Apple Headquarters.
Looking at the iPhone 4s performance report, Cook's expression was extremely grim:
"Who can tell me? What exactly happened?"
"Why is the iPhone 4s selling well globally, yet sales in Xia Country have gone cold! Forget about growth, sales have dropped by 25% compared to the iPhone 4 in the same period last year! And the return rate is as high as 30%!"
"Who can tell me what's going on?"
"Since iPhone was founded, there has never been such a high return rate!"
Watching Cook's sudden fury, the high-level executives had solemn expressions.
Vice President Kadan was also full of bewilderment:
"It shouldn't be, it really shouldn't be. Xia Country has always been one of our main iPhone markets, and the love Xia Country users have for our products has reached the point of faith."
"Even if it launched in Europe and America in October, and the last batch in Xia Country only launched in January, they still queued up to buy it! They would still wait to use an iPhone, even if it meant waiting three or four months! They would even pay double the price to buy it!"
"Why is it like this this time? Sales plummeting! Return rate soaring! Unreasonable!"
"Completely unreasonable! What exactly happened? Paul, don't you have anything to say?"
As he spoke, everyone looked at Paul, the director of the marketing department.
Paul stretched out his hand and gestured:
"It's like this, I also found this problem strange, so I investigated, and what I found surprised me."
"The sharp decrease in iPhone 4s sales and the surge in return rates are all due to the same reason: being impacted by the xphone 1!"
"xphone 1?"
Cook was stunned, he had never heard of it.
With so many emerging mobile phone brands globally, many of which fail within one or two years, Cook couldn't be bothered to pay attention to each one.
"It's a new mobile phone, the xphone 1, launched by a new company in Xia Country called Xingyi Technology."
"Xingyi Technology... sounds a bit familiar."
Vice President Kadan fell into thought:
"That guy who bought over 20 million chips in the Empire all at once a few months ago?"
Cook also came to his senses:
"Now I remember, there seemed to be something like that. They haven't gone bankrupt yet? Over 20 million chips at once, wasn't that just hype?"
Paul's expression was extremely complex:
"Initially, I also thought that for an emerging company to start with such a huge order of 25 million chips, it must be hype. Such a company wouldn't survive for half a year, a year at most!"
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Such scam companies that love hype exist worldwide, but most lack substance, only engaging in speculation, and quickly dying out.
Paul shook his head:
"But I soon discovered that we were wrong, terribly wrong. Xingyi Technology was not only not hype, but they actually made the phone, and they did it very successfully! How should I put it, even more successfully than friendly competitors like Samsung, LG, and HTC!"
"What? How is that possible?"
Upon hearing this, Cook was dumbfounded, the Vice President was dumbfounded, and all other executives were shocked.
"More successful than Samsung and LG? Paul, are you serious?"
Vice President Kadan couldn't help but ask.
Paul nodded:
"Very serious. I know it sounds incredible, but in fact, they are that successful. Calling it the king of the year wouldn't be an exaggeration. Of course, it's the Android king!"
"King of the year?"
Kadan burst out laughing, as if he had heard a huge joke:
"Hahaha, Paul, your joke isn't funny at all. Even our iPhone 4s wouldn't dare claim to be the 'king of phones,' after all, the products from friendly competitors like Samsung and HTC are also excellent."
Paul smiled slightly:
"I know that what I'm saying sounds incredible to everyone. So, let me present some data!"
"First, on the day the xphone 1 launched, one million units were available for sale, and all were sold out in just over an hour!"
Cook: "..."
All executives: "..."
"Second, one month after the xphone 1 launched, sales exceeded four million."
Cook: "..."
All executives: "..."
"Third, 53 days after the xphone 1 launched, sales exceeded 9 million!"
Cook: "..."
All executives: "..."
"Does everyone still think I'm joking?"
Paul scanned the room.
For a moment, the entire conference room fell silent, terrifyingly quiet.
Cook sighed:
"Paul, I have two questions for you. First, is all your data true?"
"Chairman, absolutely true!"
"Second question, in which countries is the xphone 1 sold?"
"Only in Xia Country. It's not yet sold in other countries, I'm not sure if it's due to production capacity or fear of patent lawsuits."
