Siheyuan: I have a multi-dimensional chat group!

All of Sony's previous publicity about Walkmans turned into a stepping stone for the Changsheng Walkman.

With Sony building momentum in the market for more than half a year, coupled with the deep cultivation of Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group, the huge sales of this Walkman are almost inevitable.

Sony has been laying the groundwork for over half a year, and Taishan has been lying low for over half a year. Will the quality of the Walkman from Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group be subpar?

Akio Morita himself didn't believe it when he told it.

That's not underestimating the enemy, it's treating yourself like a fool and deceiving yourself.

Sony's Walkman will complete mass production by the end of next month and will be sold worldwide in a month and a half.

However, after cultivating the market for more than half a year, users have long had high expectations for portable music players.

By the time Sony's Walkman hits the market in a month and a half, its market share will likely have already been completely wiped out by Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group.

Sony must try to recoup its losses on the Walkman from the scraps left over from the Changsheng Industrial Group.

After all, since the project was established in March last year, with the aim of entering the electronics manufacturing industry and enjoying the benefits of transformation, Sony has put in far too much effort for the Walkman.

Now that the patented technology has been acquired, the project has been successfully researched, and the machines and workers for production are all in place, just as they are about to make a big splash, a bucket of cold water has been poured on them.

If not handled properly, it could very well lead to a disastrous failure like the black-and-white television craze of the early 50s, pushing the company to the brink of bankruptcy.

Masaru Ibuka pulled Sony back from the brink of bankruptcy thanks to Trinitron. It took three years to pay off the loans and start rebuilding the company, but it also wasted more than a decade of time.

Until 75, Sony joined forces with Panasonic and, with the support of Konosuke Matsushita, used Betamax (a magnetic tape format) to bring Sony back to its peak.

However, Betamax was not only Sony's bread and butter, but also Panasonic's cash cow, thus sowing the seeds for the struggle between Panasonic and Sony.

The Walkman was not only Sony's trump card in breaking away from Panasonic, but also the hope for Sony to return to its peak.

However, just as Akio Morita was full of confidence, this hope suddenly became fraught with uncertainty, and anyone in that situation would not be in a good mood.

It wasn't until his subordinate rushed to the mall, forcibly bought a Walkman in Sony's name, and handed it to Akio Morita for careful examination that his initial enthusiasm turned to coldness.

With such craftsmanship and price, even if Sony's Walkman were to be released, it would not be able to compete with it.

This project, which Sony poured a year's worth of effort into, is over!

A standard Walkman costs $200, which is hardly cheap, but it quickly captured a blank market at an astonishing speed.

The first batch of 30 Walkmans shipped to Europe sold out even faster than the 30 units shipped to the US. They truly are the old-world tycoons. They're all rich!

Almost the instant the news of the sell-out reached Hong Kong, Chang Sheng Industrial Manufacturing Group immediately replenished its stock of 10 units for the European market.

As a sister company of Swire Group, its cargo planes had been working overtime and were on high alert, which is how they managed to gain a foothold in the previously untapped European market.

However, the sales of the Walkman in Japan did not meet expectations. The initial batch of 15 units sold out immediately, and the Japanese market is unlikely to be able to absorb them in less than ten days to half a month.

Xiaoshan is very grateful for Sony's strong support and publicity in front of major media outlets around the world, which enabled Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group to capture the market effortlessly.

Otherwise, just to let people of this era understand what a Walkman is, what headphone culture is, and what virtue it is to listen to your favorite songs without disturbing others, Taishan would need to spend a lot of energy and time regulating the market.

As the saying goes: Farming is easy, but clearing land is difficult!

Fortunately, Sony has already made clear the details of the land reclamation and restoration, so Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group naturally has to repay Sony with an immense favor.

In return, Xiao Shan, as the boss of Taishan, learned that Akio Morita had rushed over overnight to meet him. He not only took the initiative to come downstairs to greet him, but also personally brewed tea for Akio Morita to taste.

Faced with such hospitality, Akio Morita's expression grew even more bitter.

Such a humble attitude is usually adopted by the defeated Japanese, hoping that the other party will show mercy.

Whether it was the millions of women who went to Southeast Asia to sell their love after the Black Ships incident, or MacArthur's repeated humiliations of the royal family after the defeat.

Japanese chickens are very patient when they are in a weak position, until they stand up again and overthrow everything.

Now, Xiao Shan, as the victor, is unusually humble, clearly indicating that he is not prepared to let Sony off easily.

