Chapter 942 Friendship (4k)

Nokia's press conference held suddenly in Paris on December 8 was quite boring. It lasted two hours, and the chief technology officer explained Yike's patent infringement point by point.

The press conference was attended by many senior executives including CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, which was quite formal and serious.

The chief technology officer explained it in detail, and there was a real machine demonstration on the scene, which seemed to be conclusive evidence.

So... did Yike really infringe?

"Nokia has been developing for so long and has accumulated so many patents. It is difficult for us not to infringe."

"But I don't understand one thing. Nokia has sued two companies in the United States, so why didn't it mention Apple at all?"

"At least say something at the end of the press conference."

The targeted actions of the industry giant naturally attracted Fang Zhuo's attention. He temporarily summoned senior executives halfway through Nokia's press conference to watch Nokia's patent explanation together.

Fang Zhuo expressed his heartfelt feelings after watching the press conference.

Nokia has too many and too strong patents. Yike has also been taking advantage of the financial crisis to acquire patents in the market in a targeted manner in the past two months, hoping to slightly check Nokia's actions.

But...

From the current situation, the internal cognition is relatively consistent and sober. Yike really can't win this lawsuit.

A comforting news is that peers should not win either.

So, what kind of way to negotiate patent fees in the end is the most important consideration.

Directly negotiating sky-high patent fees is one way, and negotiating patent fees by fighting to promote is another way.

The current situation is that neither Apple nor Yike is willing to pay patent fees directly, and both are going through legal procedures.

Fang Zhuo talked about this matter internally, not about the defensive counterattack in the financial field, but really about Yike's response-the longer the time is delayed, the stronger Yike will be. Nokia has already shown a decline. Patents are a big deal for Yike now, but only a small matter for Yike in the future.

However, the press conference held by Nokia after LG was banned seemed to be trying to use public pressure, and it also directly and publicly displayed a very clear patent situation.

This is obviously not good for Yike, but because the Christmas promotion is imminent, the legal process generally takes time, and the stock price is only slightly fluctuating.

"Maybe it's because Yike is more prominent, and our open mobile alliance with Google and other companies is also very impressive." Yu Hong only said this at the meeting, without mentioning the scene at the press conference in June this year.

Mr. Fang probably forgot that he once spent most of the press conference to evaluate Nokia's new touch-screen phone, and the direct consequence was that a large amount of the other party's stock was sprayed.

This grudge... can be big or small, after all, Nokia is now launching a new phone.

"The public pressure of the press conference is actually easy to deal with, especially since they are still in Paris. If they run directly across from the ITC, the effect will probably be much better." Fang Zhuo also comforted his colleagues after sighing, "Everything is normal, just wait for the legal process."

After the onlooker meeting ended, Fang Zhuo returned to his office. No matter how he thought about it, he was still a little puzzled and a little angry. Apple's infringement was not reduced at all.

He thought about his friendship with Jobs in giving away phones and cross-patent licensing, so he simply called the head of Apple and asked whether Apple had reached a private settlement with Nokia.

Jobs was already surprised to receive Fang Zhuo's call, and even more surprised to hear the inquiry.

It is known that this person has a good psychological quality, and I really didn't expect it to be so good.

He thought for ten seconds and said honestly: "No, Nokia's appetite is relatively large."

"Why did Kallasvuo only talk about Yike today?" Fang Zhuo asked.

Jobs suggested: "Do you want to find the reason from yourself?"

"Will Kallasvuo ignore the other party just because of some personal emotions at such a press conference?" Fang Zhuo thought so.

When Jobs heard this, he put away some of his surprise and joking intentions.

Apple has already licensed patents with Yike, and only intends to compete in the market. And both have been sued by Nokia, so they can be regarded as comrades-in-arms challenging industry giants.

He thought seriously for a while and gave his own answer: "Android is indeed developing very fast. Is Samsung also going to leave the Symbian Alliance?"

The Symbian Alliance was previously established by Nokia together with Sony Ericsson, Siemens, Motorola, Samsung, LG and other companies.

To this day, although some members have withdrawn and Samsung has also started to carry Android, the world's second largest mobile phone company is still a member.

However, Samsung's shift is also very obvious.

Alliance member LG is banned from sales, Microsoft's OEM HTC is rumored to join Android, Samsung has already launched Android phones and has subsequent plans. Compared with Apple, which is fighting alone, such a camp is indeed different in momentum.

Yike is just one of the Android manufacturers, but it is also a representative Android manufacturer.

