Hollywood Domination Chapter 423: A new bidding model

"How did you do it?" Nancy Thrun half-jokingly dropped the ratings report in her hand on the conference table, "Seriously, Virginia, how did your son and daughter-in-law do it? ——Isn’t it enough for Jennifer to create miracles alone? Cesare? I really didn’t know he had this talent.”

Beside her, executives from nbc, fox, and even hbo, netflix and other niche TV stations laughed knowingly, and the senior think tanks, media experts and other professional technical personnel brought by them also made fun She joked about Virginia Vijri, "Yeah, Virginia, are you sure you're still here for today's presentation? Seriously, we thought you'd already picked the best at the weekend dinner." Good project."

"Give us inside information, did Cesare become interested in TV series production very early? Is this result in his expectation? Or what? God, everyone is envious of Jennifer Jay I was the only one envious of Cesare when he was in Fossen, what else does this kid lack? God, think about it, a great wife, a super rich inheritance, what else, height? Looks? Made it at the age of 35 A drama with a rating of 4? His big house in Malibu? This kid has everything!"

"He's short of a blockbuster movie right now—and of course the IPO listing——"

Amidst the laughter of the people, Virgilia Vigeri spread out his hands, showing a calm and somewhat smug smile, "well, Cesare has always been a very independent child, so guys, in business Talking business, don’t think that I have any advantages over you today, in fact, maybe nepotism can only bring me disadvantages, you know, in order to avoid suspicion or something, maybe I’m the loser today.”

Although her words were obviously polite, Nancy and the others breathed a sigh of relief after smiling: Today's introduction meeting is actually an auction of big dreams. If the network has the first-mover advantage, NBC and CBS may not have much advantage in the competition, and I can only make a trip in vain.

"But, to be honest," Nancy no longer sticks to this sensitive topic now that she has received a guarantee that is not a guarantee from Virginia. Executive Mike Hopkins, "Before "Empire" was released, you really didn't expect it to perform so well, did you? Honestly, m, didn't you think about it at all? Otherwise, you should use " American Idol was the lead."

"From next week, it will be played after "American Idol." Hopkins did not deny Nancy's joke. He looked around the decoration of this conference room and generously praised the owner of the office , "It's true that Fox got lucky. We didn't expect this TV series to have such a result at all-if it doesn't move by next week, it may cause a very funny phenomenon, that is "Empire" The ratings are higher than "American Idol", and the so-called leading role will be driven by the follow-up episodes..."

"Boo!" The executives at the scene booed jokingly, and some even shouted, "Then let "American Idol" get out of the schedule, and the episode is the lead of the reality show! ——haha, this It's so much fun, the episode leads to a reality show!"

Although drama series are the key projects of major TV stations, the ones with really high ratings are often reality shows, news shows or talk shows, especially ace reality shows like "American Idol", which have always been given to others. It would be a great spectacle if the episodes of the series were used as the lead to guide the viewers. Hopkins just grinned triumphantly amid the boos, but did not answer, while Nancy gave him a **** unceremoniously—they were both members of the TV Drama Association and were very familiar with each other. "Just wait and see, if you can win a TV series today, then we won't have to hang around in this business."

"yep."

"Well said, Nancy, you can't give Fox to anybody."

"Let Fox eat shit."

The jokes in twos and threes immediately responded, and Hopkins couldn't pretend anymore. He seemed to have just been shot by an arrow, and shouted, "! Can't you be gentle! Just let me Let's enjoy it—can't we enjoy it a little longer before your follow-up drama comes out and the ratings of "Empire" drop?"

The conference room was filled with laughter again. Nancy, Virginia and the others were all laughing while avoiding each other's eyes-of course, the major TV stations have prepared for general genre dramas , although each has its own strengths, they must achieve all-round development, so the development in this area cannot be said to follow each other, but for a phenomenal drama series like "Hip-Hop Empire", it would be foolish not to follow suit, and This is also the following advantage in a perfectly competitive market. For competing TV stations such as NBC, the cost of developing the same type of TV series is much smaller.

