"Katy Perry Wins The Voice Championship!"
"Taylor Swift Delivers a Divine Song, a Perfect Blend of Country and Pop, With a Promising Future."
"Xi Lin Trudeau's Stunning Falsetto, a Super Sweet 'Sugar'."
"After 19 Years, They Once Again Presented Us With 'We Are the World'!"
"Eric Cooper, The Busiest Man at The Voice Finals."
"A Super Party, Michael Jackson Commands the Stage!"
"Eric Cooper, a Musically Gifted Genius, a Creative Maverick Delayed by Film!"
"The Best Music Variety Show in History is Born, a Super Show Full of Humanistic Spirit, Charitable Flavor, and Lively Humor!"
"The Voice of America Reaches Its Peak, the Only TV Show in History to Rival the Super Bowl."
"Meiyi Records Makes a Grand Debut With Every Release."
"Breaking News: Michael Jackson Resumes Concerts After Three Years, About to Begin a National Tour, Presale Tickets Expected in Half a Month."
"Avril Lavigne Expresses Admiration for Eric Cooper's Musical Talent, Hopes to Invite Him to Create a Song Tailored for Her."
"Shocking! After The Voice Finals, Britney and Eric Cooper Were Photographed Together in the Same Room, Only Parting Ways More Than an Hour Later."
At 10:30 PM that night, as The Voice finals concluded, related topics immediately surged to the top of Yahoo Entertainment headlines.
Many live broadcast clips and clearly blurry paparazzi videos were also uploaded to YouTube and Yahoo.
The next morning, when Eric woke up in bed, he was still biting Nicole's chest, saliva all over it.
"Are you awake?"
"Hmm, what time is it?" Eric yawned.
"It's nine o'clock in 5 minutes, you lie down for a while longer, I'll make you breakfast."
"Okay."
Nicole was only wearing an apron, her fair skin exposed.
The maid outfit was also very attractive, a kind of uniform temptation that anyone could use whenever they wanted.
He pulled the computer from the bed and looked at it, only to see the big screen showing the scandal between him and Britney.
Slap!
He slapped his forehead, Eric woke up a little more.
Damn it, these gossip tabloids are truly shameless.
What kind of nonsense is an hour and a half? And using 'secret meeting,' can that word be used so casually?
If I really wanted to have a secret meeting, how could you guys possibly find out?
I've kept a mistress hidden for so long without it being reported, that's proof.
And it wasn't more than an hour, the meeting between the two of them ended in just about 10 minutes.
If he wanted to do something illicit, 10 minutes wouldn't be enough.
The minimum would be an hour, and Britney wouldn't be able to walk out lively afterwards, she'd be split in two.
He rolled out of bed, walked to the kitchen, and hugged Nicole from behind, her fair skin almost blinding him.
"Darling, why is your skin so fair? I really want to hold them in my mouth every day."
Nicole pushed his hand away: "Ouch! Stop it, it's going to burn."
"If it burns, we'll eat something else, it's not like there's nothing else to eat, squeeze some for me to drink."
"Want to drink? Then why don't you try harder, if you get pregnant, you can have as much as you want. You didn't use all your energy on those other women, did you?"
Eric rubbed his slightly sore waist: "What are you talking about! Am I the kind of person who favors one over another? Your husband always aims for equal distribution."
"My standard is to rather share a drop equally than have a whole bowl to myself!"
"Then why do I feel like you didn't have much energy last night, did you spend all your thoughts on other women?"
Eric gently caressed her butt: "Can you believe what those paparazzi say? Britney was asking me for a song, not just her, but also Avril Lavigne, Maroon 5, and others. They were all shocked by last night's show."
Nicole scooped the cooked eggs onto a plate: "I watched it too, it was indeed very shocking. Now the entertainment section is almost completely dominated."
"By the way, Jennifer Lopez called me last night, inviting me to go out and have fun. She wouldn't be thinking the same thing, would she? You've become a hot commodity everyone wants a piece of."
Rip!
Eric lifted her apron: "The real hot commodity is here, if I'm going to eat, I'm eating yours."
"You're naughty!"
Although The Voice had ended, the social discussion continued for several days without ceasing.
The upcoming tour tickets were also selling very well, and many comments on the official website demanded that the four songs from the final night must be sung.