This is a battle between camps.

Android's Open Mobile Alliance has dozens of manufacturers on the battlefield together. This formation must be taken seriously by everyone. Nokia is now taking the lead in handling it.

Fang Zhuo and Jobs exchanged their experiences, which also connected the information and competition situation. He sighed: "It seems that Nokia may really take two ways to deal with patent infringement?"

Jobs did not give his own opinion this time.

"Okay, let's put it this way. Next time I will give you a new Mars, the kind that does not require interactive lottery." Fang Zhuo did not know whether Jobs had signed for the last gift, but just expressed his gratitude.

Jobs suddenly took advantage of the phone call to ask about another thing: "How is the progress of the Hummingbird chip?"

Apple's current chip design and foundry are all from Samsung, and the outline of Samsung's future chips lies in Hummingbird.

"Semi-finished products, it will probably take a long time." Fang Zhuo replied.

"If Yike is sued by Nokia, remember to split the Hummingbird team and sell it to me. I can increase the price by 50% at whatever price you bought it at the beginning." Jobs smiled.

Fang Zhuo agreed immediately, no problem, absolutely no problem.

He ended the call, put down the phone, and first told his secretary Liu Zonghong to see if there was any new movement from Siri, which he had contacted unsuccessfully before.

Siri did not want to be acquired, believing that the success of its cooperation project with voice recognition manufacturer Nuance would greatly increase the price.

Not long after the call ended, Google CEO Schmidt took the initiative to break the deadlock caused by the previous little unpleasantness.

In any case, Yike Mars is still the king of Android phones.

Before Samsung came up with its flagship product, Yike mobile phone was the most representative product of Android.

Schmidt believes that we cannot sit back and watch Nokia catalyze the ITC's ruling process in a short period of time. As for the mobile services that Yike wants to provide in China... he is willing to make a concession on behalf of Google. Yike can provide its own mobile service bundle in China, but Google will take 20% of the profits.

Fang Zhuo flatly refused: "If Google wants to share, then Yike will always lose money in this regard."

Schmidt: "..."

He laughed angrily: "Can't you be more restrained?"

Fang Zhuo argued: "Did Yike ask Google to pay for the profits of overseas mobile services? As a shareholder of Android, did it ask Android to agree on the profits? Faced with unreasonable demands, I can only do this."

He also took a step back: "Since Schmidt took the initiative to call me, then let's do this. Yike will do local mobile services first. If Google is sure that it can provide smooth services for Chinese users, it will still be handed over to Google, but Google's profits in China will be divided into Yike 50%."

Schmidt sneered: "Then will you, Mr. Fang, try your best to stop Google from expanding its business in China next?"

Fang Zhuo said calmly: "So far, without my obstruction, has Google's business in China been good?"

The two were silent.

Silence cannot solve the problem.

"20%." Schmidt said simply.

"50%." Fang Zhuo felt that persistence can show sincerity.

"20%." Schmidt also insisted.

Fang Zhuo took a step back for the sake of friendship: "30%, no less. We need to face Nokia together, reduce internal fighting, strengthen the strength of the Android camp, and eat up the Symbian market as soon as possible. The bigger the cake, the stronger Yike will be, and the more calmly it can deal with patent competition."

Schmidt acquiesced.

He said directly: "Let's solve the HTC issue tomorrow. HTC is positioned in the low-end and has rich OEM experience. It is a very good supplement to the Android camp."

"I'll wait for you in New York." Fang Zhuo agreed.

Before Schmidt ended the call, he said the last sentence: "Mr. Fang, I hope you can be a better person."

He no longer hoped that Fang Zhuo would help mediate the matter he had previously wanted, so he hoped that he would not work in the opposite direction.

Fang Zhuo heard the dead tone of the phone before he could speak.

He put down the phone with a sense of loss, pondered for a while, and suddenly sighed: "Schmidt is such a bad person."

The secretary Liu Zonghong next to him thought to himself, no wonder he could be in the iron triangle with the boss.

"Let the Ministry of Law draft the patent licensing terms with HTC, and then let the domestic market prepare for the push of YMS." Fang Zhuo pondered and ordered. Since there is no problem with Google, the first wave of YMS can be carried by Yike, HTC, and Hanwang.

Subsequent domestic manufacturers will discuss this matter one by one, and if they really can't reach an agreement, they will leave it to the market.

