The Japanese telecommunications company 【NTC】 had already completed its due diligence in Korea and returned to their home country.
The person in charge of the due diligence was Ito Hiro.
After finishing his business trip and returning to the company, he double-checked the title of the document he would report to his superiors.
《The Necessity of High-Speed Internet》
He reviewed the content but questioned whether the cases in Korea were objectively recorded.
‘In Korea, numerous dot-com companies have emerged due to high-speed internet. But looking at the content our team has written, it’s hard to convey that entirely.’
This was the inherent difficulty of due diligence.
The written report could never fully capture the reality on the ground.
So, he raised his voice a little.
“We absolutely need to introduce ADSL. Otherwise, we will be overtaken by emerging companies in Korea’s related industries.”
Ito added specific details to persuade his superiors.
However, the response he received was dry.
“You emphasized it, but high-speed internet seems like a tiring business. It’s affected by the location and weather conditions, and the communication speed is unstable, which will lead to numerous consumer complaints about quality.”
“Investment in facilities and extensive areas is also an issue. How many years do you think it will take to recoup the investment costs?”
“In Japan, it seems premature.”
“Director, please reconsider….”
“Yes, I will reconsider, so please wait a bit.”
Ito requested a favor from a somewhat friendly director, but he too shook his head and responded lukewarmly.
He had no choice but to go outside and talk to his team members who had participated in the due diligence.
“It seems difficult.”
“Really? But the report lists dozens of reasons why it’s necessary?”
“I expected this. They look at one negative thing over a hundred positive ones.”
“It’s probably for another reason. They think we’ll end up doing all the work and benefiting others.”
“It’s predictable. They fixate on details and only point out the difficult parts, right?”
His subordinates seemed to have predicted this before Ito did.
They anticipated that this ADSL project might be challenging.
And they were right.
The higher-ups fixated on details, saw the negatives, and thought they’d be making others better off.
‘Sigh….’
At times like this, the person who came to mind was Son Jung-yi.
He was Ito’s closest friend, and no matter how successful he was, he would never refuse a dinner request from Ito.
The next day, such an occasion was arranged for lunch, and Son Jung-yi, after observing Ito’s expression for a while, smiled and said,
“They said no?”
“Are you sure about that?”
“They said it’s impossible right now?”
“Yes. They said it’s impossible right now. And they didn’t even mention when they might do it.”
“As expected.”
“You expected this?”
“Your company, or rather most companies in Japan, are like that. They’re overly cautious.”
“Looking at that, your company is completely different. 【Software Bank】’s key to success is to just execute! Isn’t that right?”
“There’s more.”
“They have a strong obsession with goals.”
“You know it well. So, quit there and come work for our company.”
“No thanks. I don’t want to work under a friend.”
“Then how about taking the position of the Korean branch manager? How about that?”
“Korean branch manager… when did that come about?”
“I’m planning to create one later.”
“Really?”
“Yes, saying this might hurt your pride as a Japanese, but right now, we need to learn from Korea. Since last year, their information and communication sector has caught up rapidly, and now they’ve practically overtaken us.”
Son Jung-yi’s words were undeniable, and Ito didn’t feel any loss of pride.
“You’re right. The Korea I visited this time was truly astonishing. New dot-com companies were springing up every day.”
“Isn’t the leap of one of those companies amazing?”
“Indeed. Truly amazing.”
Ito nodded in agreement, clearly recognizing that Son Jung-yi was referring to 【Jungle】.
“Perhaps that place seems to prioritize execution even more than your company. Their obsession with goals also seems superior.”
“Now you’re really hurting my pride.”
“By the way, what are you going to do? If things get delayed like this, it seems it will be difficult to achieve what you have in mind in Japan.”
“You mean the music business? Well, there’s no helping it. Instead, we’ll have to make do with the portal site and online shopping until an opportunity arises.”
Originally, they had only planned to collaborate with 【Jungle】 on the portal site.
Then they got greedy for online shopping, and later, seeing the birth and success of 【Jungle Music】, they decided to integrate it in Japan too.
Son Jung-yi believed that it was best to launch everything at once.
So, when rumors started that 【NTC】 would implement high-speed internet, he had planned to inquire about the two additional businesses with Lee Hyun-woo immediately.
But now, those plans were shattered.
‘If I had known this would happen, should I not have delayed?’
Originally, March was the scheduled date.
However, they postponed it to April, so Lee Hyun-woo might now have doubts about the current business.
Son Jung-yi was someone who believed that trust was the most important thing in business.
If there were even a hint of doubt, how would Lee Hyun-woo, who trusted him and sent his development team to Japan, feel?
After parting with Ito, he immediately contacted him.
“Would you be available sometime next week?”
(Of course.)
“Then I will enter Korea around Tuesday. I would like to meet you.”
(Yes, I would like that too.)
Fortunately, there was no trace of doubt in Lee Hyun-woo’s voice.
After hanging up the phone, Son Jung-yi had a subtle expression.