Because these four songs had not yet been released as singles, the only way to listen to them was to register as a Lionheart Network member.
Even the official authorization for YouTube had not been released, only some simple snippets.
On the Billboard charts, "Let It Go" still dominated, with a massive lead in popularity, and it seemed poised to continue leading.
So it's better to delay for a while, and release it when the popularity of "Let It Go" has slightly decreased.
Or release it with the album. Since The Voice began preparations last year, the four women, Mei Mei, had been secretly planning for a long time. Next year's Grammy Awards are destined to be the most intense.
Compared to the fierce performance on the Billboard charts, "frozen," which had entered its fourth week, finally showed signs of fatigue, and Princess Elsa welcomed another heavyweight opponent.
Warner Bros. was the one to make a move again, entering the battlefield with the super production "Troy."
Ever since the lord of the rings series revived epic blockbusters, major companies have all wanted a piece of the pie in this area, and the "Troy" project was launched for this very reason.
The film's production cost was an exaggerated 750 million dollars, almost on par with "frozen's" 800 million dollars.
It brought together a host of handsome men and beautiful women with strong box office appeal, such as Brad Pitt, Orlando Bloom, and Diane Kruger, practically screaming 'blockbuster'.
Warner Bros. also poured a lot of effort into it, one manifestation of which was that "Troy" was also released globally simultaneously in over 40 countries, even more aggressively than "frozen."
In fact, its performance was indeed impressive, raking in 300 million dollars at the global box office in its first three days.
When this data was released, both Warner Bros. and The Big Six breathed a sigh of relief, finally curbing the momentum of "frozen."
They certainly couldn't openly claim victory, but at least the loss wasn't too ugly. Now The Big Six's goal was to promote it as aggressively as possible, striving to keep "frozen's" box office below 1 billion dollars.
There was no other way; when facing an extremely powerful opponent, 1 billion dollars was already a humble figure.
New York, Rhode Island, Hasbro Headquarters.
Chairman of the Board, Alan Hassenfeld, stepped out of his car. As the supreme ruler of Hasbro, though he rarely appeared, he was the true controller of the company.
The reason he was here today was for a board meeting to discuss the gambling agreement with MGM.
He hadn't intended to bother with it and could have waited until the end of the year, but Sergei thought it best to make plans early.
After all, after statistical analysis, the sales of transformers toys had indeed reached four times that of last year, which required careful consideration.
The secretary pushed open the door to the conference room. The old man slowly walked to the chairman's seat, looked around, and seeing that everyone was present, he sat down with satisfaction.
Sergei sat next to him and asked for permission: "May we begin?"
"Hmm."
"OK, today's board meeting is to inform everyone of a result regarding the gambling agreement we signed with MGM, which you are all aware of."
"After more than half a year of sales, the results have recently come out, and sales officially surpassed four times last month."
"In other words, the highest clause of the gambling agreement has been activated, and we now face two choices."
"Either give up 4% of the equity to MGM, or pay MGM 55% of the toy net profit."
"Based on the company's current stock price, 4% of the equity is equivalent to 300 million dollars, while 55% of the toy net profit, calculated only on sales to date, is approximately 600 million dollars."
"However, I must remind everyone that the net profit calculation uses this year as the unit of measurement, so 600 million dollars is only temporary."
"Based on sales trends, by the end of this year, this figure is very likely to reach or even exceed 500 million dollars."
"Gentlemen, we now face a difficult choice."
Alan also hadn't expected the movie to be so successful, leading to a sharp increase in toy sales.
However, as happy as he was when making money, he was now just as pained at the prospect of cutting into his profits.
Falsifying accounts?
Such tactics only deceive ordinary people; using them on a large company like MGM would mean he wanted to experience prison life in his old age.
"What are your thoughts, Hill, what do you think?"
"Chairman, if we must choose one, I believe transferring equity to MGM is more appropriate, as the value of the equity is clearly less than 55% of the profit."
Alan snorted, then looked at another man in glasses.
"I disagree with transferring equity. Yes, profits will continue to grow, but the company's market value will also grow; the two are positively correlated. When 'transformers' Part Two is released, it will definitely cause the company's stock price to soar again."
