Those Years When I Was Forced to Top the Forbes List

Chapter 273 The defense is broken!
The next day, Friday.

It was only early September in Shanghai, and the sweltering heat had not yet dissipated.

In the morning in Zhangjiang, the glass curtain wall of Spreadtrum's headquarters building reflected the dazzling sunlight.

Chen Xuebing arrived in Shanghai early last night and was not late today. He and a group of executives from Spreadtrum greeted him at the door.

He wore a standard business smile, his hands clasped in front of him, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the cuffs of his shirt, pondering the department's attitude.

The matter of asking the Economic Daily for help is still somewhat...
An Audi with a Shanghai license plate starting with "沪A0" and a large executive bus drove up to the entrance, and immediately a series of camera clicks filled the air.

Reporters arranged by the city had been staking out the place for a long time, and afterwards there would be news about “X leaders from X department visiting X company in our city”. When ordinary people saw these news reports, they didn’t understand why these big leaders would travel so far to inspect what they were doing. But behind every seemingly unnecessary mobilization, there was often a turbulent undercurrent.

Leader Yan, whom I had met once before, got off the bus first, followed by several other people from the bus.

"Welcome, leader!"

Wu Ping stepped forward to shake hands, followed by Chen Datong.

As for the nominal president, Rong Xianwen, he has now gone to Ningbo to restart negotiations with Bird and has gone to intercept Hu from MediaTek.

Chen Xuebing didn't join in, but instead led the applause. As an investor, he was the first to go up, and it wasn't appropriate for him to be labeled on television, so there was no need for him to steal the spotlight.

"This is Deputy Leader Zhang from the Ministry of Information Industry! And Deputy Leader Liu from the Ministry of Science and Technology!" After introducing them, Leader Yan smiled and said, "These two leaders heard that you have made achievements in promoting 3G, and they have come specifically to commend you!"

Deputy Leader Zhang remarked with emotion, "With 30 TD users and very active network access data, our TD industrialization has taken its first step!"

"The key is that half of the users have internet access. Our subsidies for core high-end basic technologies have not only been used to develop 3G chips, but have also been put into practice for the country, with subsidies going to people in need. This project has been a very successful investment for us."

Deputy Leader Liu's calm and composed tone set a successful tone for the 8000 million yuan subsidy for high-end nuclear products.

The subsidies they provided back then weren't given for nothing.

The data of users who received subsidies from Spreadtrum were reported to the Ministry of Science and Technology, and the Ministry of Information Industry could naturally see it as well.

The core of industrialization, which has been talked about for so long, is the market user base. All the technology needs to be developed, but people have to be willing to use it.

Spreadtrum can be said to have fired the first shot in the industrialization of TD technology, creating the first batch of potential users.

If there are already tens of millions of potential users in the market, then there's nothing more to say; we can apply for and issue TD licenses tomorrow.

This matter involved the performance of both departments, so when Datang tried to obstruct it, Chen Xuebing did not resist at all, thus outmaneuvering Datang.

Unexpectedly, Chen Datong also sought help from his superiors at the same time. After the information was leaked, both departments took it very seriously, which led to today's inspection.

"This is Director Zhou of the Telecommunications Technology Research Institute and Chairman of Datang Telecom. You should already know each other, right?"

Zhou Huan held an official position; he used to be the director of the post and telecommunications department, so Leader Yan naturally mentioned him as well.

Zhou Huan, who came later, did not show any sign of being embarrassed; instead, he had a bright smile.

This man, nearing retirement, had jet-black, glossy hair, a side-parted hairstyle, glasses, a dark blue suit, and a dark red tie—the standard attire for State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission meetings. He looked much younger than his actual age, and his hearty laughter alone suggested he was still capable of working for another ten years.

"Haha, Dean, Chairman, those are just titles. The greatest honor the country has given to Datang and to me is the title of 'Captain of the National Team'! Our TD industry team is a small communications unit of the nation! My responsibility, besides developing the company, is to safeguard the bottom line of domestic self-reliance for the country, protect the technological high ground, and suppress those unscrupulous capitalists!"

This statement was somewhat targeted.

Wu Ping and Chen Datong's expressions both changed; they hadn't expected the other party to be so arrogant.

However, since the other party was an official and they were just ordinary people, and with two high-ranking leaders present, they couldn't say anything.

Chen Xuebing, however, shook his head and smiled indifferently, and said loudly, "Datang's stock price is already eight yuan and three cents. Chairman Zhou should take care of his primary responsibility. We at Spreadtrum are making money through R&D and subsidizing the TD market, while Datang has been losing money year after year and is waiting for market subsidies."

Now they're fighting face-to-face, and it's a winning situation. It's impossible to rely on the Baron Nashor to put on a high-handed attitude and suppress him.

You're making me feel awkward by pressing Ctrl+2, so I'll just wake up Baron Nashor and see who can't withstand the damage.

