Cook was furious. What kind of questions were these?
How do you view the 30% plummet in iPhone 4s sales in China...?
How do you view Apple fans all running off to the Xingyi Technology product launch...?
Will Apple copy Xingyi Technology's x buds...?
"F**k!"
Cook's face turned ashen, and he cursed inwardly:
"These damn reporters, really love to stir up trouble!"
"F**k!"
"F**k!"
"How am I supposed to view it?"
"I shouldn't have come here, and definitely shouldn't have gone head-to-head with Xingyi Technology at the same time, in the same Imperial Capital!"
Originally, on the same day, in the same city, Xingyi Technology had its Water Cube launch event, and Apple had its Sanlitun fan meet-and-greet.
They were locked in a fierce rivalry, with Cook attending in person!
He had thought Apple would completely dominate this situation, that fans of both Apple and Xingyi Technology would be drawn to Sanlitun.
Then, once the media reported it and some hot searches were arranged, Apple's momentum would surge, and the iPhone 4s would become a national bestseller.
Xingyi Technology, on the other hand, would suffer a heavy blow, with sales of the xphone 1 also experiencing a cold winter.
But who would have thought Wang Yi would be so dishonorable, actually inviting Hollywood movie king and international superstar Little Leo as an endorser!
The result was, not only did Xingyi Technology's fans not get drawn over, but even Apple's fans were pulled away!
There was nothing to be done, Little Leo's popularity was too immense!
Let alone him, Cook, even if Jobs were still alive, he might not be able to suppress it!
"This Wang Yi fellow, truly dishonorable!"
"Inviting Little Leo to endorse, isn't this just bullying?"
Seeing the reporters' cameras almost shoved into his face, Cook quickly rolled up the window and shouted:
"Go, hurry!"
"Get me out of here, f**k!"
But unfortunately, the media reporters were too zealous and directly blocked the car, refusing to let it leave.
Such a ridiculously absurd event today, involving both Apple and Xingyi Technology, was bound to be a sensational hot topic.
Once reported, it would definitely trend, the kind that doesn't even need paid traffic, so of course, they couldn't let it go!
In the critical moment, fortunately, the on-site security guards rushed over, blocking many media outlets, allowing Cook's car to escape with difficulty.
Through the rearview mirror, Cook's gaze passed over the reporters behind him, landing on the fan meet-and-greet at the Apple flagship store, and the despondency on his face deepened.
It should have been a great Apple fan meet-and-greet, a chance to take a jab at Xingyi Technology and boost iPhone 4s sales in China.
But unexpectedly, there were no sales gains, and Apple instead became a laughingstock.
All the way, Cook's expression was extremely grim.
The assistant couldn't help but ask,
"Chairman, should we go straight back to the hotel?"
Cook sighed:
"No, go straight to Apple's Imperial Capital headquarters! F**k, these good-for-nothings, they can't even beat a newly established phone company, what are they good for!"
"Yes!"
The assistant knew Cook was enraged!
With Apple's sales plummeting in China and the humiliation suffered in Sanlitun today, he had to find an outlet for his anger.
The original target for his wrath was Xingyi Technology, but now that he couldn't unleash it there, it could only be directed at Apple's Greater China region executives!
However, before Cook even returned to Apple headquarters, news reports quickly spread:
[Cook Arrives at Apple Fan Meet-and-Greet, But Fans Collectively Defect, Rushing to Xingyi Technology Launch!]
[Apple Fans Rush to Competitor's Launch, Cook Leaves in Disgrace!]
[Xingyi Technology Announces Little Leo as Endorser, Draining Apple Fans, Cook's Face Darkens in Annoyance.]
[Cook and Apple's Appeal Far Inferior to Director Wang and Xingyi Technology, Cook's Fan Meet-and-Greet Becomes the Laughingstock of the Century!]
[Xingyi Phone Rises Strongly, Apple's Dominance Overthrown!]
[xphone 1 Sells Tens of Millions in Two Months, iPhone 4s Sales in China Plummet 30%, Cook and Apple Abandoned by Apple Fans!]
...
These news reports quickly surged to the top of trending searches, once again causing a huge uproar:
"Dying of laughter! Cook arrived in Sanlitun, but all the fans went to Xingyi Technology, hahaha."