At this, Cook couldn't sit still:
"What? Only in Xia Country, in less than two months, they sold 9 million units? Crazy, truly crazy!"
Kadan also had a solemn expression:
"What's their price? Is it super cheap? If it's expensive, there's no way it would have such good sales!"
Paul nodded:
"For the same storage version, their price is 1700 to 2500 cheaper than our iPhone 4s. The 16GB version of the xphone 1 costs only 3299, and comes with a Xingyi Video annual membership + Xingyi Music annual membership worth 300 yuan. The 32GB version is 3799, and the 64GB version is only 4299!"
Upon hearing this, the executives spoke up one after another:
"This price is indeed two thousand yuan cheaper than international brands, but it's not exactly cheap."
"Yeah, at that price, they can sell 9 million units in Xia Country in two months, that's truly terrifying!"
"No wonder the iPhone 4s isn't selling well in Xia Country and has serious returns; it turns out everyone went to buy the xphone 1."
"By the way, is the xphone 1 really that good? Can it compare with our iPhone 4s? Aren't domestic phones in Xia Country all garbage?"
Paul took out an xphone 1 and showed it to everyone:
"This is an xphone 1 I had someone buy for me from Xia Country. I've only used it for two days, how should I put it?"
"Its Android 4.0 system is not as good as Apple's iOS system. In other aspects, to be frank, it's not inferior to the iPhone 4s, and in many ways, it's even more advanced!"
Upon hearing this, all the executives were stunned and gathered around:
"Is it real or fake?"
"The exterior design is quite elegant, looks very high-end at first glance."
"Yes, it looks like a premium product."
The Vice President took it and played with it for a bit:
"The texture is very good, and the material is very high-class, even more so than our iPhone 4s... No, they're on par."
As he spoke, Kadan lit up the screen:
"A 4.3-inch large screen, with such high resolution, must be 720P, right? The screen quality is very good, top-tier."
"The flat UI interface is fresh, simple, and simply ridiculously good-looking! The system is also very smooth and responsive, no wonder sales are so good."
Paul nodded:
"Not only that, the xphone 1 also integrates the AI voice assistant Xiao Ai, which performs no worse than Siri. Especially in the Chinese language domain, it's even more powerful than Siri."
"What? It also integrates an AI voice assistant comparable to Siri?"
Cook couldn't sit still:
"Our iPhone 4s just launched Siri, and a Xia Country company built the same thing? Even better than ours?"
The others were also skeptical:
"Paul, you're exaggerating a bit. Siri is a high-tech AI company that we acquired for hundreds of millions of dollars. How could a Xia Country company develop something like that?"
"Exactly, and it's just a newly established emerging company, even less likely!"
Seeing everyone's skepticism, Paul didn't bother to say more, immediately took the xphone 1, and said:
"Xiao Ai."
"Yes."
"Call Cook!"
"Okay, dialing Cook's number."
Then, Cook's iPhone 4s, which was on the table, began to vibrate.
Cook's mouth twitched:
"Are there other functions?"
"Of course."
Paul continued:
"Xiao Ai."
"Yes."
"How's the weather today?"
"Today in Cupertino, the weather is clear, temperatures range from minus 5 to 9 degrees Celsius, it's a bit cold, air quality is good, please dress warmly when going out."
"Xiao Ai."
"Yes."
"Open YouTube!"
"Okay, opening it for you."
...
Watching Paul's operations, everyone in the room fell silent.
They wanted to deny it, but had to admit it.
The xphone 1's Xiao Ai was completely on par with the iPhone 4s's Siri!
"It's incredible, truly incredible!"
Cook stared at the xphone 1 in bewilderment, feeling completely unwell:
"Such an excellent product didn't come from Samsung, nor LG, but from an obscure new Xia Country company!"
"How is this possible?"
"And it's done so excellently, even better than our Apple!"
"Even the iPhone 4s's killer feature, the AI voice assistant, has been replicated, it's truly incredible."
"No wonder iPhone 4s sales plummeted in Xia Country and returns surged."
"With the xphone 1 available, it's perfectly normal!"
"However, our troubles are significant."