Upon closer inspection, Akio Morita was amazed by Xiao Shan's youth, but also by the ruthlessness of his methods.

It must be admitted that only by employing such tactics and strategies can one thrive in the cutthroat business world.

Of course, this also proves that Xiaoshan is even less likely to let Sony off the hook now, and it is unlikely that his initiative to visit Sony this time will change the status quo.

Chapter 718, Acquiring Sony! (Please subscribe!)

Even so, we still have to try; Akio Morita doesn't want to let any possibility slip by.

Akio Morita smiled wryly and began to speak: "Mr. Xiao, Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group has already occupied the high-end and mid-range markets for portable music players. Could you give Sony some breathing room in the low-end market?"

Neither the $5000 alloy numbered version nor the $200 regular version with random characters is affordable for the average person.

There is also a type that is the cheapest, but also the worst quality: the lowest-end plastic version of the Walkman.

"What do you think?" Xiao Shan asked Akio Morita with a smile.

Although plastic products are not as good as metal, electronic products are already obsolete at a very fast pace, and metal casings cannot maintain the stability of the internal structure.

More often than not, the casing is well-protected, but the motherboard is already unusable.

Therefore, it doesn't make much difference whether the outer shell is plastic or metal.

However, bad money drives out good money; this is a market law.

Once a product with a lower price appears on the market, it will definitely be more popular.

Price will be the primary consideration over quality.

Taishan not only launched a limited edition alloy version to capture the high-end market, but also plans to devour the entire mid-range market with a metal version, and then compete with itself with the cheapest plastic version.

Once the mid-range market is nearly saturated, a plastic version will be launched. Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group's Walkmans are already engaged in a price war, so where will Sony have room to survive?

Even if Akio Morita wanted to fight to the death, the Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group was not afraid.

Having captured the market a month ahead, Xiaoshan is confident that its quality will not be inferior to Sony's.

With such a significant advantage, Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group has enough funds to fight a price war to the bitter end.

Taishan's abundant cash flow could have dragged Sony to its death.

Akio Morita stopped beating around the bush and went straight to the point: "Let's talk about the acquisition!"

The victor is king, the loser is an outlaw!

They had thought of everything they could think of. Their competitors had even laid out plans six months in advance. For a company of Sony's size to deliberately lie low for six months was a sign of great respect for Sony. However, Akio Morita did not want this honor.

In the Betamax (tape format) market, Sony is already battling Panasonic and really doesn't want to be dragged down by a giant like Panasonic before the battle is even over.

The ultimate result of a war between the two sides would be utter destruction.

However, Sony still has a chance to compete with Panasonic in the Betamax market.

Selling the Walkman business and production lines to Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group would allow Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group to completely monopolize the Walkman market, while also allowing Sony to withdraw and make a profit to compete with Panasonic.

After all, an evenly matched friend is always more dangerous than a vastly superior enemy.

Unexpectedly, Xiao Shan shook his head and said, "The Walkman is not very meaningful to Taishan. Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group is not afraid of competing with Sony. If it is to be acquired, I would prefer to acquire Sony, not just the Walkman business."

The true nature of a cunning dagger is revealed when the map is unrolled, and its fangs are fully exposed.

The Walkman was merely a weapon used by Xiaoshan against the Japanese electronics industry; it was never the key to victory or defeat.

This technology is indeed very profitable right now, but the profits are only in the short term.

It is destined to be overturned by the tide of the times, and apart from a temporary increase in funds, it cannot bring any real benefits.

To reach an asset scale of tens of billions of US dollars, Taishan must shift from making quick money to making money sustainably.

Xiaoshan, in particular, knows how quickly electronic products are updated and replaced, so it is even more important not to put all its eggs in one basket on the Walkman project.

Compared to the Walkman project, Xiaoshan was more eager to acquire Sony and Akio Morita, a man later known as the "Saint of Management."

It doesn't matter if we can't acquire them, we'll just use Walkmans to slowly kill them!

All profits were poured into the quagmire of Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group, plunging Sony into a vicious cycle.

Without making money, there is no research funding; without research funding, there is no development; without development, there is no threat to Taishan; without posing a threat, Japan's grand plan to transform into the electronics manufacturing industry in the 80s is doomed to fail one after another!

Akio Morita finally realized why, given the size of Mount Tai, the layout of a mere Walkman had taken so long.

Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group was definitely not planning to compete with Sony, nor was it simply about making money through Walkmans; its fundamental goal had always been to target Sony.

That's why the Walkman project was launched precisely at the right moment, neither too early nor too late, when Sony was caught in a dilemma.

