I am Hollywood

[Chapter 1074: The Dragon's Wings]

"It's still a difference in the company's development philosophy," Eric replied. "I want America Online to maintain its position as an Internet service provider, while Steve hopes to transform it into a comprehensive Internet media company."

"As far as I know," Judith Miller looked down at her notebook and said, "as the largest shareholder of America Online, Firefly Investment held a 32.6% stake in AOL, all of which were voting common shares. Firefly had the power to dismiss Steve Case. Why did you not insist on doing so? Was it just due to the collective resignation threat from Steve Case and the AOL core management team?"

Eric nodded, saying, "That's basically it."

"So," Judith Miller gazed at Eric as her questioning tone sharpened again, "don't you think you acted too weakly in handling this matter?"

Eric shook his head calmly, "This is not about being tough or weak. Acting on impulse in business is the most foolish thing. I believe I made the choice that was most beneficial to myself. Firefly Investment initially acquired a 30% share of America Online for $60 million. Six years later, just selling 25% of that stake allowed us to recoup $10 billion. A 200-fold return, which even an investment in Yahoo could not match."

Although Judith Miller had followed the entire process of Firefly Investment's stock transfer of America Online, hearing Eric mention those figures still left her in awe.

However, this sentiment did not stop her from continuing with her questioning. Glancing at her wristwatch, she quickly asked, "Mr. Williams, given that America Online is advancing into the Internet media sector from the position of North America's largest Internet service provider, are you not concerned that this could threaten Yahoo's market position?"

Eric shook his head. "In fact, I am more concerned about America Online."

This response clearly caught Judith Miller by surprise. She paused for a moment before asking, "Why?"

Even though he had cashed out $10 billion, Eric still held a significant amount of America Online shares, so he could not analyze his reasons too extensively as he didn't want to affect America Online's stock price. Instead, he said vaguely, "Because America Online is venturing into an area in which it is completely inexperienced. My investment philosophy is to put the right people in the right roles. A series of rapidly growing companies under Firefly Investment has confirmed the correctness of this approach throughout the years."

In contrast to his earlier responses to a series of questions, Judith Miller keenly sensed Eric's reserved attitude on this issue. She pressed on, "So, does this mean you are not optimistic about America Online's future?"

Eric gently shook his head. "It's not about being optimistic or not because I can't see America Online's future."

"Does this imply that Firefly will continue to reduce its 7.6% stake in America Online?"

Eric hesitated for a moment and clarified, "To avoid unnecessary disputes in the future, I must clarify one point: The entire Firefly system currently holds a 10.7% stake in America Online. Apart from Firefly Investment, we acquired an additional 3.1% of America Online's stock through Clover Fund, a subsidiary of Firefly Group, about a year ago. Under federal security laws, shareholders holding less than 5% do not need to publicly disclose or report their holdings. Our purpose at the time was to strengthen our control over America Online at the appropriate time, which, of course, is no longer necessary now. To answer your earlier question, the answer is affirmative, but the Firefly system won't do this in the short term."

Judith Miller recalled the data she had reviewed, revealing a clear expression of surprise on her face. After this interview is published, she believed America Online would be even more astonished.

With a 7.6% stake, Firefly would have been the seventh-largest shareholder of America Online. Furthermore, during the last stock transfer transaction, other shareholders of America Online would likely impose various restrictions on Firefly Investment's remaining 7.6% stake. Firefly Investment's relinquishment of its board seat was likely one of the conditions of this unwritten agreement.

However, if you factor in the additional 3.1% of shares that were completely unrestricted by America Online, the entire Firefly system could once again leap into the top five shareholders. Moreover, if they wished to intervene, they still had the strength to do so at any time.

After digesting the information she had just received, Judith Miller quickly added, "Mr. Williams, based on what you said, can I assume you are still very optimistic about the Internet service provider business?"

"Of course, that is the cornerstone of the entire Internet industry. When people use the Internet, they may be interested in portal sites, e-commerce, or instant messaging, but first and foremost, they need to connect to the Internet."

"Microsoft's MSN has already begun to expand in this area. Does Yahoo have similar plans for the future?"