"Indeed."
The Vice President's expression also became solemn:
"The xphone 1 will definitely severely impact the iPhone 4s. Fortunately, the xphone 1 is only sold in Xia Country currently. If it were sold globally, the trouble would be immense!"
Cook nodded:
"You're right, this is one piece of good news among many bad ones. But even so, due to the impact of the xphone 1, the iPhone 4s has suffered heavy losses in Xia Country."
The Vice President's expression was solemn:
"The Xia Country market is huge. Last year, the iPhone 4 sold over 10 million units in Xia Country. This year's iPhone 4s is even more outstanding, and with the faith blessing of Chairman Qiao's last phone, the iPhone 4s could easily sell 20 million units in Xia Country, possibly even 25 million!"
"But now, due to the impact of the xphone 1, let alone 25 million, even 15 million seems difficult, possibly even 10 million."
Upon hearing this, everyone felt a tremendous headache.
Cook said chillingly:
"No, the iPhone 4s absolutely cannot fail in Xia Country, nor can we let the xphone 1 steal tens of millions in sales! Absolutely not! Marketing department, give me a counter-plan!"
Paul nodded and said solemnly:
"I suggest increasing investment in the Xia Country market and increasing supply to Xia Country. Many people cancelled their orders because the iPhone 4s was out of stock and they had to wait one or two months.
Our competitor, the xphone 1, after two months of ramping up production, has reached a monthly capacity of 5.1 million units and has fully achieved immediate availability! We have no stock and are two thousand more expensive, so naturally, they cancelled their orders and went to buy the xphone 1."
Cook strongly agreed:
"Makes sense. In that case, prioritize reallocating iPhone 4s units from other countries to Xia Country and sell them openly! Fully target the xphone 1."
The Vice President, however, frowned:
"Chairman, if we do that, the supply to other countries will be insufficient!"
Cook waved his hand:
"It's fine. Other countries don't have a strong competitor like the xphone 1, so 'hunger marketing' doesn't matter. Consumers have no choice but to wait for two months for the iPhone 4s. But Xia Country is different; if we don't have stock, consumers will turn around and buy the xphone 1. For every ten million xphone 1 units sold, our iPhone 4s will sell ten million fewer!"
"I see, then I'll arrange it as soon as possible! Increase supply to Xia Country and strive to achieve immediate availability in Xia Country within two months."
"No, two months is too long; achieve immediate availability within one month! The xphone 1 is not an ordinary opponent, we must take it seriously!"
Cook's expression was somewhat complex:
"We were careless. If we had known the xphone 1 was so powerful, the iPhone 4s should have launched earlier in Xia Country! Otherwise, the xphone 1 wouldn't have snatched so much market share!"
"Yes, we were indeed careless, but the marketing department is responsible for this!"
The Vice President looked at Paul, and Paul's mouth twitched:
"Chairman, no one expected the xphone 1 to perform so well, so outstandingly. Moreover, they launched and immediately went on sale. On the day of its release, December 1st, there were a million units immediately available. Subsequent production capacity ramped up crazily, offering open supply, so our marketing department didn't have time to react."
Cook sighed:
"This is not the marketing department's fault; blame it on the enemy being too powerful. Their series of operations were entirely blitzkrieg tactics, it's normal that we couldn't defend against them!"
"However, we must pay close attention moving forward! Whether the iPhone 4s can sell 20 million units or 10 million units in Xia Country depends entirely on whether we can outperform the xphone 1!"
"Yes, Chairman, I suggest that in addition to greatly increasing supply in Xia Country, we also need to open up new channels, develop new distributors, and increase the number of Apple retail stores, fully expanding our distribution efforts!"
"Alright, increase marketing investment in the Greater Xia Country region and make sure to crush the xphone 1!"
Cook said decisively.
Domestic phones couldn't threaten Apple, so Apple didn't bother with them.
But once something threatened Apple, it would be suppressed with full force.
Back when other brands were in the era of feature phones, the Meizu M8 emerged with a touchscreen, posing a serious threat to the iPhone, and Jobs directly sued!
Now, the xphone 1 also seriously threatened the iPhone 4s, and Cook naturally wouldn't sit idly by.