Either Sony accepts the acquisition, or its internal troubles are not over yet, and it will be further burdened by external threats like Taishan.

Regardless of Akio Morita's final choice, Taizan's decision would not allow Sony to survive.

"If there's anything Sony did wrong, please give us your guidance, Mr. Xiao, so we can correct it." Akio Morita was still trying to persuade them.

He couldn't understand why Taishan was so determined to take down Sony, refusing to accept better solutions when they were clearly available.

Chapter 719, Sony's Desperate Struggle! (Please Subscribe!)

Seeing Akio Morita still trying to struggle, Xiao Shan said frankly, "Sony is doing very well, which is why I want to acquire it!"

Sony is a company with a market value of tens of billions of dollars in the future. At its peak, its annual profit will reach a staggering 8000 billion yen. How could Xiaoshan not want to invest in such a high-quality company?

Those patented technologies alone are enough to make Xiaoshan envious!

However, Akio Morita was unaware of Sony's future. What he could sense at the moment was that the two sides had no enmity but were acting as if they were going to fight to the death. It seemed that Xiao Shan was aiming to destroy Japan's electronics industry.

If Xiaoshan's ambitions are driven by the capital market, then Akio Morita can tolerate it.

If they're really aiming to destroy Japan's electronics industry, then that's a different story.

Japan had anticipated the US's suppression and had already begun preparations.

While facing the transformation of the electronics manufacturing industry, it is an inevitable trend for low-end traditional manufacturing and light industries to mainly flow to the inland areas.

However, the technology in mainland China is limited and requires a lot of technical guidance. Japan is well-positioned to leverage its mature technology and machine tools to help revitalize the manufacturing and light industries in mainland China.

The two sides will make positive adjustments in areas such as financial cooperation, technology transfer, and trade deficit to promote the development of bilateral trade relations and provide a long-term, low-interest loan of US$15 billion for key energy development and transportation construction.

It can be said that reform and opening up were good things for both sides!

This not only led to the booming development of the mainland, but also left Japanese chickens with a way out.

Yes, an escape route!

On the one hand, it challenges the United States economically with the electronics and automobile industries; on the other hand, it transfers foreign exchange assets to invest in the mainland to retain old industries. These two major policies will not change until they are destroyed.

Of course, to say that Japanese chickens are completely sincere would be wishful thinking.

The reason for actively shifting light industry and manufacturing is mainly because Japan is following the instructions of the United States, and its own population structure is no longer compatible with both.

Large-scale transfers can still be used to invest in technology and equipment; otherwise, once the mainland develops, it will be outdated technology and scrap metal.

However, Akio Morita never expected that Taishan, as a Hong Kong company, would dare to be the vanguard of the United States and take the lead in challenging the electronics industry of Japan.

Akio Morita pleaded one last time, "Mr. Xiao! Is there no other way?"

"I have high hopes for Sony!" Xiao Shan said with a smile.

Sony currently has two main economic pillars: one is Betamax (a tape format) in partnership with Panasonic, and the other is its independently developed Walkman project.

It is precisely by relying on these two technologies that Sony has been able to make a fortune, which has enabled it to cultivate talent, create new products, and gradually move into the Fortune Global 500.

Although the Fortune Global 500 list is largely inflated, with the real giants hiding in the shadows, the strength of these companies is undeniable.

Now that the Walkman is in Taishan's hands, a battle is inevitable if they want to seize the market.

Alternatively, Sony may choose to go to war with Panasonic to seize Betamax's market share.

Is it better to choose to wage war against the powerful external force of Mount Tai?

Or are they targeting Panasonic, which operates within the same internal hierarchy?

Xiao Shan eagerly awaits Akio Morita's decision!

"I understand!" Akio Morita did not give an answer, but stood up and bowed. "I will go back and have a meeting with the higher-ups to decide. I will give you an answer later!"

As Xiao Shan watched Akio Morita's departing figure, his unwavering steps seemed to have already given him the answer.

This nation, proud yet humble to the core, may lose some dignity on the surface, but ultimately it is unwilling to give up its internal interests to the outside world.

Perhaps this is why Japan didn't get completely devoured by the US like South Korea, becoming a nation that can never stand up again.

However, since Akio Morita has made his choice, Xiao Shan will naturally not hold back.

Xiao Shan directly ordered Changsheng Industrial Manufacturing Group to completely destroy Sony's Walkman business.

After the order was given, Xiao Shan was preparing to go home when he received a phone call from the mainland.