America: My Time

Chapter 589 The Greedy Sony

Chapter 579 The Greedy Sony
John's well-intentioned reminder was precisely for this reason: to license Bell Labs' 8-inch wafer technology to Japan. Akio Morita's words played right into John's calculations.

“Yes, if you need it, Bell Labs can license it to Japan. It’s not a problem. But Mr. Morita, you need to think this through. This is not a small investment. Moreover, Game World and Universal Online’s mobile phone factories have already been sold. It will be difficult for you to get orders in this area. In addition, given your current situation, there is no need for you to continue investing in wafers. Japan has quite a few wafer factories. You are already at the forefront in the semiconductor field.” At this time, John was still 'kindly' reminding Akio Morita. At least he couldn’t bear any infamy or stain.

"I know that, but we still need 8-inch technology. Building a new wafer fab, while requiring a significant investment, will also help reduce costs and allow us to compete with Samsung. Otherwise, if Samsung achieves mass production of 8-inch wafers before us, it will be catastrophic pressure." Akio Morita's foresight is remarkable; he understands the pros and cons. Moreover, Sony, and indeed the entire Japanese business community, is not short of money. With money, one can be more capricious, so Akio Morita doesn't see anything wrong with his decision.

"Alright then, as long as you have no problems, I will naturally not refuse such cooperation. I may not be able to help you in other aspects, but I can still do this!" If Sony can accept Bell Labs' technical standards, this will be the beginning of penetrating the Japanese semiconductor industry. It will not only suppress Japan's wafer research and development, but also strengthen its own power. It is a win-win situation, so why wouldn't I do it?

Even if someone tries to stop him, it won't work. John has enough excuses and reasons. He sold the game world and the mobile factory that is now online to those old guys. They still dare to say that they are not 'patriotic'. He gave up core industries so that the US semiconductor industry could compete with Japan.

John also intends to make changes in mobile phone production. The fact that someone is willing to take over Global Online's mobile phone factory is a good thing; at least he won't have to worry about their future. As time goes on, production costs in the US will continue to rise, and even high-value-added mobile phones will gradually lose their profit margin. Being able to sell at this time is a rare opportunity, allowing Bell Labs to have more research and development funds for the next generation of mobile phones.

“John, there’s one more thing I’d like to ask. When do you plan to release the shares of Neon Universal Online? If possible, Sony wants to acquire them! If you’re willing, we can acquire them at a premium, a 10% premium over the pre-stock market crash price to acquire the shares held by Bell Labs!”

"Mr. Morita, are you serious? This is no small matter, and it involves a significant amount of money. Are you sure you want to do this? Although Japan's economy is developing rapidly, this will put considerable pressure on Sony. You should think carefully!"

Akio Morita nodded and said, "I've thought it through very clearly. Sony needs to change and develop. If we can acquire shares in Japan Universal Online, we will have better development and may even be able to obtain more resources!"

“Okay, I agree. If everything is ready on your end, and we can do this deal anytime, I have no problem with it. To be honest, Bell Labs also needs more research funding right now. If we can't accelerate our own research, things will change in Europe, and Bell Labs alone can't compete with the whole of Europe!”

At this point, John brought up the situation in Europe, hoping to see if the old man Akio Morita would know anything about it. Unfortunately, John was greatly disappointed and gained nothing.

Akio Morita frowned and said, "John, are you saying that Europe already has its own standards?"

John nodded and said, "That's right. Those guys have broken away from Bell Labs' communication standards and developed their own. It's fair to say that Global Online's path to expand into Europe has been largely blocked. Now, Motorola is no longer aligned with Global Online and has its own ideas, launching the Iridium project. You'll soon see how crazy their plan is. So, Bell Labs and Global Online are under a lot of pressure! If they can't develop new technologies before the competition, they could very well find themselves in trouble, or even face bankruptcy."