"It seems Apple is really struggling, even loyal Apple fans are starting to defect."
"Although I don't want to admit this fact, there's nothing I can do, I'm an iPhone 4 user who switched to xphone 1."
"It's not that the iPhone 4s is bad, it's that the xphone 1 is better!"
"Exactly, the xphone 1 has higher specs than the iPhone 4s, a better experience, it's two thousand yuan cheaper, it's in stock so no frantic buying, and it comes with a two-year membership. There's absolutely no reason to buy an iPhone 4s!"
"Xingyi Technology made a grand gesture, directly inviting Little Leo to be the full brand endorser, truly impressive!"
"Holy cow, it's true! Little Leo is at the Water Cube right now, at the Xingyi Technology launch event!"
"If I had known Little Leo was coming, I would have bought a ticket to the Xingyi Technology launch, even from a scalper! I've liked him since I was a child, he's an idol!"
"I'm already on my way to the Water Cube."
"Me too!"
"Water Cube +1!"
"It's over, without an endorser, the xphone 1 sold ten million units in two months. Now with Little Leo endorsing it, how many will the xphone 1 sell?"
"I'm worried the xphone 1 will be out of stock again; sales for February are probably going to skyrocket!"
"You have a point, Little Leo's appeal is not to be underestimated!"
"Can't wait any longer, gotta act fast. The xphone 1 will probably sell out in a few days!"
"Yes, act fast."
...
At once, many Imperial Capital netizens flocked to the Water Cube, eager to see Little Leo!
Ever since "Titanic" many years ago, Little Leo has been globally popular, his influence is truly immense.
Netizens not in the Imperial Capital also opened their phones and computers to watch the Xingyi Technology launch live stream.
Some netizens even started frantically buying the xphone 1, fearing it would be out of stock once the news of Little Leo's endorsement spread nationwide.
Thus, xphone 1 sales began a new round of explosive growth!
And the attention and viewership of the Xingyi Technology launch also surged again.
Baidu Chairman Li Yan watched the live stream of the launch, his brows slightly furrowed:
"Xingyi Phone's security center actually partnered with 360, integrating 360's virus database and scanning. What's the plan behind this?"
Vice President Qu Xin shook his head:
"I can't figure it out, but this cooperation benefits 360. It's like Xingyi Phone has built-in 360 antivirus. Leveraging Xingyi Phone's user base, 360 Antivirus's market share will soar significantly! Along with their virus database, scanning capabilities, etc., everything will rapidly upgrade! From now on, Tencent Phone Manager, Baidu Mobile Guardian, Kingsoft Antivirus, and others will no longer be a match for 360."
"Indeed, 360 made a huge profit from this cooperation. But what is Xingyi Technology after? Why partner with 360 specifically?"
Li Yan was utterly puzzled, but he couldn't shake the feeling that things weren't that simple:
"I guess these two fellows struck some kind of deal, who knows what mischief they're plotting!"
"Could it be aimed at Baidu?"
Qu Xin's expression changed slightly, equally bewildered, and could only continue watching the live stream.
"The second strategic upgrade: ChatTalk 2.0!"
"On New Year's Day, we launched ChatTalk 1.0. With its powerful features and original functions like nearby dining, local tours, voice-to-text, and later video New Year greetings, ChatTalk has gained widespread user support."
"In just over a month since its launch, ChatTalk's monthly active users have surpassed 70 million!"
"Thank you for your support!"
A thunderous applause erupted at the venue.
Tencent headquarters, however, was silent.
Chairman Ma's brows furrowed slightly:
"Monthly active users have already exceeded 70 million! That's incredibly fast!"
Zhang Long sighed:
"There's nothing we can do. The Amap Navigation '200 back for 200' event, using ChatTalk for a month, attracted forty million Amap users. Plus, Xingyi phones come with it pre-installed, and Xingyi Technology's fans add another tens of millions of users. The video New Year greetings during the Spring Festival attracted tens of millions of new users.
And 'Happy Eliminations' friend interaction system also uses ChatTalk; people interact with ChatTalk daily, sending energy... Their monthly active users are skyrocketing every day, exceeding 70 million is normal!"
Chairman Ma nodded:
"True, ChatTalk relied on Amap Navigation for traffic in its early stages, and now it relies on 'Happy Eliminations' for traffic. I estimate that in half a month at most, ChatTalk's monthly active users will completely surpass WeChat."
