America: My Time

Chapter 42 War begins

Chapter Forty-Two: The War Begins

With time running out, John didn't linger in Japan and flew to Hong Kong to begin his new journey. However, before leaving, he made a big move: using some of his shares in Phoenix Comics to borrow $100 million from a Japanese bank to fully develop his real estate business in Japan.

Although Phoenix Comics is not publicly listed, Japanese banks know how powerful the company is. They are well aware of the value of the comics that have swept across Japan, Asia, Europe and the United States. They would dare to give more than 100 million!
In order to reduce the need for talent, this real estate company is directly affiliated with Tsutaya and its target is only commercial buildings. One hundred million US dollars is neither a lot nor a little in real estate. If managed well, it will allow Tsutaya to expand rapidly and accumulate more real estate experience to prepare for future expansion.

In its expansion plan in Japan, Tsutaya does not operate land, but only acquires and operates commercial real estate. Everything is for the purpose of expanding its own business, so as not to attract attention or alert others!

Before arriving in Hong Kong, John had already arranged for people to negotiate with an Australian consortium regarding RTV (Rediffusion Television), marking Phoenix Entertainment's entry into the television industry. With ample funding, the deal was quickly finalized: a direct acquisition of RTV for HK$2 million, followed by the acquisition of the Daily News, rapidly completing the integration of the Phoenix Entertainment Group. Everything was centered around the television station; all of Phoenix Entertainment's operations in Hong Kong were handed over to the television station!
While everyone's attention was focused on Phoenix Entertainment, no one noticed that John had quietly established an investment company in Hong Kong. Although not large in scale, it possessed considerable funds. This was a strategic move in Hong Kong, preparing to deliver a decisive blow to the British conglomerate at a crucial moment!
During this period, the relationship between British beef and Americans was not so good. The Americans' attitude towards them was somewhat ambiguous. In fact, ever since British beef joined the European Union, the Americans' attitude towards them has never been good!
Not many people in Hong Kong knew much about Phoenix Entertainment Group. When John appeared in everyone's sight, everyone was stunned by his age. He was too young. No one expected that such a young man would acquire RTV and Daily News so quickly and establish himself in Hong Kong!

What shocked everyone even more was that after the acquisition was completed, Robert Iger also came to Hong Kong to make arrangements for promoting the toys. At this time, everyone discovered that this young man also owned another entertainment group! To everyone's surprise, Legendary Records also completed its layout in Hong Kong and Taiwan. Legendary Records really has capable people with excellent vision, managing to acquire a group of outstanding talents such as Xiao Chong, Su Rui, Ye Qianwen, Leslie Cheung, Andy Lau, and Sandy Lam!

Originally, he wanted to acquire Shaw Brothers Studio and Shaw Cinemas to complete his layout in film and cinema. Unfortunately, time was limited. Before John could discuss the acquisition with Mr. Shaw, Legendary Records in the United States ran into trouble. The Madonna photo scandal broke out, and Warner Music was the one that stepped in!
It must be admitted that Warner's blow struck at the Achilles' heel of Legendary Records and Legendary Pictures, impacting their development. If it weren't for the high quality of their own singles, the Madonna incident might have seriously affected the company's development plans!

“Iger, it seems our enemy can’t wait to fight us to the death. We must speed up our original plans. I’ll leave the toy matter to you. I’m going back to the US first. We need to increase our investment in media. We must get MTV, which we originally planned to acquire before the end of the year, as soon as possible. The same goes for Dick Clark Television Productions. We must have our own media power!”

“Boss, I don’t understand why Warner is going to fight us to the death at this time. What good does it do them? Even if Warner can hurt the artists under our film and record companies, so what? This is just a newcomer. It won’t have much impact on us, nor will it delay our development. It will only make us resent them more. What’s the point?”

"I don't understand what that madman Steve Ross is up to, but we can't do nothing. If we don't react at all, it will be very difficult for Legendary Records to sign new artists in the future, which will seriously affect the development of Legendary Records and is not conducive to our future layout in the record industry. If we take over MTV, the situation will be completely different. We will have a channel to speak out and promote our artists, and we can also strike at Warner's artists. Steve Ross wants to fight, so we'll give him a fight. I want to see who gives in first. We're small and can turn around easily, and we don't need too many resources. Warner is different!"

John paused, took a deep breath, and continued, "The film studio needs to speed things up, even if it's not for profit, but just to train people. Whenever they release their films, we'll release them alongside them, with small budgets, making comedies and horror films, just to annoy Warner Bros.!" Kindness is often taken advantage of! John didn't want to give the impression of weakness. Since Warner Bros. dared to provoke him like this, if he didn't retaliate, he would only be looked down upon, which was unacceptable.

“The boss is right. We do need to fight back, otherwise the entire industry will look down on us. Legendary Entertainment may be small, but we are not to be trifled with. The temporary gains or losses in the film business are nothing, but our reputation absolutely cannot be damaged, and the same goes for records. I agree with your decision!”

“Iger, you also need to keep an eye on the record issue during your upcoming trip to Europe. I don’t have time to focus on it anymore. The record industry is also the focus of Legendary Entertainment, and now is a great time for its development. We can’t let Warner’s obstruction stop our progress. I also have some preparations for the songs, and they are on file with Legendary Records!”

The trip to Europe was also a very important matter, but Warner's sudden move disrupted his plans and made his time more limited. This required Robert Iger, the CEO of Legendary Entertainment, to take on more responsibility.

Robert Iger was furious at Warner's provocation. He was now the CEO of Legendary Entertainment, and if Legendary Entertainment was humiliated and did not retaliate, people would not say that their boss was weak, but that they themselves were weak. Robert Iger did not want that kind of reputation, so he fully agreed with his boss's decision!
Does Legendary Pictures' gains or losses matter? No, they don't matter. It's just a new company. Even if it loses to Warner Bros., no one will say anything bad. Even if it's like throwing an egg against a rock, it will still demonstrate Legendary Entertainment's determination and gain a good reputation. With a good reputation, talent will naturally join!

"Boss, please rest assured, I will handle these matters. Actually, for us, it's much better for Warner to step in now than later. We weren't prepared, and neither was Warner. This time, they can catch us off guard, but the impact on us will be minimal. Their presence will only accelerate our expansion. As long as we stabilize ourselves, Warner's threat is not significant. Moreover, Warner's intervention will force other giants to stand by. Without Warner's intervention, I'm afraid even more enemies would step forward to obstruct us!"

Robert Iger makes a good point; his insight is keen. At this juncture, Warner's significant move against Legendary Entertainment is indeed not a bad thing. Precisely because Warner is an entertainment giant, their intervention largely prevents Legendary Entertainment from facing more enemies and enduring more suppression!

John understood this issue, but it wasn't a reason for Legendary to compromise, and Legendary Entertainment wouldn't back down on this point. Regardless of whether Warner's suppression was beneficial, Legendary Entertainment had to fight back. They couldn't afford to leave a reputation for weakness; a counterattack was necessary, no matter the cost!

While Warner's resistance may offer some temporary relief to Legendary Entertainment, Legendary Entertainment's inaction and constant concessions will only tempt more entertainment giants to attack it, plunging Legendary Entertainment into an even greater crisis. This is an outcome John cannot accept, and a consequence Legendary Entertainment cannot afford!

After this conversation, John's desire to return home faded somewhat. He realized that he didn't need to take Warner's sneak attack too seriously. He couldn't change his plans because of Warner. This time it was Warner, but there would be more similar situations in the future. Did he have to deal with each one personally?
(End of this chapter)