Zhou Huan's smile faded, his emotions resonating with those of the two managers at Zhanxun: he hadn't expected the other party to be so arrogant.

There was a collective gasp of cold air all around.

The reporters had just felt that Zhou Huan's tone was off, and now they were completely certain.

It's going to explode!

They all hurriedly shut down the machines.

In this setting, everyone was watching the leader's expression.

Zhou Huan is a state-owned enterprise cadre who is about to retire, Chen Xuebing is an investor who came to Shanghai, and Leader Yan doesn't want to get involved.

Deputy Leader Liu put his hands behind his back and looked at Zhou Huan, feeling that given Zhou Huan's background, it was somewhat imprudent for him to come up and label someone.

Deputy Leader Zhang broke the awkward silence, smiling at Chen Xuebing and saying, "It is commendable that private enterprises participate in the construction of national communication standards."

The phrase "commendable spirit" sounds nice, but it's not a compliment; everyone present could tell the underlying meaning.

"Let's visit the chip testing facility first!" Leader Yan finally smoothed things over: "I heard that Spreadtrum has specially set up a testing environment for its own solutions and will also be showcasing several technologies."

This is something that both leaders are concerned about.

No matter how much you talk, it's all just empty talk.

Chen Xuebing understood, smiled and took half a step back, letting Wu Ping stand in the front row.

Wu Ping immediately chimed in, "This way, leaders! Actually, you've come too early. We've already ordered the mask production capacity for our latest SC8800G chip, and we'll be able to verify the process soon. Currently, many functions can only be demonstrated using external modules. If you had come in mid-October, we could have showcased our latest integrated chip..."

"Oh? Then send us the chip with the test machine later. It's not like our Ministry of Science and Technology can't test your communication products!" Vice President Liu said with a hearty laugh.

Deputy Leader Zhang walked behind, and those looking at the exhibition all had a confident look on their faces. They were deep in thought, wondering how to balance the attitudes of all parties if a practical technology were to emerge.

Zhou Huan snorted and quickly followed Deputy Leader Zhang to his side, whispering, "Their so-called autonomy may include Datang's core patents. You'll have to stand up for us later."

He and Vice Minister Zhang were old colleagues; they used to be of equal rank and spoke to each other without any restraint.

Deputy Leader Zhang narrowed his eyes and let out a long, helpless sigh.

I have no idea what Zhou Huan is doing here.

If they actually upgrade your technology based on your existing technology, that would be a good thing! It would save me the trouble of explaining!

The worst-case scenario is that both sides are just making empty boasts, and the trip is wasted.

Or perhaps they fear that Spreadtrum is truly independent...

This is a technology company that Shanghai strongly supports, and the Ministry of Science and Technology also provides assistance. Leader Yan came eagerly to keep an eye on their technological progress, just waiting to redeem himself from the Hanxin incident.

He also found out the source of Chen Xuebing's request to contact the Economic Daily: it was in another municipality—Chongqing.

Do you really think people are vegetarians?

……

The group moved into the testing hall, followed by reporters from two municipal TV stations. Wu Ping also put on a white lab coat, presenting the image of a technically-minded chairman.

"Rohde & Schwarz CMW500 supports full-band TD-SCDMA signal generation, and its multi-channel capability can simulate complex indoor multipath environments to ensure the authenticity of test scenarios."

"Comparing the terminals, we have the Spreadtrum SC8800A with an external module and Datang's latest DTM5722 commercial terminal. Mr. Zhou, please don't mind, and all the leaders, please don't misunderstand. This DTM5722 network card is actually based on the baseband chip we provided. It's just a product made based on the original protocol stack provided by Datang. We are actually comparing ourselves to our past selves. The win or loss is actually up to us and has nothing to do with Datang."

Although Wu Ping said it that way, everyone understands what he meant; this is a comparison of protocol stack technologies.

As everyone here knows, Spreadtrum and Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications have partnered, and this external module is likely to incorporate Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications' HSDPA. Datang will most likely lose, but it remains to be seen how and where they will lose.

Zhou Huan chuckled, glanced at the technical team he had brought, and wanted to say something, but held back.

I'll let you compete, let you be smug, and then I'll leave you speechless. "Open the screen and bring up the analysis log."

Wu Ping didn't keep everyone in suspense and quickly had someone retrieve the real-time data on the spectrum and rate.

"Start multi-scenario stress testing."

It was scary right from the start.

In mobile scenarios, the speed jumped to 0.9Mbps.

This is the actual throughput!
Another set of comparison data for DTM5722 is similar to the data from Datang's previous test, at 0.4-0.5!

Regardless of their claimed theoretical peak speed, everyone knows the actual test results.

Zhou Huan's face darkened.

Deputy Leader Zhang glanced at Zhou Huan but said nothing.

"The leaders can check the testing equipment and backend data later, and we can retest if needed," Wu Ping explained, silencing Zhou Huan.

