NABC Chapter 68 Name Collision
Chapter 68 Name Collision
"Not at all." Mu Yan waved his hand. "What Zhu Xiaohu really values is the potential in Geng Zhi. The 'Jiaotong University Matchmaker' project itself is too small a scale to catch his eye."
Li Li opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she just nodded and swallowed her words.
"However, we don't care whether Zhu Xiaohu invests or not. You should go to Shanghai again as soon as possible and meet with Geng Zhi in person to find out his background and sound him out," Mu Yan said.
"Okay, Mr. Mu." Li Li then asked, "So... what's your target price for acquiring 'Jiaotong University Matchmaker' this time?"
Mu Yan finally put down the Montblanc fountain pen he had been playing with for a long time, his fingers unconsciously tapping lightly on the table.
The office was quiet for a moment.
"Geng Zhi, along with his small team and that nascent business..." Mu Yan slowly began, "at most, he's worth 1.5 million. But our starting point for negotiation is set at 800,000."
Before Li Li could speak, he added, "Remember, during negotiations, target his sore spots—small team, easily replicable business model, and imminent market competition. Use both carrots and sticks."
"Understood! I'll go back and prepare for my business trip." Li Li turned around briskly and headed for the door.
"Wait a minute." Mu Yan suddenly called out to her again, remembering another important matter, "How's the collaboration with Jiangsu TV on that program going?"
"President Mu, the basic cooperation framework has been finalized, and the three platforms will receive the same treatment. Regarding product placement, the host will explicitly mention it in the program, such as 'Thank you to Baihe.com for recommending guest XX.' In addition, our brand logo will also be displayed on stage," Li Li reported smoothly.
"What about the guests' individual IDs on the show? Will they be shown?" Mu Yan pressed for details.
"Yes, at the end of each episode, the guest's unique number will be displayed on the screen. Interested viewers can log on to our Baihe website, enter the number to view more detailed information about the guest, and complete the traffic redirection from television to our platform."
Mu Yan nodded, indicating his satisfaction with the design.
He picked up the pen again, twirled it between his fingers, and asked casually, "Of the twelve female guests we carefully selected and sent over, how many did the production team ultimately keep?"
"Four made it through, and the other eight were all eliminated." Li Li's voice lowered slightly.
Mu Yan frowned immediately: "Oh? A family of four? Then it seems this new show will feature twelve female guests each episode?"
"President Mu," Li Li pursed her lips, lowering her voice further, "the information I've gathered is... that there are twenty-four female guests per episode."
"What?!" Mu Yan's face was filled with disbelief. "Our three platforms only recommended twelve people in total? What about the remaining twelve? Did the production team select them themselves through open auditions?"
"TrueLove.com... like us, also has four people." Li Li paused, almost squeezing out the second half of the sentence through gritted teeth, "The remaining sixteen seats... are all guests from Century Family Network."
pat!
The pen in Mu Yan's hand slipped from his fingertips and fell onto the table.
"On what grounds?!" Mu Yan's voice suddenly rose. "On what grounds do they get so much? What methods did Gong Haiyan, that 'Little Dragon Girl,' use? What kind of shady dealings are going on here?!"
The official explanation from the program team was that Century Family Network offered the most sponsorship fee.
"Fuck*!"
Mu Yan's chest heaved slightly.
He forced himself to calm down, took a deep breath, and then, feeling relieved, casually asked, "Has the name of that TV program been decided? What's it called?"
"It's just been decided, and Jiangsu TV has already started the pre-show promotions." Li Li's face showed a playful expression. "The program's name is also 'If You Are the One'."
"Huh?" Mu Yan was taken aback, then chuckled. "'If You Are the One'? The exact same name as that offline event Geng Zhi organized? They're both about finding a partner, and they both have this name... Haha, that's interesting."
His eyes darted around, then suddenly an idea struck him. His gaze lit up, and he immediately said to Li Li, "Go to Shanghai right away! Start the negotiations with Geng Zhi, and be quick!"
"Yes, Mr. Mu, I'll be right there!"
After Li Li left in a hurry, Mu Yan leaned back alone in the wide chair.
He tapped his fingertips slowly on the armrest, repeatedly pondering the fact that the "Jiaotong University Matchmaker" event and the upcoming TV version of "If You Are the One" on Jiangsu Satellite TV had the same name. The more he thought about it, the deeper the smile on his lips became.
After a long while, he slowly picked up the public opinion briefing on user complaints on the table and casually flipped through it.
……
At the same time, in Nanjing, at the Jiangsu Provincial TV station building.
The open-plan office area outside the director's office of the variety channel is busy yet orderly.
As usual, Lin Zixia flipped through a stack of newspapers from the day and recent collaborations, marking information that might be useful for the program.
As her gaze swept across the "Youth Innovation" section of the Jiangsu Daily, a striking headline suddenly caught her eye:
"If You Are the One" Sweeps Shanghai Universities: A Dating Experiment in the Ivory Tower
Her gaze was instantly fixed on him, and her fingers gripping the pen tightened slightly.
Lin Zixia quickly scanned the article, and keywords jumped into her eyes: "Initiated by students of Shanghai Jiao Tong University", "Covered by many universities including Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Fudan University, Tongji University, Hualien University, and Shanghai University", "Four sessions every week, all sold out", "First experience of love".
The more she read, the stronger her ominous premonition became. She quickly turned and searched for the information mentioned in the report on her computer.
The more information she found on news websites, online forums, Renren.com, and Jiaotong University's Drinking Water Source BBS in Shanghai, the more panicked she became.
As the external liaison producer and publicity director for the "If You Are the One" program, one of her core responsibilities is media monitoring and connecting with external resources.
She knew all too well what this meant—"If You Are the One" was a brand new variety show that their production team had been preparing for a long time and had high hopes for. The name was only officially announced yesterday, and everything was still undecided.
But now, in the university circle of Shanghai, there is already a team called "Jiaotong University Matchmaker" who has made a name for themselves with the name "If You Are the One" and even made quite a splash!
If, after a TV program airs, viewers and the media discover a name "similar" to the original, or even question whether the program's concept plagiarized a student project... the resulting public opinion storm and reputational risks would be unimaginable.
Thinking of this, Lin Zixia could no longer sit still.
She immediately picked up the internal phone, but hesitated for a moment, then put the phone down and went directly to the workstation of production manager Li Shaobin with the newspaper in hand.
"Director Li, take a look at this." Lin Zixia handed the newspaper to Li Shaobin. "It's reported in the Jiangsu Daily that there's a campus dating event in Shanghai with the exact same name and theme as our program, and it's already making a splash."
Li Shaobin, around 40 years old, is the production manager of the "If You Are the One" program. He is responsible for budget, contracts, and risk assessment, and plays the role of the program's "general manager".
He was initially dismissive, but after quickly glancing at the newspaper, his brows immediately furrowed into a deep frown.
After a moment's hesitation, he stood up and said, "Zixia, come with me to Wang Zhi's office."