The Magician’s Memorial - Chapter 147



Only Krnovel

Episode 147 rebound (1)

The enthusiasm for the iPhone did not cool down over time.

The initial quantity of 100,000 units was sold out within a week, and the Taewoo Electronics factory was operated to fill the shortage.

Thanks to this, Taewoo Electronics was also put on alert.

Because workers were deployed to produce iPhones, they had to work overtime and even on weekends.

Instead of the situation getting better, I started getting busier, so CEO Seong-il Woo came to me and started complaining.

“Vice Chairman, the entire factory is overloaded. “If you sell the iPhone, Apple takes most of the profits, so is there any reason to hire more people at Taewoo Electronics?”

“Who said Apple takes most of the profits?”

“You can tell just by looking at the contract, right? Apple only pays 3% of sales for consignment manufacturing costs. “The more we produce, the more Taewoo Electronics loses.”

You only know one, but you don’t know the other.

If you simply look at the contract, Taewoo Electronics is in a loss-making structure, but if you dig deeper, it was never a loss-making business.

“It is true that we receive 3% for consignment production costs. However, you should also consider the royalties that Apple gives to Taewoo Electronics. As iPhone production increases, royalties also increase. “If we add royalties and consignment production costs, we have a structure that makes a huge profit, rather than a loss.”

Taewoo Electronics held patents on most of Apple’s core technologies.

Moreover, Taewoo Electronics owned up to 10% of Apple’s shares, so even if it did not earn a penny from consignment production costs, it was bound to make a profit.

“I didn’t even think about royalties. sorry.”

“Do you know how much Apple’s stock price rose after the iPhone was released?”

“I understand that it has risen by more than 20%.”

“After the dot-com bubble, the stock prices of IT companies are still at their lowest price. Only Apple is hitting the upper price limit. And Taewoo Electronics is also benefiting from it.”

“… … Taewoo Electronics’ stock price is also starting to rebound after the launch of the iPhone.”

Even though it was only in the early stages of launch, the stock price was already showing a response.

If sales in Europe begin, Apple’s stock price is likely to return to where it was before the dot-com bubble.

Taewoo Electronics was also able to return its stock price, which had been cut in half, to its original state.

“Hasn’t the semiconductor division’s deficit decreased significantly?”

“The yield still has not reached 70%, but it is increasing little by little, and the deficit is decreasing.”

“As iPhone sales continue, demand for semiconductors will continue to increase. If that happens, the semiconductor division’s yield will also improve.”

“I was short-tempered. “I will rush to the factory right now and take care of iPhone production myself.”

It’s good to reflect quickly.

Since he listens well, I am putting him in the position of CEO of Taewoo Electronics, but I will have to replace him with someone better soon.

“Please wait. Lee Ju-young, CEO of Taewoong Communications, also decided to come soon. “We have something to talk about together.”

While I was drinking a cup of coffee, CEO Jooyoung Lee arrived.

President Lee Joo-young was as busy as President Woo Seong-il, so his face was very hurt.

“I heard that Taewoo Telecom also works overtime every day these days. “It looks like you’re still very busy.”

“Work has increased more than 10 times because of the iPhone. “We have deployed more than three times the number of staff responsible for mobile phone activation, and we are suffering from a manpower shortage as we have to mobilize additional staff to manage the app.”

It was CEO Lee Joo-young, who had a bright voice despite his very injured face.

“I think our market share will increase significantly.”

“Many customers of other telecommunications companies have moved to Taewoo Telecommunications. If this trend continues, surpassing 60% market share is not a dream.”

“For that to happen, iPhone users must not be dissatisfied.”

“Complaints keep coming out that the places where wireless internet can be used are limited.”

I have been thinking about this problem for a long time.

That’s why wireless Internet was installed free of charge in university areas.

“Hmm, I guess we should first install wireless Internet in the places where people spend the most time.”

“Don’t you usually spend most of your time at school or work? “Starting with the building owned by Taewo Group, we will begin installing wireless internet in the stock market and Yeouido.”

“It would be nice to be able to use wireless Internet on subways and buses. “I understand that there is a significant proportion of students and office workers who use public transportation for more than an hour.”

Before the regression, it was natural to use wireless Internet in the subway.

However, in this day and age, there were places where cell phones did not work properly, let alone wireless internet.

“To install wireless internet on all subway lines, consultation with Seoul City is necessary.”

“If you offered to install wireless Internet for free, I wouldn’t object.”

“It could disrupt the telecommunications cartel.”

“Then the mayor of Seoul’s re-election is in jeopardy. “If it were rumored that wireless Internet could not be installed on public transportation because the mayor of Seoul blocked it, which citizen would vote for it?”

Ultimately, the reason politicians need money is to win elections.

No matter how much money the telecommunications cartel provided, it would not be possible to win the election if a negative image was accumulated.

“We will begin discussions with the Seoul Metropolitan Government today.”

“And I would like to install wireless internet in the cafe as well. Especially the cafe owned by Taewo Group.”