Zhang Long was very helpless:
"'Happy Eliminations' is too popular, and ChatTalk releases new features quickly, staying far ahead. WeChat really can't compete. But we won't give up; this is destined to be a long-term battle."
Chairman Ma took a deep breath, nodded, but said nothing.
Current ChatTalk is simply overpowered, overpowered in every way.
It's normal for WeChat to not be able to beat it!
Then his expression became solemn:
"What I'm most worried about is that ChatTalk will release new features again at this launch event!"
Zhang Long was silent: "..."
He felt terrible.
ChatTalk's video feature is still being developed by WeChat, WeChat hasn't sorted out voice-to-text either, and nearby dining and local tours are even further away...
Now if ChatTalk releases new features again, it really won't let WeChat live!
However, what one fears, comes to pass.
Wang Yi's tone shifted:
"For its current success, ChatTalk remains neither arrogant nor discouraged, and maintains sufficient innovative capabilities, continuously developing brand new features to give ChatTalk users the best experience – this is our consistent purpose!"
"Therefore, at this launch event, we are powerfully introducing ChatTalk version 2.0!"
Hearing this, Alibaba's Jack Ma was in a great mood:
"Sure enough, Xingyi Technology's blockbuster product at this launch is ChatTalk 2.0, clearly aimed at Tencent. Chairman Ma is going to have another headache. Hahaha!"
The vice president agreed wholeheartedly:
"Yes, Xingyi Technology and 360 getting tangled up, I don't know what they're up to, but launching ChatTalk 2.0 so quickly must be to take on WeChat!"
"ChatTalk 1.0 already crushed WeChat, even the latest WeChat 4.0 couldn't beat ChatTalk 1.0. Now with ChatTalk 2.0, WeChat is in trouble, Tencent is in trouble, hahaha!"
For a moment, the entire Alibaba headquarters was in a great mood, gloating.
Jack Ma smiled, watching the major update of ChatTalk 2.0 with great interest.
Wang Yi waved his hand, and the ChatTalk 1.0 interface appeared on the large screen behind him:
"ChatTalk 1.0's nearby dining and local tours integrate a group buying search function. This allows users to directly see numerous group buying deals for nearby food, tourist attractions, hotels, and so on. By comparing, users can choose their favorite merchants with the biggest discounts for group purchases."
"This feature is widely popular among users, but there's also an issue: during payment, it always requires jumping to third-party platforms like UnionPay, which is quite cumbersome."
Jack Ma's heart sank, and the smile on his face stiffened:
"What does this mean? ChatTalk 2.0 isn't targeting WeChat? It's coming for Alipay?"
The Alibaba executives also twitched their mouths: "..."
"For this, ChatTalk 2.0 is launching the brand new ChatTalk Pay!"
From Jack Ma down to all the Alibaba executives, their expressions were utterly priceless: "!!!"
They had planned to watch a show, but it turned out they were the clowns!
Jack Ma was furious:
"Wang Yi has gone crazy, doing navigation to compete with Baidu, doing ChatTalk to compete with Tencent, and now doing payments to compete with Alibaba! Truly audacious, impressive!"
The vice president snorted coldly:
"Young and frivolous, not knowing the immensity of heaven and earth. Does he really think that just because ChatTalk crushed WeChat, he's invincible? Daring to get involved in payments, truly a newborn calf not fearing a tiger!"
"Payments are not easy to do, isn't Wang Yi afraid of losing everything?"
...
Wang Yi took out his phone and demonstrated on the spot:
"Open ChatTalk, on the 'Me - Services' page, at the very top is ChatTalk Wallet!"
"Tap on the wallet, you can bind your bank card, set a dedicated gesture password, encrypt it, and ensure account security."
"From now on, when users use ChatTalk for group buying nearby food, attraction tickets, or booking hotels, they can pay directly with ChatTalk, without needing to jump to a third-party platform."
"At the same time, ChatTalk also launched a transfer function. For transfer transactions between ChatTalk friends, there's no need to ask for the other party's bank card number; simply transfer to a friend, enter the amount and password, and the money can be transferred.
After the recipient clicks to receive, the transferred amount is directly deposited into their ChatTalk Wallet, which can then be used for ChatTalk payments or withdrawn to a bank card."
