all, upon learning of it, simply replied with an indifferent "Oh."

Chen Yansen knew very well that the subsidy war in the ride-hailing market was no different from the price war in the express delivery industry; without money and resources, one could only be eliminated.

Even though Kuaidi and Didi did not target Yaoyao Zhaoche and Yidao Zhuanche.

"The initial investment costs in the ride-hailing sector are too high. In addition, Kuaidi and Didi have raised the entry threshold for the industry, so there won't be many competitors in the market. It is estimated that in two or three years, this industry will quickly enter the final stage of three to two, and two to one."

Zhou Shouzhi took a sip of wine and shared his opinion.

"I hope the fastest taxi is this 'one'," Chen Yansen said with a loud laugh.

The domestic business environment is too competitive. Although ride-hailing is not exactly a quick way to make money, after 2015, competing software such as Cao Cao, T3, and Shenzhou still emerged.

Chen Yansen never intended to take over all the market share; Kuaidi Dache only needed to become the number one in the industry.

"I have faith in Mr. Chen's strategic planning abilities." Ding Lei nodded affirmatively and continued, "I must offer this toast to you separately. If it weren't for Mr. Chen's support, NetEase Ruiying G1 wouldn't have had the chance to sell 28 pre-orders in the first week."

"The production line in Luzhou is all set up. Mr. Ding, just wait two more weeks, and the sales link on NetEase Mall can be switched to an in-stock model," Chen Yansen replied, raising his glass.

Zhou Shouzhi held his wine glass, his fingertips unconsciously stroking the stem of the glass, lost in thought.

He couldn't quite figure out what Chen Yansen was thinking!
Most other people would not license their self-developed mobile operating system to third-party mobile phone manufacturers.

While it brings substantial patent revenue, it also inadvertently increases the competitive pressure on Orange phones.

In his view, it was a losing proposition.

However, Chen Yansen was clearly not a fool; the other party must have had a deeper consideration behind this move.

The three of them drank and chatted until after 10 p.m.

Chen Yansen glanced at the time, and Ding Lei immediately understood, ending the drinking session on his own initiative.

"Mr. Zhou, want to chat?" Chen Yansen extended an invitation to Zhou Shouzhi as soon as they stepped out of the bar.

“Okay.” Zhou Shouzhi smiled and readily agreed, knowing what Chen Yansen wanted to say.

The two got into a Rolls-Royce Ghost, while the driver, Gao Weilin, Cheng Weixing, and others waited outside the car.

“As of July, Orange Mobile’s annual shipments reached 2600 million units, only 140 million units less than Shanxing, with revenue approaching 400 billion. However, Orange Technology still has zero users in the European and American markets. I need a pioneer who is familiar with overseas markets.” Chen Yansen finished speaking and stared intently at Zhou Shouzhi.

For intelligent people, some things don't need to be said too explicitly.

"Thank you for your appreciation, Mr. Chen. I would like to know why you would license Aurora OS to 360 and NetEase. As far as I know, Orange Technology is not short of this licensing fee."

Zhou Shouzhi avoided answering, changed the subject, and asked curiously.

"I see Orange Technology as a research and development laboratory, not a smartphone assembly brand. Deep customization based on the Android system is not the ultimate goal."

Aurora OS, camera algorithms, battery management system, and the Moss intelligent voice interaction engine are the beginning, not the end, of Orange Technology.

Chen Yansen said in a low voice.

Zhou Shouzhi frowned, repeatedly pondering the meaning behind Chen Yansen's words. A flash of inspiration struck him, and he immediately realized: Chen Yansen was planning to move from the downstream of the industry chain to the upstream and become a rule-maker.

His ambitions far exceeded his imagination.

Why give up your position and resources at DST to join Orange Technology?

For a moment, Zhou Shouzhi hesitated.

"The timing of investment is very important. If you are a step too early or a step too late, you will not be on the same side. I don't have much patience. Sometimes, once you miss the opportunity, you will no longer be eligible to enter the market."

Chen Yansen shrugged and said slowly.