"That brings me back to my earlier investment philosophy; I won't allow Ian and the others to do things they're not good at. Yahoo will continue to focus on Internet media. However, at the appropriate time, Firefly Investment will do that, similar to how we previously invested in America Online."

Judith Miller prodded further, "What does 'the appropriate time' mean?"

Eric shook his head seriously. "We don't have any plans for that right now because this time, we will be more cautious."

Not detecting any cracks in Eric's expression, Judith then shifted the topic back to Yahoo itself. "Mr. Williams, Yahoo has almost covered every emerging Internet business model: portals, instant messaging, email, search engines, social blogs, etc. Which area do you believe has the most potential?"

Eric's expression turned more serious as he firmly stated, "Of course, it's portals. Users accessing the Internet is merely building a road to this virtual world, but to fully enjoy the online space, they need the assistance of portal sites. Besides, in my view, email, search engines, and social blogs are merely supplements and extensions of portal sites; they are, in fact, part of the same whole."

Judith Miller nodded slightly but quickly added, "However, Mr. Williams, we can easily see that the operational model of portal sites is very easy to replicate. How do you view this issue?"

Eric smiled confidently and replied, "Many great engineers can assemble a propeller plane in their home garage, but there is only one Boeing Company."

This straightforward yet persuasive analogy clearly resonated with Judith Miller, and after another glance at her watch and realizing her time was limited, she scanned her notebook and began to accelerate her questioning.

Amidst the smooth exchange, the study door was suddenly knocked on lightly, and Merissa Mayer pushed the door open, saying softly, "Mr. Williams, it's about time."

After that night in London, the female assistant began to adopt an ice princess demeanor. Eric had always suspected that the group of fairies that night had done something to make Merissa Mayer question life, but he couldn't ask too much about it.

Hearing the reminder, Eric stood up and extended his hand to Judith Miller. "Well, Ms. Miller, it was a pleasure to see you again."

Although she felt a bit unsatisfied, Judith Miller stood and shook Eric's hand, saying, "Likewise, Mr. Williams. I look forward to our next meeting."

...

The entire weekend, major media outlets in North America and abroad buzzed about Yahoo's IPO miracle and engaged in heated discussions about the stock's trajectory for the following week. Almost all media and industry analysts believed that after reaching a peak on the first day, Yahoo's stock price would see a significant decline the following week.

Although Yahoo's management had put in a lot of effort over the weekend, even announcing some still-unconfirmed positive news, even within the Firefly system, there was a mental preparation for Yahoo's stock price drop in the upcoming week.

However, on Monday, when some stock managers too anxious to follow the media's movements sat before their computers contemplating whether to sell their Yahoo and other tech stocks, at 9:30 AM the stock market opened, and Yahoo's stock didn't experience the drop they anticipated but instead surged inexplicably.

In just ten minutes, relative to last Friday's closing price of $72.56, Yahoo's stock had risen over 3%, reaching $74.73.

It wasn't hard to imagine that if this rising momentum continued, within a single day, Yahoo's market valuation could likely exceed $100 billion.

These stock brokers, bewildered by the unexpected situation, sat at their computers for a moment, wide-eyed, trying to determine what had happened.

Thus, when they turned on their TVs or logged onto news portals, they found discussions revolving around a familiar name everywhere.

...

Two economists were passionately debating Eric Williams' optimistic statements regarding the Internet bubble.

Yahoo's homepage prominently featured a commentary piece questioning whether the federal government should loosen regulations on the scale of new tech companies.

ABC's morning news broadcast discussed globalization in the Internet sector.

America Online CEO Steve Case anxiously refuted Eric Williams' statements about America Online in a telephone interview with reporters.

A spokesperson from the Department of Justice tirelessly responded to media inquiries citing Eric Williams' remark on whether the DOJ was too harsh on Microsoft.

And most importantly, Eric Williams' exhilarating statement from the New York Times interview that had been quoted countless times by the media in a matter of hours: "In a massive market with a billion top-quality users, what is impossible?"

This one statement rekindled the confidence of countless investors who were filled with worry and skepticism about tech stocks.

As human society advanced rapidly, almost all traditional industries had formed very stable industrial structures, and excess wealth in society constantly sought new investment hotspots.

