Chapter 2435 Film Technology

Ziweixing Global’s IPO is a big project.

The current total share capital is 4.55 billion shares.

Among them, the largest shareholder is SoftBank Group, holding 2.74 billion shares; the second largest shareholder is Zhou Buqi’s family fund, with 730 million shares; the third largest shareholder is Zhou Buqi personally, holding 460 million shares; The four largest shareholders are Ziweixing International, which holds 220 million shares.

In this IPO, 720 million shares will be issued, of which 320 million shares are new shares and the other 400 million shares are for shareholders to cash out. If all issuances are successful, the total share capital will reach 4.87 billion shares.

The issue price is $23.6.

If all goes well, Ziweixing Global will receive approximately US$7.55 billion in financing from the issuance of 320 million shares. According to the prospectus, the US$7.55 billion in funds will mainly be invested in the "film + technology" field.

In fact, it is streaming media that has been planned for a long time.

According to the current overall plan, Ziweixing Global is expected to launch its own streaming media platform in 2015, and will compete with Netflix in a differentiated manner.

The subscription fee on Netflix is ​​more expensive, mid-to-high-end, and has a large number of self-made dramas and excellent film and television works purchased from external sources; the subscription fee on Ziweixing Global is relatively low, and the film library is mainly supported by Ziweixing Global's own film and television works. .

The other 300 million shares were cashed out by shareholders.

Among them, SoftBank is the main one, with a total share of 400 million shares, and SoftBank accounts for 380 million shares. This IPO gives SoftBank an excellent opportunity to exit.

The sale of 380 million shares could bring SoftBank $9 billion in revenue.

After the cash-out is completed, SoftBank's shareholding will be reduced to 2.36 billion shares, accounting for 48.4% of the total share capital. Will lose his controlling position, Son Zhengyi completely let go and handed over Ziweixing Global to Zhou Buqi.

Not to mention, within half a year, SoftBank plans to sell more than 500 million shares in the primary market and raise more than US$10 billion. Then I plan to roll up my sleeves and compete with some international hot money and capital from various countries in the British market for the semiconductor company ARM.

By then, SoftBank’s shareholding in MSI Global will be around 35%. This is to further release power, and the advantage in shares is also transferred to Zhou Buqi.

This is not enough!

This IPO will adopt the AB share system.

In terms of voting rights, one vote of Class A shares equals 10 votes of Class B shares.

In the entire ownership structure of Ziweixing Global, there are only 460 million Class A shares, which are all 460 million shares held by Zhou Buqi personally.

This kind of stock system design is actually not welcomed by the capital market.

Because the "dictatorship" attribute is too strong.

Zhou Buqi holds all Class A shares, and one vote is worth ten votes... Are you still organizing a crappy shareholders' meeting and board of directors? All decision-making power is in his hands alone.

Once the company is in crisis in the hands of Zhou Buqi, the small shareholders want to get together and form a rope to reorganize the board of directors... Just like what Carl Icahn is best at, this is impossible in an AB-share company. of.

This kind of uncertainty, which is full of authoritarian risks, will make many investors very worried.

However, this time is different.

The protagonist this time is Zhou Buqi!

In the past few years, he has taken off as fast as a rocket and has become the hottest figure in the global business field, creating a business myth that is invincible and invincible.

Moreover, whether Zhou Buqi does business at home or overseas, he has always adhered to the concept of getting along well with each other and making money in harmony, which is well-known in the industry.

Even Carl Icahn took the initiative to show up and publicly stated that he would subscribe for a part of Purple Star Global's shares to express his support.

This shows how good Boss Zhou’s industry reputation is.

With all these factors combined, Ziweixing Global’s grand IPO event started with great fanfare!

Although 720 million shares will be issued, with plans to raise US$17 billion, surpassing Facebook's US$16.6 billion, becoming the largest IPO of the year... This is equivalent to sucking US$17 billion from the market... But the outside market has always been optimistic. I think this is likely to be the most spectacular and attractive IPO of the year.

Even more eye-catching than when Facebook went public in the summer!

That day, the New York Stock Exchange opened.

Zhou Buqi rings the bell.

The opening price was US$26.3, which was US$2.7 higher than the issue price, and the opening price increased by 11.4%!

Real-time market capitalization of US$128 billion!

The whole audience cheered!

It seemed like the entire New York Stock Exchange was boiling.

Zhou Buqi smiled, but was a little dissatisfied. His expected market value was US$150 billion...but it was basically about the same.

This year-end IPO was a great success!

George Lucas's identity is very special. After all, he is a major Hollywood director, a rich man, and the first person in "movie + technology". The "Star Wars" series he founded is not only the largest IP in the United States, this concept even directly changed the Cold War strategies of the United States and the Soviet Union, directly bringing down the Soviet Union.

Zhou Buqi looked at him with a half-smile, "George, do you regret it?"

"Kind of."