After seeing the speed spike to 1.0 Mbps for a moment, Deputy Leader Liu chuckled and said, "It's time to admit defeat, you should admit defeat."

"Simulated high-speed railway".

Now, everyone was focused on the projected data, as this involved the Doppler compensation issue.

0.6.

0.5.

The highest is 0.7.

The compensation is also quite good, with minimal rate loss.

"Simulating penetration through three layers of concrete."

This is a test of indoor depth coverage.

I almost got disconnected.

The ability of 3G signals to penetrate is indeed a major problem, not only for TD, but also for the other two standards.

The signal is not very stable, but it is online more than half the time, with a speed of around 0.4.

After the test was completed, everyone's eyes became puzzled, mostly focusing on Zhou Huan and his team.

Zhou Huan chuckled softly, silently calculating in his mind, before still stubbornly insisting, "Isn't it supposed to be self-reliant? Can your protocol stack still function without our technology? It's all based on HSDPA! If Datang's protocol stack incorporates HSDPA, it won't be much different!"

He spoke with some resentment, recalling how Nie had tried to bargain with him when he asked Nie to produce that protocol stack.
I shouldn't have been so concerned about that little bit of money!
“This is our own technology,” Wu Ping said with a smile.

As he spoke, his tone gradually rose:
"Our core algorithm is completely different from Datang's. Datang uses a fixed allocation method, while ours is dynamic, adjusting the time slot allocation in real time, which can be seen from the uplink and downlink data."

"Among them is our chip-based analog antenna technology, which is also still under development."

"In addition, our current protocol stack suffers an actual speed loss of about 30% in order to avoid the constellation diagram rotation of Datang's patent. We are still making technical adjustments, and it will probably take some time to integrate the technology. Once integrated, the impact of bypassing this patent can be basically eliminated."

That's a remark that's astounding!
Is this not mature enough yet?

Or was it 30% lost?

Using chips to simulate antennas is indeed a good idea.

But while it's something to dream about, it's probably only a chip design team like Spreadtrum that could actually pull it off.

If Datang didn't have so many chip technology talents.

There's a reason why Leader Yan valued Spreadtrum so highly even before the Chen Jin incident. Spreadtrum brought back hundreds of chip design talents from the United States, and its current team has expanded several times over through self-training. Even in Shanghai, the integrated circuit base, there is a shortage of several thousand chip design talents, and it's even more difficult in other places.

At this moment, Chen Xuebing suddenly spoke up: "Didn't we prepare a technical comparison of the original protocol stack upgrade? Since President Zhou doesn't believe it, show it to him."

"Okay." Wu Ping immediately arranged to replace the terminal.

For today's technical demonstration, they prepared many solutions that would shut people up.

The protocol stack technology was changed to Datang's, and it made a huge difference.

The very first moving scene jumped to version 1.1!

The highest is 1.2!

The impact of bypassing Datang's technology is actually not that significant; the performance loss estimate is too high, and it's actually around 20%.

This demonstration has given everyone a clear understanding.

People say it's convoluted, and it really is.

At least two-thirds of Datang's patent wall has been removed.

Moreover, there are some places where we can't even see the backs of others.

Deputy Leader Zhang took a deep breath. He hadn't sat down yet, his hands resting on the table, his fingers tapping back and forth.

Suddenly, a muffled thud.

Zhou Huan slammed his hand on the table in front of him, but it was made of metal and didn't make a sound.

"I refuse to believe you can bypass our switching algorithm!!"

Chen Xuebing smiled.

"You've really gone around in circles. Our high-speed railway uses this technology for Doppler compensation. I'll demonstrate dual-mode switching for you in a bit. The drop rate and interference cancellation are definitely better than yours."

Then, Deputy Leader Zhang pulled a small notebook from his chest and wrote something on it.

"Impossible, absolutely impossible! Leader Zhang, I need to investigate their technology!" Zhou Huan said bitterly.

He finally broke down, because he realized that his prepared tricks might not be very effective anymore.

Deputy Leader Zhang frowned when he was called out to, but continued writing in his notebook.

Chen Xuebing also took out a small notebook.

He looked down, then raised his head and said, "By the way, doesn't this technology have an increased peak rate? Now let's demonstrate it using Datang's protocol stack."

There are also some really good items.

Everyone present realized what was happening and refocused their attention on the big screen.

Spreadtrum staff quickly moved a bunch of machines out and placed them around the test platform.

“Simulated laboratory scenario”.

Those anti-interference machines are started up, and a set of analog signals is manually adjusted.

The Datang team immediately raised a question: "What are you doing? Why aren't you using the standard signal we provided?"

Chen Xuebing chuckled and said, "Standards are standards, but we can't use your standards. Our technology is designed to work with Huawei's base stations. Only in this way can we achieve maximum technical compatibility."

He only modified the protocol stack of Datang earlier; now, he's going to modify Datang's base station.

(End of this chapter)