Yike Mars is a pilot in China this year. When the 3G license is officially issued next year, competitors such as iPhone will surely enter the Chinese market.

Domestic manufacturers are cooperating in one wave, and foreign manufacturers such as Samsung who are willing to carry Android are also in another wave. However, Samsung is very likely to insist on not carrying YMS, and it is up to consumers to choose and compare the differences between this Android and that Android.

YMS, like Apple iOS, has the characteristics of unified push of software messages, which will bring different changes to mobile phones.

The night of December 9.

The night is still cold, and the three leaders of Yike, Google, and HTC are eating hot pot, and the atmosphere naturally warms up.

In particular, Fang Zhuo started by criticizing himself.

"I always want to bring the best experience to consumers, because if I don't think so, Yike Company would not be what it is today."

"However, the process of doing things can be more artistic. I have such shortcomings. Sometimes I tend to be stiff and look ugly. Please bear with me."

Fang Zhuo punished himself with a glass of wine and apologized for the previous small conflict within the Android camp.

"I think the spirit of Mr. Fang is the soul of Yike Company." Schmidt smiled in the cold night. "If you are not responsible for consumers, consumers will not pay for you. Instead, I am too anxious about Google's business in China."

He also raised his glass: "I will follow Mr. Fang and punish myself with a glass of wine."

Fang Zhuo and Schmidt smiled at each other.

Wang Xuehong was a little... at a loss in the hazy heat of the hot pot.

The... friendship between these two.

So mellow!

She ignored the capriciousness of these two people and said sincerely: "HTC is very optimistic about the development of the Android system. It is led by Google and Yike Mars. I believe Android can usher in a better tomorrow."

The three of them drank together.

While Fang Zhuo taught Schmidt how to use chopsticks with great interest, he talked about the patent licensing of the PRO Alliance and the patent fees of HTC and Yike.

Wang Xuehong was stunned: "Since I joined the PRO Alliance..."

She thought that today's trip was due to external forces, so she could leave the past behind and look forward.

Schmidt used his chopsticks crookedly, conveying the same attitude: "After all, HTC has infringed on Yike's patent."

"Actually, this hasn't been decided yet." Wang Xuehong had a slight objection.

Then, she noticed that the eyes of Mr. Fang and Schmidt seemed to flash a cold light for an instant.

For just a moment, Wang Xuehong even thought it was her illusion.

She took a breath: "But Yike has indeed made great exploration and innovation in touch screens, and HTC is willing to learn from Yike on this part."

"Well, the company doesn't belong to me alone. There must be an explanation from top to bottom." Fang Zhuo nodded and said, "It's only ten million US dollars. To be honest, it's not much. The details can be left to the two parties for negotiation. I agree with what Mr. Wang said, Android will be better tomorrow.”

He raised his glass: "Welcome Mr. Wang and HTC to join the Android family."

Wang Xuehong listened to this number, and saw that Mr. Fang had already raised his glass, and then looked at Schmidt opposite, who also picked up his glass. After all, he no longer struggled with the patent fees, and completed HTC's turn: "I hope the Android system can To bring a better user experience to consumers around the world, we also hope that HTC can make a contribution.”

"Cheers to Android, cheers to friendship." Fang Zhuo smiled and clinked his glasses.

The three of them drank the wine of friendship together.

After Wang Xuehong put down her wine glass, she couldn't help but talk about yesterday's Nokia press conference and asked Yike's response.

"Delay and wait for change." Fang Zhuo shook his head slightly, "We are all our own people, so I will say it bluntly. It is difficult to get around Nokia's patents. Even I have nothing to do for the time being. Let's take a look."

Wang Xuehong felt relieved for some reason.

…

Chicago, 23rd floor of Wrigley Building, office of private equity fund Pursue.

Investment manager Angus suddenly received a call from a big boss in Europe, asking to evaluate the stock prospects of emerging mobile phone manufacturer Yike, and to confirm and analyze Yike's situation with his peers.

Pursue has not been established for a long time, and the scale of funds under management is not large. However, it has successfully weathered the financial crisis and made profits, which is relatively well-known in Chicago.

Angus cherished his job under the current circumstances. Although he was a little surprised by the sudden order, he started to execute it without hesitation. Moreover, he quickly noticed the possible bad news about Yi Ke.

"Come on, ask a few other friends to see what they think of Yike, whether there are any problems with the data, and what's going on with the patents." Angus directed his colleagues to handle the new work.

It seems that the mysterious European boss is interested in shorting Yike this time.