You must know that "Hip-Hop Empire" has far exceeded the popularity of ordinary TV dramas. No one dares to say how much the ratings will soar in the future. And once the songs it promotes in the drama are released as singles The number of downloads on version s is not inferior to that of hit singles, and billbroad is also on the list. It is completely from the popularity of TV dramas to reality, which also greatly enhances its attractiveness to many big names in music—this has attracted a lot of big names Willing to guest star in the series, the jay-z gang, who originally planned to guest star in person, are temporarily out of the list. The cameo roles of major black music stars have already filled the list of each episode, even the ruffian Eminem Are interested in appearing in the show.

And many singers also feel that it is not a bad idea to create a similar drama series when they are guest stars. Even if they can’t get Jay-z’s conditions, it doesn’t matter. They just share the copyright of a few songs. The key is the TV series. The amount of exposure brought can quickly make newcomers popular, like Tiana in the TV series, she is the new female singer signed by Empire Entertainment in the drama, but in reality, it is Jay-Z's label that is to be promoted A newcomer, although she doesn't have many roles, but she doesn't know how bright her future is now. Her few appearances in the series have won her a super high search rate, and the new single she sang and danced in the series has also entered the s In the top ten, her acting skills are even more well-received. As soon as she debuted, she embarked on the road of singing and acting with Will Smith and Justin Timberlake. In comparison, the copyright of a few songs is really nothing. Nancy herself While negotiating this matter with Pitbull, there are still many big-name singers whose careers have fallen into a slump, and the prices they offer are unbelievably cheap. Come to Xianyu to turn over.

According to Nancy’s estimate, there will be three TV dramas of the same type conservatively in the next season, and the ratings of "Empire" will definitely be divided by then. Soaring high, finally reaching 100%, "Empire of Hip-Hop" is still on an upward curve, and it will definitely fluctuate and fall in the end. It will not truly stabilize its long-term ratings until it withstands the impact of competitors in the next season. , into a regular state of competition. That's why Hopkins said, let him immerse himself in the current scenery for a while-making a TV series is different from making a movie. A movie is over when it is finished, and its brilliant achievements will not fade away, but TV series is not the case. In terms of the operating mechanism of American TV dramas, no matter how good the show is, it will fade one day, so TV executives generally have a big heart, and they are not afraid of others pouring cold water on them. After all, whether it is Hopkins or Nancy , I have seen too many deaths of beautiful TV dramas, and they have cut down more former ratings champions than anyone else.

"However, to be honest, even if you follow the trend, it is really not easy to find a combination similar to "Hip-Hop Empire"." NBC's Stewart Goodfarb shook his head, "This is my favorite Appreciate-maybe I should say admire-what I admire most about Cesare, if you do research on "Empire", it really puts all the points that attract the most viewers. Together, no more, no less, the combination is so exquisite, it is really difficult for you to find another more concise combination to fight against it, in terms of ratings, you always have to give up a point."

"Actually, the quality of this TV series can only be said to be in the middle and upper reaches." Nancy didn't mean to hide, she knew that most executives would come to a similar conclusion as her, "If you want to ask me, it If anything, all I can say is that this show reveals the starvation of black audiences - that's why it got the ratings, rich black people, it's a very important Ratings digging point, at least I think so."

"So, what shall we do next? The grievances of the NBA giants?" Hopkins' question caused bursts of laughter, and many people shook their heads, "Yes, everyone realizes that this is a point, but now that rap has been occupied, you will find that it is really difficult to dig out—not every genre is easy to shoot.”

In this almost entirely white office, the Big Five—or the Big Four—is like the Big Six in the film industry. They are the absolute protagonists. Nancy, Hopkins, Goode The chatting and laughing of Fab and Virginia can hardly tolerate outsiders interrupting. In recent years, it has become increasingly marginalized, and the audience has become younger. CW, whose audience has become increasingly rare, is about to be officially kicked out of the five major channels. Its executive Mark Podowitz is not much interested in talking and laughing: today's introduction meeting is almost just the stage of the four major channels. CW wants to grab the upcoming series of Big Dream TV, which is almost a dream. Their production budget is not enough. It is high, and the ratings base is weak. It can’t compare with the upstarts of the Internet in terms of money, and the conditions are not as good as the four major stations. It’s almost just to join in the fun. Even if you hear the judgment of Nancy and other authorities, it’s not very useful——TV station Its weakness cannot be reversed by one or two dramas at all. A TV series suitable for the four major channels may not last even one season on CW.