"In addition, we have also introduced ChatTalk collection codes, ChatTalk payment codes, and the 'scan' function."
"Offline merchants can print out their ChatTalk collection codes and display them in their stores. Users can simply scan them to pay with ChatTalk; even if they forget to bring cash, it's not a problem!"
For QR code payment, people were originally quite unfamiliar with it, and even found it difficult to accept.
It's human nature to lack trust in unfamiliar things.
Fortunately, Alipay launched its QR code function in 2010, and thanks to Alipay's two years of effort, the public gradually began to accept QR code payments.
It can be said that 2012 was the first year of the great explosion of QR code payments!
Now Wang Yi has bypassed the difficult stage of convincing users in the first two years and is directly reaping the rewards!
This infuriated Jack Ma, who even smashed his cup:
"We spent so much human and material resources to persuade merchants and users to gradually accept Alipay QR code payments. But Xingyi Technology just launches ChatTalk QR code payment directly, it's truly despicable!"
"I can clearly hear his cunning calculations all the way from Hangzhou!"
But Jack Ma couldn't do anything about it.
QR codes weren't even invented by them, there was really nothing to be done.
Wang Yi continued:
"When you need to collect money, you can also download your collection code and send it to the other party. The other party can press and hold to recognize the collection code, and then directly transfer the payment..."
"Of course, everyone might be concerned about whether ChatTalk Wallet will have security issues? Will funds be stolen?"
Everyone nodded; this was a major concern.
Alipay also faced this question back then.
Wang Yi smiled slightly:
"Please rest assured on this point. ChatTalk Pay features all require real-name authentication, and a password must be entered for transfers, making it as secure as online banking. Even in the unlikely event of a security issue leading to user losses, I, Wang Yi, solemnly promise that Xingyi Technology will cover all compensation!"
"Whoosh!"
Thunderous applause echoed throughout the Water Cube.
Now everyone was completely reassured about ChatTalk.
"Of course, for reasons caused by the user themselves, such as being deceived and voluntarily transferring money to a scammer, causing losses, we won't cover that, okay?"
Hearing this, everyone present laughed.
Being scammed and having security issues are two different concepts.
Transferring money to a scammer is not compensated anywhere; it's purely self-inflicted, and even the police can't help.
"Furthermore, we have also launched credit card repayment and phone top-up features. Lifestyle payment, insurance services, and other features have also been developed and will be successively integrated. Everyone is welcome to experience them."
"In the future, these trivial matters will no longer require running around to different places for payments; one ChatTalk app will handle everything!"
"Whoosh!"
Applause rang out again.
Everyone likes this kind of convenient service.
But Jack Ma couldn't sit still:
"Damn it, ChatTalk pushing into payments and going head-to-head with our Alipay is bad enough! All the features we have, he has; all the features we don't have, he has too! It's truly infuriating!"
"I finally understand Tencent; this guy is a BUG."
"He started later than us, but he's doing better than us!"
"It's truly maddening... sigh!"
Jack Ma sighed repeatedly.
Even the vice president's face was solemn, having lost his former arrogance:
"ChatTalk + Payments might indeed have a serious impact on our Alipay!"
Jack Ma nodded:
"Payments are our foundation; we must accelerate fully and absolutely not give ChatTalk Pay an opportunity!"
"Yes!"
everyone responded.
Alipay in 2012 was also imperfect, with many features yet to be released.
ChatTalk Pay still has a chance to completely surpass it.
Tencent Headquarters.
Chairman Ma also sighed:
"The payment features are also very good. President Zhang, remember to follow up."
Zhang Long was silent for a moment, then nodded:
"Yes!"
But he sighed inwardly:
'The competitor is too far ahead, our company can't keep up!'
Seeing this scene, Baidu's Li Yan, however, was in a great mood:
"Well done!"
"ChatTalk taking on WeChat, Payments taking on Alibaba! Xingyi Technology, you're awesome, hahaha!"
"With Xingyi Technology going head-to-head with Tencent and Alibaba, we Baidu can just sit back and watch the tigers fight!"
For a moment, Li Yan was in a great mood, unaware that Wang Yi had already taken on Baidu as well!
