"Chairman Mavi, these are the response plans our company has developed over the past few days. I think if we spend a bit more money to sign popular broadcasters from other video websites, it should significantly increase V-Ke's traffic..."
After listening to John's analysis, Mavi gently shook his head. "This method might work in the short term. But if we engage in malicious competition long-term, the money will ultimately flow into the broadcasters' pockets, and the website won't be able to make a profit. If the losses are severe, the website will face closure."
In his previous life, Bilibili's competitor, AcFun (A站), went down that road due to massive losses and lack of profitability. In contrast, Bilibili (B站) adopted a step-by-step approach, sticking to a paid membership system. This allowed it to survive the muddy battle and get better and better. So, the method of losing money to gain publicity and attract investment isn't sustainable in the long run. Over time, its drawbacks become apparent.
Everyone nodded silently after hearing Mavi's opinion. They were also frustrated by Brake Video and Xiutan Video poaching their talent. They had wanted to fight back using the same method.
"Then, Chairman Mavi, what do you think we should do to respond?" President John knew that his boss hadn't flown all this way just to hear their progress report. Given Chairman Mavi's style, he definitely had a countermeasure in mind.
"The response method is quite simple," Mavi answered calmly. "We'll find a different path, open up a new frontier in the video industry. There's no need to fight them to the death in this quagmire."
"A different path? Chairman Mavi, are you suggesting...?" Hearing this, President John and the V-Ke executives were a bit confused.
What new frontier could there be in the video industry? At most, they could categorize videos more finely to attract viewers with different tastes and hobbies.
Besides broad categorization, website responsiveness and interface optimization were also crucial. A cumbersome interface or slow video loading speeds would lead to traffic loss and earn the site a bad reputation.
Just as everyone was pondering this, Mavi, sitting at the conference table, smiled and said to them, "Currently, all videos online are prerecorded and edited. So, we can pioneer the concept of video live streaming. Let netizens watch outdoor videos, gaming videos, food and entertainment live online."
"At the same time, we can let them leave messages and comments online, interact and communicate with the video broadcasters, and send full-screen scrolling bullet comments. I believe this user-friendly experience will greatly increase user engagement with the website. It might even encourage them to spend money and top up to tip the broadcasters, which is essentially a form of gratuity..."
Drawing from his memories of his previous life, Mavi introduced the concept of live streaming into his company meeting. The executives present were wide-eyed, completely taken aback, unable to fully grasp it!
"Video live streaming...? Online interaction, and tipping broadcasters?" Everyone looked at Mavi with a hint of surprise. The concept of tipping itself wasn't new, existing both domestically and internationally. Abroad, it's called a tip, a service charge. In China, it's called a reward (shǎngqián), which has existed since ancient times when officials would generously reward opera troupes on a whim.
So, regardless of the location, the act of tipping is accepted by people. It wasn't a case of something working domestically but not abroad.
"Set up the live streaming website I just mentioned as soon as possible. Don't hesitate to ask for whatever investment is needed," Mavi said to everyone in a calm tone.
After two years of development, the penetration rate of computers worldwide was rapidly increasing. Taking the United States as an example, the average was three computers per ten households. It was time to usher in a new era of mass live streaming.
"Okay, Chairman Mavi, we understand," John said, nodding.
Based on their conservative views of video websites, President John and the others were perhaps somewhat unsure if Mavi's direction would bring a turnaround for the company. However, based on their trust in the big boss, everyone worked together with unified effort, following Mavi's plan step by step to build the live streaming website.
A month and a half later, after everyone's efforts, the V-Ke Live streaming platform was finally ready for official launch. Due to the lack of developed smartphones, the live streaming content mainly focused on game streaming or indoor streaming. However, this also saved time on app development.
During the development of the live streaming platform, V-Ke Video's traffic, due to the joint targeting by the two major video websites, dropped by about 10%.
This data made some people outside, who were eager to see Mavi stumble, quite gleeful. Even some media outlets reported on it extensively, speculating that if V-Ke Video continued like this, it wouldn't last much longer.
"Ma V Group's V-Ke Video Experiences Sharp 10% Traffic Drop Last Month Due to Intense Industry Competition. Outside investors lower its valuation by 15%. In contrast, Brake Video and Xiutan Video are more favored," an online media outlet published a news article with this headline.
V-Ke Video represented the Ma V Group. Its declining performance would allow those with ulterior motives to use it to attack the entire Mavi Group.
"Ma V Group's First Setback! Suffers a Waterloo in the Video Industry, Traffic Plummets 10%! According to internal sources, if traffic drops to 25%, V-Ke Video will lose 70% of investor interest. The direct economic loss could reach $650 million!"
For the booming Ma V Group, which had always crushed its competitors, the industry was full of enemies with ill intentions, both inside and out. Many people wished to see him fail and never recover. This was human nature.
For example, Brake Video and Xiutan Video, the two companies. They had been planning a merger and pooling resources to target V-Ke for eight months. The CEOs of both companies were delighted to see V-Ke Video's valuation decrease daily.
What they wished for most was to wake up one day and be told by their subordinates that V-Ke Video had shut down and the Ma V Group had withdrawn from the video industry forever. That would be truly satisfying news.
"President Hote, I heard that V-Ke company is currently setting up some kind of video live streaming website? It seems it will be officially launched in a few days," a female secretary in a formal suit at the headquarters of Brake Video said to the middle-aged man sitting in the boss's chair.
"Hmm, I heard about that too. No need to pay too much attention to it. The V-Ke of today is not the V-Ke of a year ago. If he doesn't offer high prices to keep broadcasters, the website's traffic will naturally drop significantly. Due to the lack of high-quality videos, the website also won't be able to attract new users. This vicious cycle will only get worse day by day. I didn't expect that Mavi, clever as he is, would be so muddled at a crucial moment. All the preparations we made before were wasted."
(End of this chapter)