Just as the discussion in the conference room was in full swing, with a series of light footsteps, the door of the conference room was pushed open again. Jennifer Jefferson walked into the meeting room side by side with a smile, and of course there were several Dameng staff members accompanying her. There was a moment of silence in the room—these youngest executives, who were over 45 years old, felt intimidated by the young couple, not only because of their pretty faces, but also because of their The halo accumulated by multiple works beside him—the absolute protagonist was once Jennifer Jefferson, but now in this conference room, people pay more attention to Cesare Vigeri, just like Like meeting him for the first time, many people carefully pondered his expressions, clothes, and his personality: Of course, he has always been a very kind young man, quite lovable, but to be honest, he I must have my own likes and dislikes, how can I win his favor and get the TV series that Dameng is about to produce...

"I'm very glad to see so many people attending today's introduction." Surprisingly, the first speech—and it is customary to bring out the deputy of the main person in charge—was none other than Jennifer. Jefferson, she explained without air, with a wide smile. "I believe everyone is here because of one thing, and that is the awesome result of "Empire" produced by Cheesa-let's start by applauding him."

Although this is somewhat against the rules, few people will cheer for the results of competitors, but seeing Jennifer's sweet smile, people still gave warm applause and whistles, of course Fox's Huo Pukins did his best. ——Obviously, this was Jennifer's own initiative, because after accepting everyone's kindness, Cesare gave her a somewhat annoyed look, and Jennifer responded with a wink and a few chuckles, which aroused another The audience roared with laughter.

"And then, I have to say that today's intro is a bit special - after Empire, Big Dream's TV division has proven itself, and we plan to expand production to five this year All the new dramas will be launched in the fall—” Jennifer said with a smile, “In this case, we don’t have much time left, and the lead time of seven months is not long for the production company, so, Big Dream No intention of having a bidding war for every project, as we all know that such wars tend to be protracted, and, let’s say with arrogance, after Empire, the networks must have been interested in our projects—”

The benefits of having a well-known beauty as the host have emerged. Although Jennifer is completely boasting, no one will refute her words, and many people even nod in approval: even if Cesare only has one masterpiece , but with Jennifer, a miracle maker, on the sidelines, people's confidence in him just increased. Jennifer's appearance seemed to remind everyone that she had been creating miracles, and the husband she chose also He is not someone who is waiting for nothing. To him, a miracle should not be a rare product once in a lifetime. After all, he is the man who stands beside the miracle girl.

"So, in order to save everyone's time, and to prevent the price from rising to a high point that TV stations find unprofitable, we decided to adopt a bidding auction." Jennifer said with a smile, "Schedule, lead, single episode The price and the number of renewed episodes will be converted into a score, and we will also score the advantages of the TV station itself. After adding these scores, the TV station with the highest total score will have the contract for the new episode. Of course, the script of the first episode We have already written it and registered the copyright, as long as the contract is signed, we can immediately set up the crew and start preparing for the filming."

She directly skipped the part of the pilot episode, which completely disrupted the general development process of American TV dramas - generally speaking, the producer of American TV dramas develops the outline and the first episode script, and the TV station bids to buy the pilot episode first. Viewing rights, this part of the fee is quite cheap, the general price is hundreds of thousands of dollars, the real expensive contract will not start to negotiate until the pilot episode passes the TV station, and the contract for the first season is usually not that expensive , At this time, the TV station has completely grasped the initiative, and even when it is broadcast for the first time, it may only sign a contract to book a few episodes or half a season, like this, completely assigning the initiative to itself and letting the production company choose If Jennifer hadn’t announced the regulations of the TV station, it might even have attracted ridicule and scolding from the executives on the spot: there is no pilot episode, what are we? Are you being taken advantage of?