At this moment, suddenly a young man who had created a series of wealth miracles stepped forward, firmly declaring: a completely underdeveloped market with a billion or even tens of billions of consumers was right at hand. How could this not ignite the feverish excitement of countless investors?

...

Following Eric Williams' personal interview with the New York Times and the ensuing media storm, the Nasdaq index rose by 35 basis points on that Monday.

However, this was only the beginning.

In the next few days, the media discussions surrounding Eric's personal interview showed no signs of cooling off; instead, they intensified into a global topic of heated conversation.

The range of topics Eric touched on during his interview -- ranging from the Internet bubble, new tech company regulations, Microsoft, America Online, portals, and more -- became focal points of fierce debate among various media outlets.

Although Microsoft was very dissatisfied with Eric's remarks on "that arrogant guy Bill" and the New York Times' decision to print it as is, they nonetheless determinedly referenced Eric's viewpoints from the interview to retaliate, claiming that the federal government was stifling a "global corporate giant" and endangering the federal government's "foundational interests."

Faced with Microsoft's accusations and the media turmoil it stirred, Attorney General Janet Reno had to hold a press conference to explain in detail the DOJ's reasons for initiating the antitrust investigation against Microsoft.

At the same time, Janet Reno mirrored Eric's words from the interview, urging Microsoft to abandon its extremely selfish and closed market strategy in favor of more open measures that would benefit healthy industry development.

Still bogged down in impeachment issues, Clinton was questioned about the New York Times interview during that week's White House press conference and made a lengthy comment, asserting in summary: "Eric is right; Microsoft is wrong, and the White House will steadfastly support the new tech industry," and so forth.

...

When Yahoo's stock finally reached $79.68 on the third trading day of Thanksgiving week, breaching the $100 billion market value threshold, America Online's management and major shareholders were in turmoil over Eric's declaration that "I can't see America Online's future."

Although America Online's stock did not suffer a significant drop, thanks to the overall market direction, the president of Morgan Stanley, John Mack, who held a significant amount of America Online shares, had to personally call Eric, hoping he could moderate his statements regarding America Online from the New York Times interview. After all, the Firefly system still held a 10.7% stake in America Online. A drop in America Online's stock price would severely impact the Firefly system too.

Overseas, reminded by Eric's interview, many media outlets in Europe and Asian countries began to follow suit, urging their governments to strengthen support for domestic new tech companies while limiting the incursions of North American Internet giants.

Amidst this flurry of activity, every segment and phrase from Eric's interview became points of contention for many.

Whether at the behest of someone or not, the newly appointed president and CEO of Intel Craig Barrett made a point during an interview to express that Bill Gates was very down-to-earth and humorous in private, and absolutely not the arrogant person Eric Williams claimed.

Yet this explanation by Craig Barrett only had the opposite effect. Somehow, "arrogant Bill" quickly turned into a nickname that many media outlets used to tease Gates, a moniker that stuck with him for many years.

Strangely enough, some of the major North American airlines also joined in on the discourse.

The president of Lockheed Martin expressed in an interview with a hint of bitterness: "There's more than Boeing in the country; there's also Lockheed Martin."

Sikorsky, a helicopter manufacturing company that had been overlooked, weakly asserted its relevance, stating: "The VH-60 helicopter, which Eric Williams loves most, was made by us."

Over the years, although Eric's wealth had grown immensely, his public persona had become increasingly low-key.

Most people's impressions of Eric ranged from the acclaimed director, super-rich mogul to gossip fodder, with few developing a deep or intuitive grasp of the power and wealth Eric possessed.

However, in just one week, following the global media discussion sparked by Eric Williams' New York Times interview, countless people finally began to recognize the terrifying social influence he had unwittingly accumulated over the years.

From one interview article, the multitrillion-dollar Nasdaq composite rose in response, the world's mainstream media went into a frenzy, federal government departments were overwhelmed, and countless corporate giants started responding.

This young man, only twenty-eight, who had reached the pinnacle of global wealth, resembled a dragon accustomed to keeping a low profile. When he casually flapped his wings, the whole world began to stir.

*****

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