George Lucas was a little helpless.

When he sold Lucasfilm, the transaction method he chose was cash, and he only received a small part of Purple Star Global's shares.

Now it seems that it is really a big loss!

Zhou Buqi raised his head, watching the changes in stock prices on the big screen, and said with a smile: "Let's make a rough estimate. If you didn't use cash transactions at the beginning, but exchanged them all for Ziweixing Global's stocks... Now these stocks The value may reach 20 billion U.S. dollars. You are among the top ten richest people in the United States."

George Lucas' face froze and he was speechless.

Oh shit!

This guy is really a loser!

Which pot won’t be opened?

Zhou Buqi then pointed at himself and said solemnly: "George, when it comes to making movies, I'm not as good as you; when it comes to doing business, you're not as good as me. If it's making a movie, I will definitely give you all my trust. If it's doing business, I will give you all my trust." Business, I think you should give me all your support, what do you think?"

George Lucas knew what he meant. He was silent for a while and then said slowly: "Lucasfilm is a movie studio."

Zhou Buqi smiled and said: "Yes, who says it's not? Lucasfilm is a movie studio, so just sit back and make movies properly. Technical matters are naturally handled by the technical department. Come and do it. Don’t forget, I am a practitioner in the IT industry, and what I am best at is dealing with technical issues.”

There's no way to argue with that.

When discussing technological development and technological innovation, George Lucas felt a little guilty and felt that he was no match for the young boss.

Zhou Buqi said: "Ziweixing Global is on the market and it is very successful. This is not enough. Hollywood is already a hundred years old and is too old. If we don't inject fresh blood into this centenarian, he will probably be eliminated by the times. You have also seen the changes in the IT industry. Netflix and Hulu are becoming more and more attractive, and Amazon and Apple have also entered the video streaming industry. This is especially true for the music industry. In the past few years, they have been digitally Music has been tortured to the point of dying. In recent years, music streaming has adopted new models, which has restored some vitality. Music is a lesson for movies."

George Lucas is the technical leader in Hollywood, and James Cameron is just his follower.

He is the biggest supporter of innovation in film technology.

Then, George Lucas nodded solemnly, "Well, I very much agree with the long-term development plan of 'film + technology' that you have formulated for Ziweixing Universal. There are many directors in Hollywood who still insist on shooting with film. , I think they are all against the trend of the times."

Zhou Buqi gave him a meaningful look, "In this case, there is no need to keep Lucasfilm's technology accumulation and intellectual property rights too closed, right? It will be integrated into the group's technology department, unified deployment, and unified management. It will be more conducive to the development of the entire Ziweixing Global Group, and will also be an important part of the long-term strategy of 'Film + Technology'."

Although George Lucas sold Lucasfilm, his influence was too great.

Just like Yang Zhiyuan is to Yahoo, Boss Ma is to Alibaba.

Without the full support of George Lucas, it will be difficult to carry out drastic reforms of Lucasfilm, and it will be difficult to release the technological dividends accumulated by Lucasfilm over the past few years.

The two sides have discussed this issue several times.

George Lucas raised his head and looked at the beating stock price of MSI Global, which has now grown to 27.2 US dollars, an increase of 15% from the issue price.

The allure of capital is really too great.

It's hard to resist.

George Lucas took a deep breath and said in a low and serious voice: "Zhou, you can't destroy Lucasfilm. To be honest, with these radical strategies you have surrounding the film industry, I'm worried that it will Lucasfilm is going in the wrong direction."

Zhou Buqi pointed to the stock trend on the big screen, "Isn't this convincing?"

George Lucas nodded silently.

Zhou Buqi said calmly: "Hollywood must transform, and the film industry must also develop in the direction of technology. Ziweixing Global is the leader in the industry. George, you have always been a pioneer in advancing Hollywood technology. This time, Are you going to miss it?”

"ah?"

George Lucas was slightly stunned, a little stunned.

Zhou Buqi showed a smile, "George, I invite you to join Ziweixing Global, not just the board of directors, I also want you to join the management, serve as our film technology consultant, supervise and lead the route of our film technology develop."

"Where's the formal title?"

"Anything is fine, such as...Chief Strategy Officer?"

“What about Lucasfilm?”

George Lucas has had enough of retirement and is excited.

It's not about money.

Nor is it power.

But faith, pursuit and dream!

Over the past few decades, almost all of Hollywood's technological revolutions have been driven by George Lucas, including the transition from film shooting to digital shooting, which was also popularized by his "Star Wars" prequel trilogy. Leading the way in Hollywood.

Now, Ziweixing Global's mission is "movie + technology", using new technology to bring new blood and new vitality to Hollywood! This is what George Lucas has struggled with his entire life.

This concept fits perfectly!

He didn't want to miss it.

George Lucas couldn't hide his expression, "Where's Lucasfilm?"

"The reforms will be completed under your supervision."

"good!"