The implication was that this was the last time he would invite Zhou Shouzhi to join, and if Zhou Shouzhi refused, he would choose someone else.

“Mr. Chen, I understand. Give me two more days, and I will give you an answer as soon as possible,” Zhou Shouzhi replied solemnly.

Compared to DST, a mobile phone company with annual revenue approaching 100 billion yuan offers him a considerable stage to showcase his talents.

Moreover, Chen Yansen's business acumen was astonishing, which impressed him greatly.

Even Mark Zuckerberg, who just took Facebook public and has a net worth of over $200 billion, still sees a certain gap between himself and Chen Yansen.

"Alright, it's getting late, we have important business to discuss tomorrow," Chen Yansen said, waving his hand after seeing his response.

Zhou Shouzhi nodded slightly and got out of the car with a complicated expression.

"Take care, Mr. Zhou!" Gao Weilin, Cheng Weixing, and others greeted Zhou Shouzhi.

"Mr. Gao, Mr. Cheng, see you tomorrow." Zhou Shouzhi smiled, then got into his car and had his driver take him to the hotel.

In the southeast corner of MUSE bar, Ma Liyun, Zhu Xiaohu, Yu Heng, and others were sitting in MAX bar, privately discussing the B-round financing of Kuaidi Dache.

the other side.

Hundreds of kilometers away in Yanjing, at No. 82, Middle Fourth Ring Road, Jin Chang'an Building, the headquarters of Renren.com.

Chen Yizhou stared at the financial statements sent by Shen Boyang, his thick eyebrows instantly furrowing into a knot. As Lei Yijun's old classmate, he was a returnee from overseas before the millennium.

He values ​​immediate gains more than business prospects.

NuoNuo.com lost $670 million in Q2, accounting for 15.7% of the group’s revenue. Clearly, the group-buying business is not generating substantial profits for the company.

In terms of social products, Renren's growth has slowed down due to the rise of Weibo and WeChat, with a cumulative registration of only 1.6 million and 4500 million monthly active users. It can only be considered a niche social software, and its users are constantly leaving.

However, his development of "Renren Check-in" and "Renren Flying Transfer" for mobile access failed to capitalize on the wireless internet boom as he had hoped.

Chen Yizhou vaguely sensed that there was no future in making social products.

It's difficult to boost Renren's stock price solely through advertising revenue.

Renren Games, on the other hand, gave him a great deal of confidence.

In 2011, Renren Games' revenue was 42.3 million yuan, while in the first and second quarters of this year, it only took half the time to reach 44 million US dollars in revenue, accounting for 60% of the group's income.

No wonder Ma Wenteng and Ding Lei, despite being constantly criticized, still want to make games.

This stuff is incredibly profitable!
After looking at Nuomi.com's reports and then at Renren Games' reports, Chen Yizhou immediately made a decision: he had to sell this money-losing company as soon as possible, as it was losing 2000 to 3000 million US dollars a year and profitability was a long way off.

Now even Kuaipao has entered the group-buying industry. Nuomi.com can't even beat Meituan, Lashou, and Dianping, let alone the rapidly expanding Kuaipao.

Other companies have Senlian Capital backing them up, and they can burn through cash for a year. What does Renren have to compete with?

With this in mind, Chen Yizhou immediately made up his mind to optimize the group's negative asset projects as soon as possible and fully shift to the mobile game industry.

The next morning, he started asking around in his circle to see if anyone was interested in the group-buying business.

Chen Yansen was his first target.

at the same time.

After finishing breakfast, Chen Yansen was on his way to Jinsha Hall by West Lake when he suddenly received a call from Lei Yijun.

"Mr. Chen, Chen Yizhou of Renren.com is interested in selling Nuomi.com. He asked me for your contact information," Lei Yijun explained simply.

"Send him my phone number," Chen Yansen said without hesitation, agreeing immediately.

Whether it's Nuomi.com or Lashou.com, as long as the price is reasonable, he doesn't mind buying them.

For Kuaipao to quickly establish itself in the group-buying market, acquiring a product with a mature business model is undoubtedly the best option.

(End of this chapter)