Soon, instructions were rapidly transmitted to the President of the Greater Xia Country region.
Increase supply!
Expand channels!
Increase dealer recruitment!
Even Apple experience stores needed to be significantly increased!
The President of the Greater Xia Country region was shocked by this.
He decisively summoned his trusted confidants overnight for a meeting to study the matter.
For such foreign companies, working overtime at night was normal.
Wang Yi was unaware of Apple's actions.
Moreover, it was past midnight, and after chatting with Lin Shu and Song Sining for a while, Wang Yi lay down to sleep.
The sound of firecrackers outside the window continued to ring intermittently.
In the county town of 2012, regulations were still very loose.
The incessant sounds of fireworks and firecrackers, likely continuing until late at night, robbed Wang Yi of his sleep.
He simply opened his laptop and started checking other data.
He didn't expect that it wasn't a problem not to look, but the more he looked, the more he couldn't sleep!
"Happy Elimination Game" had been online for less than a month, and its domestic user count exceeded 80 million, even more than Chat & Talk!
Since its launch, "Happy Elimination Game" had consistently ranked in the top two of the domestic iOS game download charts, and recently had monopolized the first position.
This kind of popular game, suitable for all ages, naturally didn't lack traffic.
Basically, if one student in a class played, all students in the class would follow suit.
If one employee in a unit played, other colleagues would follow suit.
Consequently, in less than a month, the number of domestic users exceeded 80 million, paid users surpassed 30 million, and total revenue exceeded 600 million yuan!
Wang Yi was very satisfied with this momentum.
Many of Chat & Talk's users were attracted by Happy Elimination Game!
In Happy Elimination Game, there was a friend leaderboard, which was exactly the Chat & Talk friend ranking!
Additionally, friends sending each other energy also relied on Chat & Talk, which led to a surge in Chat & Talk users.
Using Happy Elimination Game to drive Chat & Talk user growth was still the familiar combination marketing.
However, what excited Wang Yi the most was not domestic revenue, but the even more astounding overseas revenue!
"Happy Elimination Game" not only had domestic users but also a large number of overseas users!
"Happy Elimination Game" also ranked in the top two, and even first, on the overseas Apple App Store game download charts!
Attracting numerous foreigners to jump into the game.
In its previous life, "Happy Elimination Game" didn't explode in overseas revenue precisely because it was released late!
In the second half of 2013, "Happy Elimination Game" only released its web version, and in 2014, its iOS and Android versions were launched, with its entry into the international market occurring in the second half of that year.
By then, there were already competitors like "Bejeweled" and "Candy Crush Saga" abroad.
Especially "Candy Crush Saga," which had already swept platforms like Facebook, capturing a large share of the overseas market.
In its previous life, "Candy Crush Saga" launched in April 2012, quickly becoming popular worldwide, and its revenue in 2013 was nearly 10 billion RMB!
Over the subsequent decade, "Candy Crush Saga" earned King Games Company 20 billion US dollars, over 100 billion RMB!
This is the revenue a match-3 game should have!
However, "Happy Elimination Game" started nearly two years late, and its performance overseas could only be described as mediocre, with average revenue.
In addition, Tencent introduced "Candy Crush Saga" in 2014, which also had a severe impact on "Happy Elimination Game" in the domestic market, causing "Happy Elimination Game"'s domestic revenue to take a hit, ultimately peaking at just over a billion in annual revenue.
But this time, Wang Yi released "Happy Elimination Game" nearly two years early, with very few competitors!
For example, "Candy Crush Saga," its formidable rival from the previous life, has not yet been released.
The only similar game that posed a threat was "Bejeweled 3," released in 2010.
However, it was an upgrade based on the 2000 "Bejeweled," and both its playability and design were far behind "Happy Elimination Game."
Furthermore, having been out for two years, the public was already tired of it and it posed little threat.
It can be said that "Happy Elimination Game," released two years early by Wang Yi, had almost no competitors abroad, and naturally, it was able to seize a larger share of the international market first!
Consequently, in less than a month, "Happy Elimination Game"'s overseas users exceeded 100 million, paid users surpassed 40 million, and revenue broke through 200 million US dollars!