Wang Yi continued:
"The third blockbuster new product, or rather, new service: Amap Ride-hailing!"
Originally, Wang Yi didn't plan to specifically launch Amap Ride-hailing, but its growth rate wasn't ideal.
Amap has hundreds of millions of car owners, and a considerable number are willing to become part-time ride-hailing drivers.
It can be said that the driver issue for Amap Ride-hailing is easy to solve, just promote it through Amap.
But unfortunately, there are few users hailing rides!
Most users who hail rides are car-less; they don't have cars, and usually don't use navigation or download Amap.
Having enough ride-hailing drivers but not enough users to hail rides — this is Amap Ride-hailing's current challenge.
Therefore, Wang Yi decided to make a blockbuster launch of Amap Ride-hailing at the Water Cube launch event!
Leveraging the buzz of the launch event, Amap Ride-hailing would quickly become popular nationwide, attracting more users to place orders and more ride-hailing drivers to join!
Wang Yi elaborated:
"Currently, one very troublesome aspect of our daily commutes is that taxis are hard to hail."
"Especially when going to places far from the city center, or away from main roads, you can wait by the roadside for half an hour and not see a single passing taxi."
"Occasionally, if one does come, it might already have passengers, so you just have to keep waiting."
"Especially in the biting cold of winter, standing in the chilling wind waiting for a car, shivering from the cold, is not an ordinary torment."
"And in the scorching summer, standing under a sun of over thirty degrees, hot and exposed while waiting for a taxi, is also maddening!"
Everyone nodded in agreement; these were common problems, most people had encountered them.
Let alone far from the city, even in the city, if you don't go to a main road, you can't hail a taxi.
Wang Yi continued:
"In fact, it's not just the passengers who suffer, but also the drivers."
"Passengers stand in the cold wind, wanting a taxi, waiting anxiously but unable to find one. Drivers want to pick up passengers, driving around burning fuel, but can't find any customers!"
"This is currently the biggest challenge in the entire market."
"The fundamental problem is a disconnect between taxi drivers and passengers, leading to many taxis not knowing where passengers are, and passengers who want a taxi being unable to hail one."
Everyone nodded, agreeing that this was indeed the most serious problem at present.
Wang Yi continued:
"But now it's better. To solve this problem, our Amap has launched a brand new ride-hailing service!"
"Users who want a ride can directly place an order on Amap. Nearby ride-hailing drivers, upon seeing it, can 'grab' the order, accept it, and then drive to pick you up!"
"That's right, users don't need to walk a long way to a main road to wait for a car, nor do they need to wait a long time. Instead, they can place an order from home or work. After a nearby Amap ride-hailing car accepts the order, it will navigate to your residential complex entrance, office entrance, or intersection to pick you up!"
"Whoosh!"
Thunderous applause erupted, and the users were all excited:
"This service is great, no more walking long distances to find a taxi."
"Having the car pick up passengers, that's the right way to do it, Amap Ride-hailing is too good!"
Wang Yi continued:
"Furthermore, it also supports pre-ordering and pre-booking a car."
"For example, if you need to go to the airport tomorrow morning and leave at 6:30 AM. It's difficult to hail a taxi that early, and it's easy to miss something important."
"Now it's better. Users can use Amap Ride-hailing to place a reservation order today. Tomorrow morning at 6:30 AM, the accepted ride-hailing car will be waiting for you at your residential complex entrance. Just go downstairs, get in the car, and go!"
"Wow! This is f***ing convenient!"
"Chairman Wang, you are my male god, you saved my sister's life!"
"This service is excellent, pre-order, book a car in advance!"
"By the way, will this kind of service be very expensive?"
"Definitely expensive, but it's convenient. I'd rather spend more money than wait half an hour for a taxi in the dead of winter."
"Exactly, especially in places where there are no taxis around, Amap Ride-hailing is so needed."
Wang Yi smiled slightly:
"The emergence of Amap Ride-hailing transforms the past hassle of passengers walking to find a taxi into online ordering and ride-hailing cars picking up passengers! You can also pre-order and book a car in advance!"
"More importantly, our Amap Ride-hailing prices are not expensive; they are much cheaper than taxis."
"Furthermore, all routes are customized by Amap Navigation using big data, to prevent drivers from taking detours and to protect users from being ripped off!"
(End of chapter)