The negotiations with SPG had finally reached a conclusion, and since it involved the signing of the contract, Lu Chen had to personally step in. On top of that, Chen Fei'er also had work to take care of, so the sweet time between the two of them was destined to be short-lived.
The official signing was scheduled for the afternoon.
Previously, Lu Xi had been wrestling endlessly with SPG, holding firmly to their bottom line. The disagreements between the two sides had remained very large. But now, the situation had shifted dramatically, and of course, there was a reason for it.
Because KG Entertainment had gotten in touch with Lu Chen's Workshop.
Both KG and SPG were heavyweight Korean entertainment agencies, evenly matched in strength, each with a large roster of star artists, and both had representative offices in the capital.
Given their similar positions and overlapping businesses, competition between them had always been fierce. The sudden entry of KG into the talks for importing 'Autumn in My Heart' inevitably triggered SPG's alarm.
Perhaps at first, SPG hadn't taken this TV drama too seriously. But now things were completely different. From any perspective, Park Jeong-ho would never allow KG to snatch the opportunity from under their nose.
That would be a slap in the face, plain and simple!
As a result, Park Jeong-ho's stance quickly softened. He no longer insisted that SPG must invest in and participate in the shooting of Lu Chen's new drama.
And that happened to be the biggest sticking point between both sides.
The Koreans, much like the Japanese, carried a very typical islander mentality. They excelled in meticulous details and loved to calculate down to the last cent, but they often lacked a broader perspective and long-term strategic thinking.
SPG didn't actually believe that importing 'Autumn in My Heart' into Korea would generate massive profits for them. What they really wanted was to use this as a stepping stone to gain a foothold in the booming domestic film and television market.
Without a powerful background, Lu Chen's Workshop was an ideal partner.
But SPG had been too greedy.
Back when 'Autumn in My Heart' was first being filmed, Lu Chen was a complete nobody in the industry. He hit roadblocks everywhere in his search for a partner, forced to rely on Chen Fei'er's popularity just to promote and sell the show.
Now, things were different. He didn't even need to leak anything deliberately, investors waving money came flocking to him.
Because 'Autumn in My Heart' had created a ratings miracle, the chances of Lu Chen's new drama losing money were practically nonexistent.
With a near guaranteed profitable investment, who wouldn't want a piece of the pie?
But for Lu Chen's Workshop, such interests would never be handed out casually. If they were to share, it would only be under the condition that they secured even greater benefits in return.
The Korean side's earlier stance had been laughable.
Now, with a "Cheng Yaojin cutting in halfway," Park Jeong-ho finally realized his bargaining chips were far too weak. So, he decisively revised the cooperation terms and quickly restarted negotiations with Lu Xi, aiming for a swift resolution.
From the Workshop's perspective, the best choice would have been to sit back and watch SPG and KG tear each other apart.
But expecting two major Korean entertainment agencies to bleed themselves dry in a domestic brawl was naïve, they weren't that foolish!
So, after weighing the pros and cons, and after seeing SPG's genuine sincerity, Lu Xi decided not to drag things out. Together with Park Jeong-ho, she finalized the deal.
Dragging this issue on any longer would do the Workshop no good either, since their next focus was developing the new drama. Promoting Blue in Korea was mainly about boosting recognition and status, not immediate profit.
Ten billion won, converted, that was only about 5.6 million RMB.
In addition, SPG agreed to simultaneously import Lu Chen's new drama into Korea. As part of the exchange, one of SPG's Chinese artists under contract would get a role in the show.
This kind of cooperation was mutually beneficial. Lu Chen's Workshop successfully broke into the Korean market, while SPG gained a foothold in China's entertainment industry. And if that artist became popular thanks to the new drama, the profits involved would be immense.
At 2:00 p.m. that afternoon, at SPG's Beijing office, Lu Chen and Park Jeong-ho signed the official contract.
SPG's influence was immense. They even managed to invite a cultural attaché from the Korean Embassy in China to attend the signing ceremony as a guest of honor. In addition, several media reporters from the capital were present, making the ceremony simple yet no less dignified.
After the signing was completed, Lu Chen accepted interviews from the press and answered several related questions. That same afternoon, the official verified account of Lu Chen's Workshop released the news.
'Autumn in My Heart' was officially confirmed to be imported into Korea, with a copyright deal worth as much as one billion won!
The post was accompanied by several photos, Lu Chen shaking hands with Park Jeong-ho, a handshake with the Korean cultural attaché, and snapshots of him fielding media questions.
Once released, the news immediately caused a sensation, not only within the show business community, but also far beyond it.
Currently, 'Autumn in My Heart' had already been taken off WeChat Video, but reruns on Capital City TV and Zhejiang Satellite TV were still in full swing. The combined ratings had never dropped below 2.5%, showcasing its powerful appeal.
Between online streaming and two rounds of broadcast, the show had cultivated a massive fanbase of "Blue fans." The official tieba (fan forum) for the drama had over a million members, and discussions about it remained heated and nonstop.
So when fans learned that Blue would now be airing in Korea, they were overjoyed, their pride soaring!
For years, it had always been Japanese and Korean dramas and variety shows flooding into China, especially Korean dramas, which were considered a hallmark of the Hallyu wave and had greatly influenced domestic TV productions, particularly idol dramas.
Although the situation had somewhat improved in recent years as Chinese audiences grew weary of formulaic idol shows, imported Korean dramas still managed to deliver strong ratings.
By comparison, the number of Chinese dramas successfully "flowing back" into Japan and Korea was pitifully small, mostly limited to historical sagas or adaptations of literary classics. For a modern urban romance like 'Autumn in My Heart' to break into the Korean market was nothing short of a rarity.
And even for the few that did make it in, their ratings had usually been abysmal, serving at best as little more than PR gimmicks.
The success of 'Autumn in My Heart' was therefore a refreshing breakthrough!
While one billion won wasn't considered an astronomical price, it still set a new record for export deals of its genre. And the Blue fans were confident that Blue would surely succeed in Korea.
Of course, not everyone was a Blue fan. Not everyone believed that Blue was destined for success. On Langchao Blog, skeptics questioned whether this was just a publicity stunt between Lu Chen's Workshop and SPG, with the transaction amount deliberately inflated.
Some even predicted that Blue's Korean journey would collapse just like other Chinese dramas before it.
Among these doubters were no shortage of both big-name and small-name bloggers.
Ever since Lu Chen and Chen Fei'er's romance went public, there had been no lack of unusual voices online. Perhaps it was simply that Lu Chen's meteoric success had drawn envy, there would always be people who couldn't stomach it.
Now, with 'Autumn in My Heart' venturing into the Korean TV market, it had naturally become a perfect opening for those detractors to launch their attacks.
(End of this chapter)
You can read ahead up to 60 chapters on my patreon https://www.patreon.com/darkshadow6395