"But have you considered this? The film industry is a high-risk industry, especially for sequels. The possibility of failure is far greater than the possibility of success. What if the reputation collapses? It would instead cause the stock price to fall. It's better to hold onto the profits more securely."
"Impossible, at least it's highly unlikely to fail. The ending of the first movie clearly laid the groundwork. As long as the fights are cooler and more transformers appear, the toys will only sell better."
"That's just your guess, do you understand movies?"
"While I don't understand movies, I understand statistics and probability, and the likelihood of success is always greater."
"I beg to differ, this is a big business worth hundreds of millions of dollars, not playing slot machines."
"Nothing in the world is 100 percent certain; everything carries a certain risk, just like this gamble. No one thought MGM could achieve it, we need a little adventurous spirit."
"Raul, don't forget we are responsible for the entire Hasbro, not just you alone. Personal emotions should never override company interests."
"I agree with playing it safe and transferring the equity to MGM."
"I also think it's better to be safe."
"I advocate giving up the profits. Profits can be earned back, but equity, once given away, is not so easy to retrieve."
"Giving up equity is a foolish method, I don't approve!"
Seeing the various directors arguing over the choice, Alan slammed the table forcefully, and the long-standing prestige instantly brought silence to the conference room.
"I thought you were all smart people, but it seems you're not. You're actually seriously discussing this issue."
"Hill, Phil, Klausli, and all of you, after the meeting, go and check your heads thoroughly. I don't want to hear any more foolish remarks."
"In short, transferring equity is impossible. This matter is non-negotiable. Meeting adjourned!"
After speaking, Alan stood up to leave. In his eyes, the board meeting was just a formality.
Hasbro was essentially his personal domain, and it had been for many years.
Whether it was scolding people or acting autocratically.
Three words summarized it: he was used to it!
His tyrannical and overbearing style naturally caused dissatisfaction among many. If you had already made up your mind, why ask us? Several pairs of eyes immediately focused on Sergei.
Feeling the gaze, Sergei took a deep breath; he had to make his move.
Ever since he had discussed it with Eric, he had secretly contacted those who were dissatisfied with Alan. This meeting today was, in essence, a trap.
The best outcome would be a peaceful transition, persuading Alan to accept the transfer of equity through the pressure of the board of directors.
Once the deed was done, he would naturally be powerless to reverse it.
However, it now seemed that this approach was clearly not going to work; if the soft approach failed, he would have to resort to the hard one.
"Cough, cough, Chairman, wait a moment!"
"Hmm? What else is it?"
"I think this matter still needs further discussion. In fact, transferring equity might not be a bad choice."
"Sergei, what are you saying?"
Alan Hassenfeld's brows furrowed instantly. How could this usually obedient nephew suddenly dare to raise objections?
Feeling the pressure, Sergei instinctively wanted to back down, but thinking of his confidence, he straightened his chest again.
"I said, we need to re-discuss this matter. This is not my personal opinion, it's all of our thoughts. What do you all say?"
The people who had just proposed transferring equity looked at each other, then one, two, three…
Finally, everyone stood up.
Alan's brows furrowed tighter, clearly sensing the unusualness of today.
These guys had eaten the guts of a bear and a leopard! They dared to defy his decision. He wanted to see what they intended to do.
Anyway, with the equity he held, no one could shake his position at Hasbro.
He'd play along with them!
"Sergei, what exactly do you all want to do?"
"We just hope to get more cash; everything is for the good of the company!"
"For the good of the company? Then you should know that under my leadership, Hasbro has been thriving all these years. All my decisions are for the company."
"Alan, don't you think you're being too overbearing?" Suddenly, a director spoke bluntly.
"That's right, any company's resolution should be discussed by everyone, not a one-man show. We need democracy!"
"You want democracy, do you? I'll satisfy you, we can vote by a show of hands." Alan sneered.
From the previous argument, it could be seen that the score was 8:8, at most a tie.
After the meeting, he would talk to those who opposed him one by one, letting them know who the real boss was.
"Good, but before the vote, I'd like to introduce a new board member."
Creak!
The conference room door was pushed open, and Eric slowly entered, smiling as he looked at Alan Hassenfeld.
"Alan, it's time for you to go back to Canada and retire!"