That's right, "Happy Elimination Game" earned 200 million US dollars, nearly 1.3 billion RMB, overseas in just under a month!
This data far surpassed "Happy Elimination Game" in its previous life, instead approaching the revenue myth of "Candy Crush Saga" from its previous life!
In its previous life, "Candy Crush Saga" was released early, with annual revenues close to 10 billion.
"Happy Elimination Game" was released two years later, and "Candy Crush Saga" had already earned all the money, which is why its peak annual revenue was only a little over a billion.
In these kinds of games, it's always the former who eats the meat, and the latter who drinks the soup.
But this time, it was Wang Yi who was eating the meat!
As for "Candy Crush Saga," which had not yet been released, it could only watch.
When they release it a few months later, they'll only get to drink the soup!
As for the blank domestic market, there were even fewer competitors to speak of.
As a result, "Happy Elimination Game"'s user growth rate, revenue, and profits far exceeded those of its previous life.
It might even surpass the myth of "Candy Crush Saga"'s annual revenue of 10 billion!
Wang Yi made up his mind that "Happy Elimination Game" must increase its marketing efforts!
Especially overseas!
Ensuring that before "Candy Crush Saga" launches, enough users and market share are captured.
This way, when "Candy Crush Saga" launches as a follower a few months later, its impact on "Happy Elimination Game" will be very limited.
Wang Yi wouldn't let go of a market with annual revenue of tens of billions.
For this, extensive marketing and promotion, and even inviting celebrity endorsements, are necessary.
"Happy Elimination Game" must achieve market monopoly before "Candy Crush Saga" launches!
Wang Yi pondered carefully on how to market most effectively to capture the global market within half a year!
First, link up with the international version of Meiyou APP, and promote "Happy Elimination Game" by leveraging Meiyou's international recognition and users.
The Meiyou APP for recording menstrual cycles is needed by women domestically and abroad.
Meanwhile, the "pure desire" style dresses became incredibly popular domestically and abroad, naturally accumulating a large number of international users.
Using Meiyou's overseas version to promote "Happy Elimination Game" is definitely a good idea.
Second, link up with Facebook and Twitter!
Domestically, "Happy Elimination Game" is deeply integrated with Chat & Talk, but this can't be the case abroad.
Overseas friend interactions must be linked with Facebook and Twitter!
Only in this way can "Happy Elimination Game" quickly grow by leveraging these two major social platforms.
More critically, Wang Yi remembered that "Candy Crush Saga" in its previous life was released on Facebook in April, and only in November was it released on Apple and Android app stores!
Now Wang Yi has partnered with Facebook and Twitter in advance for its release, and has also developed Android, iOS, and PC versions, leaving no room for "Candy Crush Saga"!
Third, sponsor international events or variety shows, and aggressively advertise.
...
While conceptualizing, Wang Yi recorded these ideas and communicated them in meetings with the game department.
However, to ensure its leading position and market monopoly, "Happy Elimination Game" must guarantee ample product strength, in addition to its first-mover advantage and aggressive marketing!
Wang Yi noted again:
[The game will update 50 levels weekly, starting for fifteen years, ensuring players have endless levels to play!]
"Candy Crush Saga" in its previous life, after its release in 2012, updated 45 levels weekly and continued for over ten years, still updating.
It was precisely this continuous stream of updates that kept many players playing for over a decade and generated hundreds of billions in revenue!
Today's "Happy Elimination Game" must be even more intense, directly offering 50 levels per week.
And promptly adjust game balance based on user feedback.
Furthermore, in addition to completely new levels, many old levels will also be upgraded.
50 levels a week, all new levels, is not realistic.
At the same time, introduce the AI algorithms of Little i Robot.
This type of game has a very high demand for AI algorithms, both for game level design and AI customer service.
King, the developer of "Candy Crush Saga" in its previous life, initially lacked these resources and later had to acquire an AI algorithm company.
Now Wang Yi has already acquired Little i Robot and is focusing on AI algorithms; not using them would be a waste of resources!
All resources must be concentrated to decisively defeat "Candy Crush Saga"!
(End of Chapter)