“Are you talking about Starbox?”

During the foreign exchange crisis, we won distribution rights to Starbox.

To date, over 500 stores have been opened across the country.

“There is no better place than a cafe to enjoy wireless internet. “Make sure to install an outlet so you can charge your phone.”

“We will discuss this with the Starbox division and proceed as quickly as possible.”

iPhone in one hand, Starbox coffee in the other.

This combination had already been proven, so there was no need to delay.

***

The iPhone craze continued for over a month.

Naturally, as sales of feature phones fell, CL Electronics’ mobile division was also put on alert.

“When will a solution for the iPhone come out!? “It’s already been a month.”

“McKinsey sent us a report!”

CL Electronics wanted to listen to external voices for the company’s development.

The request was made to McKinsey, the world’s best consulting firm.

“Please summarize the report.”

“They say smartphones are still just a gust of wind in a teacup. It is said that when considering all mobile phone models, the number of smartphone users does not exceed 10% at most. So, focusing more on feature phones will help increase sales.”

McKinsey provided customized consulting to companies that requested consulting.

This report was also published because CL Electronics expressed its intention to focus on feature phones.

“As expected, McKinsey also thinks so.”

“I tried using the iPhone myself, but it was slower than I expected. “It still felt unfinished.”

“I think we are still a long way from the era of smartphones.”

“I think it is the right choice to focus the company’s capabilities on feature phones rather than using them on smartphones.”

“Please expedite the production of high-performance feature phones. What are the strengths of CL Electronics? Even iPhones use our LCDs. So all you have to do is build a high-performance feature phone using a top-spec display.”

From the perspective of the future, CL Electronics’ judgment was wrong.

With the advent of the iPhone, the decline of feature phones was predicted, and an era would come where smartphones would dominate the mobile phone market.

But that was something only someone who knew the future could say.

Since CL Electronics already possessed various technologies related to feature phones, it was right to focus on feature phones to increase sales right now.

Current and Future.

Depending on where you focus, your choice will vary.

CL Electronics decided to focus on the present rather than the future.

***

Same time.

An emergency meeting was also convened at Samjin Electronics.

It was a meeting in which Chairman Oh Hee-gun personally participated, and it was a large-scale meeting in which all company executives participated.

“I’ve used the iPhone too. It’s such an amazing product that I wonder if it could be released in this day and age. However, when I looked at the parts that went into it, most of them were produced by Samjin Electronics. But why can’t we make phones like this? “This is it.”

“Apple perfected the iPhone based on the failed product called Message Pad. Therefore, there was a prediction that the iPhone would follow in the footsteps of the Message Pad.”

“Well, I don’t plan on blaming you either. Because we achieved first place in the world with feature phones. But shouldn’t we be first in smartphones too?”

Chairman Oh Hee-geon said it as if it were obvious.

He repeatedly emphasized that all Samjin Electronics products should be world-class.

“The moment you become number one in the world, your sales will double or triple. “We must be first in feature phones, and we must be first in smartphones.”

“Currently, all our capabilities are focused on developing feature phones. “If we develop smartphones in this situation, we can kill two birds with one stone.”

“You shouldn’t do anything. You shouldn’t do this. You can’t just say something. Do you know why it is so easy to say no? They say that because they are indifferent to the company. And irresponsible! “The first thing they say is that they can’t do it because they don’t want to take responsibility!”

Chairman Oh Hee-geon shouted.

All executives paid attention to the president of the mobile division, who had offended the chairman for no reason.

Nevertheless, President Lee of the mobile division continued talking without notice.

“This is a time when choice and focus are needed. “We must focus all of our capabilities on feature phones in order to maintain our position as the number one feature phone company.”

“Whoa, you can never be first-rate if you’re afraid of change. I rarely use the word ‘never’. “If we don’t change now, our Samjin will never be world-class.”

“… … .”

President Lee of the mobile division has finally stopped talking.

Because he realized how strong Chairman Oh Hee-gun’s resolve was, he decided that no matter what he said, it would be impossible to persuade him.

“People who are afraid of change do not have to change. Take care of it yourself. People who want to change a little change a little, and people who want to change a lot change a lot. I can wait as long as I want. But don’t hold on to the other person’s hind legs! “This is it.”

“I will keep the Chairman’s words in mind!”

“If you try and challenge yourself in the process of change, you will be full of mistakes. It’s okay to make mistakes here. Any mistakes made in this process become property. “This is the story!”

Samjin Electronics made a different choice than CL Electronics.

CL Electronics focuses on feature phones, and Samjin Electronics plans to develop feature phones and smartphones simultaneously.

From the perspective of Samjin Electronics executives, it was dissatisfaction.

I did not understand Chairman Oh Hee-gun’s words to develop smartphones that do not have many users at a time when the company was losing money even if it focused on feature phones that were doing well.

However, at Samjin Group, Chairman Oh Hee-gun’s word was law.

Whether they liked it or not, Samjin Electronics had no choice but to start developing smartphones.