‘Starting an information and communication business in Japan is not easy.’
No matter how advanced the country and how large the middle class, Japan was bound by various regulations.
Most importantly, the vested interests or successful individuals at the top of each company were unwilling to change their outdated thinking.
Thus, they were increasingly falling behind Korea in terms of dynamism, and it was clear that one day Korea’s information and communication industry would dominate Japan.
So, he made a decision.
‘If that’s where the trend is, I have no choice but to ride it.’
Meanwhile, unlike Japan, the United States sent a due diligence team to Korea from the Federal Communications Commission.
They reached the same conclusion as Japan and sent a detailed report to each telecommunications company.
In other words, they set the outlook for high-speed internet as ‘very promising’ and urged American telecommunications companies to quickly jump into the business.
The detailed report, which recorded market research, future prospects, and the impact on foundational industries, led each telecommunications company to finally decide on facility investments in high-speed internet, and this news reached Korea through foreign media.
Of course, this news was brought to 【Jungle】’s development team responsible for technical operations at 【Alta Vista】.
Upon learning the content, Son Jung-yi felt more confident when meeting Lee Hyun-woo.
“Several telecommunications companies in the U.S. have decided to jump into the high-speed internet business.”
“Really?”
“Yes, I heard about it yesterday too.”
This was the second time Son Jung-yi saw Lee Hyun-woo.
He seemed more straightforward this time.
“It’s a pity. Our Japan should learn to make such bold decisions.”
“I heard about the due diligence in Japan. It didn’t go well?”
“Yes, I heard it’s indefinitely postponed.”
“I see.”
“The reason is quite absurd. They’re worried that Japanese consumers might make as many quality complaints as Korean consumers, so they want to approach it more cautiously.”
“No matter how fast the speed is, there will never be users who are satisfied now or in the future. People always crave something better.”
“Ah, then how do you handle complaints?”
“Of course, we sincerely accept them. That’s what the customer service team is for. What I mean is, if you’re afraid of complaints and don’t enter the high-speed internet business, later on, you’ll hear complaints that your speed is slower than other countries.”
Son Jung-yi nodded.
He thought that if there were no channels to vent complaints, Japanese users who knew that their internet speed was slower than Korea’s would find some way to express it.
“Anyway, I will definitely launch the portal site in April, no matter what. I visited in person to promise you this.”
“Of course, you should. By the way, since we’re talking about it, what do you think about 【Software Bank】 entering the high-speed internet business?”
“Our company?”
“Yes, if you proceed, I would like to invest as well.”
Son Jung-yi’s eyes widened.
Invest? How much capital would be needed for such an infrastructure project?
“If it’s possible, it would be great. But the cost is always a problem.”
“Then have you heard about the process of Korea’s high-speed internet business?”
“Yes, the way I know involves using 【Korea Telecom】’s telephone lines and 【Korea Electric Power Corporation】’s towers and transmission lines.”
“There’s one more method, but it seems you haven’t confirmed it.”
“Really?”
“Yes, it involves using the cables of cable TV stations. It will be commercialized in a few days. The service is provided by a company called 【Samjin Computer】.”
“Ah….”
“As I mentioned earlier, complaints about speed can arise at any time. At that time, we need to find ways to improve and reduce complaints. But if we’re afraid of complaints and don’t start, Japan’s internet infrastructure industry won’t develop.”
“That’s true.”
“Fortunately, the third method is known to be the least costly. It’s about leasing the cable lines to provide the service.”
This was the difference between a state-owned company and a cable TV station.
The former lowers prices for consumers but charges high fees to businesses.
On the other hand, the latter is different.
Small cable TV stations, which are afraid of incurring losses, welcome anyone who pays to use their already invested facilities.
【Samjin Computer】 was able to save on initial costs this way.
Japan would probably be no different.
Perhaps because of this, Son Jung-yi said with a look that suggested he had found an answer.
“I need to look into this immediately.”
Perhaps it’s because the DNA of Koreans is fundamentally different, but even Son Jung-yi, who grew up as a Japanese, seemed to have absorbed the ‘ppalli-ppalli’ (fast-paced) mindset.
Inspired by Lee Hyun-woo, he first inquired about leasing communication lines from 【NTC】 after returning to Japan.
He proposed that if 【Software Bank】 invested in the facilities, they would start laying high-speed internet.
It was a just-in-case approach.
After all, to roll out high-speed internet nationwide, they would have to negotiate individually with cable companies in each region.
But 【NTC】 quoted an outrageous price.
‘There’s no choice but to go with cable.’
Next, he contacted cable TV stations.
The cost was less than half.
At this rate, it seemed worth taking the risk.
Moreover, didn’t 【Jungle】 say they would participate in the investment?
Having a reliable backup, he almost made up his mind and contacted Lee Hyun-woo, who immediately gave the green light.
(I’m all in.)
Son Jung-yi’s eyes sparkled with determination.
“Alright, let’s aim for a trial test within the first half of this year and commercialize it by year’s end.”