However, now that "Hip-Hop Empire" is around, no one has raised any objections to Dameng's obviously arrogant approach—Nancy scanned around and didn't even see any dissatisfaction on anyone's face, which is also true. She sighed with regret: if someone withdraws from the competition because of this, her chances of winning the bid will be even greater.

As for herself, of course she has no objection to Dameng's actions at all. Yes, Dameng is arrogant, but so what? They just have the confidence and arrogance, as long as anyone makes "Empire of Hip Hop", even if it is ten times more arrogant than it is now, there will be countless people laughing and sycophanting, and Nancy will be one of them-don't look at her mercilessly cutting the drama , but when the series became popular, she was not unimpressed by the producers. Especially now that the competition is becoming increasingly fierce and the production and broadcasting are gradually separated, it is not unprecedented for a TV series to be broadcast on a TV station. Are you afraid that you will cut red dramas? If you don't renew the subscription, at worst I'll sell it to someone else.

——So, compared to the ratings of "Empire of Hip-Hop", the entry conditions offered by Dameng are not harsh at all. And Nancy is full of affection for Jennifer's explanation: the bidding and schedule competition will indeed push the pressure on the TV station to the highest level, especially after "Empire of Hip-Hop" was abandoned by various TV stations one after another, and then became a big hit Now, every family is trying their best to win the series, and in the end it is very likely that they will win the new drama at a small profit or even a loss price. In this way, if the ratings of the new drama do not explode, even if the ratings are already excellent, It is also very likely that it will be cut for one season. Obviously, Big Dream TV does not want to make quick money, they still want to be a brand, so they are also avoiding direct price competition, but proposed a hidden bid competition model, which also makes She has a little more confidence and expectation for the new dramas in these concepts.

"If there is no objection, please sign the bidding contract." Jennifer quickly finished introducing some details, and said with a smile, "Pay attention to the penalty for breach of contract—of course, the result of breach of contract is to be listed by Dameng Lie." If you are blacklisted, you will never have the possibility of business cooperation in the future, so please be cautious when bidding."

"Do you have any ideas in these new plays, Jennifer?" someone asked abruptly.

"No." Without hesitation, Jennifer shook her head and said, "At present, my energy is mainly on movies. I often lose contact with the outside world when filming movies, so I am not suitable to be a producer of drama series. Currently Several new dramas are created and followed up by Cesare just like "Empire of Hip-Hop."

"Okay, we understand." There was a buzz of discussion in the venue, but the speed of people signing the bidding contract was not slow - it was just bidding, and no one would give up their qualifications.

After the contracts were collected, Jennifer sat aside, really posing as a student, while Cesare stood up and took over the leadership of the meeting.

"The success of "Empire" was really unexpected, and I can assure everyone that before getting its ratings report, even I didn't know that the African-American community would be so crazy about TV shows of color," he said. There is always that lovely smile on his face, "And this also allows us to see the hunger of the market. I think the development of new TV dramas with black protagonists is imminent-especially relatively wealthy black protagonists. , which can resonate more with the audience, what I want to introduce to you is the middle class-or rich-class black family comedy that Dameng is going to do. It focuses on the cultural conflict of wealthy black elites entering the wasp class , self-identity and the continuation of ethnic culture..."

"*." Cursing secretly in her heart, Nancy glanced at Virginia somewhat jealously—she had already listened to Cesare's explanation with all her attention, making it hard to be sure whether she had already I got the news, maybe not, maybe there is——she at least accurately said that she has won the selection mode of Dameng. In this mode, the chances of abc are similar to those of cbs and nbc. "Anyway, she really gave birth to a good son—one can tell from his analysis that "Empire of Hip-Hop" was indeed made by himself... This kid really has something in his stomach!"

For her, only one sentence from Cesare is needed, and the temperament, style and even the possible ratings of the whole series have been spread out like a long scroll-of course he .Damn it's very promising, and Nancy is already thinking about how much CBS should pay to take it down...