While John's statement was somewhat exaggerated, Akio Morita could feel the pressure. Technological competition is always incredibly brutal; failing to develop technology before the opponent can be disastrous for a company, and every technological advancement requires massive financial support. Now, Morita understood why John had so readily sold his shares in Neon Universal Online—it was all for the sake of technological competition.

After hearing John's words, Akio Morita's last worry dissipated, and he breathed a sigh of relief. At least it proved that John hadn't been calculating in selling his shares in Neon Universal Online, and that was enough. The technology battle between Bell Labs and Europe had nothing to do with Sony. Seeing the subtle change in Akio Morita's expression, John also breathed a sigh of relief. From the beginning, he hadn't believed that the old man would make a special trip to the US for Hollywood matters, and at this time, it was clear the old man had a plan. Now he finally understood the old man's intentions.

While John and Akio Morita were testing each other, Naoko, Akina Nakamori, and Riko sat together, exchanging ideas. This Victoria's Secret Fashion Show was also Akina Nakamori's last time on the Victoria's Secret stage. The Victoria's Secret Fashion Show does not cause aesthetic fatigue among the audience. Not only are the performers changed, but the models are also arranged according to their own performance and the audience's approval. Those who do not appeal to the audience are naturally removed and replaced with newcomers.

Aside from the Victoria's Secret Angels, the other models are constantly changing and not fixed. This is to ensure the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show's ratings and influence. Every year, new models walk the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show stage, so the agencies attach great importance to it. Nowadays, only models who can walk the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show are considered the best in the industry. This is the influence of the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.

"Riko-nee, how long will you be staying in New York this time? If you have time, let's go shopping together tomorrow. Here we don't have to worry about being disturbed by outsiders, and no one will notice our presence!"

“Okay, I’ll be staying in New York for a few days. Mr. Morita needs some time to get to know things here. But Naoko, do you have that much time? I heard you’re still in school!”

"It's okay. I'm just auditing classes at Stanford now, so it won't affect anything. It's like fulfilling a small wish of mine and realizing my dream of going to university!"

Upon hearing Naoko's words, Riko's face showed a hint of envy. She wished she had such an opportunity. However, she quickly adjusted her mindset; everyone is different! Soon, they changed the subject to clothing.

The wonderful time was short for them. When John and Akio Morita finished their conversation, the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show was coming to an end. There were not many people left in the hall, except for a few staff members!
When Akio Morita appeared at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, the old guys from Rockefeller quickly found out. This was not good news for them, especially after hearing that John had a conversation with Akio Morita. This made the old guys even more worried. They didn't believe that Akio Morita would come just to watch the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.

In the eyes of old fogies like Rockefeller, Akio Morita must have been discussing the OEM manufacturing of the game world with John, or even the matter of Neon Semiconductor. Even though the game world had changed hands, and even though John had decided to sell Universal Online's mobile phone manufacturing plant, no one dared to doubt John's influence in the semiconductor industry. After all, John still owned Nvidia, Dreamworld, and ASUS in Taiwan.

With the rapid development of personal computers, their influence in the semiconductor field has grown significantly. Even old guys like Rockefeller dared not underestimate Nvidia and Dreamworld, let alone ASUS from Taiwan. They had considered taking advantage of ASUS, but unfortunately, they never had the chance.

However, the situation in Taiwan has changed. The emergence of TSMC has made them take it very seriously, and at one point they even thought it might become a competitor to ASUS. However, they were overthinking it. While TSMC's emergence has had some impact on the semiconductor industry, it won't affect ASUS. ASUS has Nvidia, Dreamworld, and Bell Labs behind it, so it doesn't lack orders at all. In fact, they themselves need to outsource some of their orders.

Under these circumstances, it was impossible for TSMC to influence ASUS's development. As ASUS's personal computers conquered the United States and continuously seized market share, it also attracted the attention of IBM and Apple. They did try to target ASUS, but unfortunately, they couldn't do it. ASUS's prices were too tempting, forcing them to retreat step by step!

(End of this chapter)