In fact, technically speaking, the tablet PC was not a particularly new product.
It was neither a computer nor a smartphone, yet it was more expensive than both.
At times like these, marketing was essential, and after gathering the journalists, he boldly made a request.
“Please write favorably about it.”
With the combined life experiences of two lifetimes, Lee Hyun-woo’s brazenness seemed to work quite well.
“The large screen is excellent for viewing photos and videos, and it is convenient for document work, which will be highly useful for journalists as well.”
As Lee Hyun-woo’s voice grew stronger, the journalists’ eyes also began to sparkle.
‘To bring us here and promote it like this, the product must be really good, right?’
‘Products from Jungle always exceed expectations. This tablet PC will probably be no different.’
‘Indeed, we have given more weight to negative expert reviews in the past. We felt a bit sorry about that.’
The journalists had their reasons. They thought the chances of the smartphone being a big hit were low.
But seeing it succeed so spectacularly left them feeling a bit awkward.
Fortunately, it seemed Lee Hyun-woo was looking to make up for it with this tablet PC. Of course, only if they wrote well about it.
No one originally intended to make an enemy of Jungle.
So, after Lee Hyun-woo’s press conference ended, a flood of articles was released.
“Jungle, which opened a new world with smartphones, now with a tablet PC?”
“Jungle’s extraordinary tablet PC, Blossom Note.”
By the way, the name of the tablet PC being released this time was Blossom Note.
The name implied that it emphasized work and learning functions more than a smartphone.
Perhaps because of this, right after the release of Blossom Note, Han Se-jin made a report.
“It’s quite popular among college students and office workers.”
Lee Hyun-woo nodded as if it was only natural.
‘Now that we’ve expanded the ecosystem with the tablet PC following the smartphone, isn’t it worth investing in our company?’
He asked inwardly to the unspecified number of investors.
It meant to keep the adjustment period short and raise the stock price.
Though he didn’t expect an answer, the tablet PC was also successful following the smartphone, so domestic and foreign securities firms simultaneously raised Jungle’s target price.
The current stock price, approaching 500,000 won, was positively evaluated to reach 550,000 won by the end of the year.
With approximately 180 million issued shares, achieving the target would mean a market capitalization of 100 trillion won.
However, there was one condition: the economy had to continue expanding as it was now.
‘Securities firms always leave a loophole like this.’
Lee Hyun-woo chuckled, but the economy could improve or deteriorate at any time.
Without letting his guard down, he decided to keep his balance and move forward.
In the meantime, a unique economic crisis that occurred only in our country, the card crisis, arrived.
The overall stock market was shocked, and Jungle also fell again but soon recovered and reached the target price of 550,000 won.
It was the end of the year, and as the saying goes, there is an opportunity after a crisis; numerous reports were filled with positive prospects for Jungle next year.
‘Alright. With this momentum, I need to promote the new smartphone.’
In his previous life, the second smartphones from Pineapple and Guseong Electronics sold much better than the first ones.
So, shouldn’t we expect even more from the second Blossom released by Jungle?
Because of this, Lee Hyun-woo even visited the manufacturing site to fuel his determination.
It was the Pyeongtaek line of One Group, which was entrusted with production.
“Chairman Lee, how can we be so honored to have you visit us in person?”
“Honored? I just came to take a look.”
“By the way, congratulations on surpassing 5 million units, albeit belatedly.”
“It’s because hyungnim supported us well from behind. Without One Group, it would never have been possible.”
“Chairman Lee always makes people feel great. As they say, praise makes even a whale dance, and I find myself dancing all the time.”
Next year would mark ten years since he met Kim Yoon-soo.
However, his appearance hadn’t changed much from when they first met.
They say people with an aged appearance don’t age as they get older, and Kim Yoon-soo was like that now.
Rather, as Lee Hyun-woo aged, the age gap in their faces seemed to have narrowed.
Lee Hyun-woo smiled warmly at Kim Yoon-soo’s face and then returned to the topic of smartphones.
“Any other difficulties?”
“None. It’s just that it always feels like a dream, and I’m careful not to wake up.”
“Hyungnim, really…”
“I’m serious. I don’t know what goal Chairman Lee has, but to keep our status as Jungle’s partner, we must not make mistakes. So, we always conduct thorough quality inspections.”
“Please don’t say that. I always trust and rely on the products from One Group.”
“Really? I wondered if you came here in person because we might not have met the standards last time.”
“How could that be? The products came out on time without any issues, and I’m always grateful. I just came to the site to ask for your continued support next time.”
“Hahaha… The workers here will be so happy to see you.”
Indeed, when they arrived at the manufacturing line, many workers cheered for Lee Hyun-woo.
It was because, with the success of Blossom, One Group’s production line had become a dream job for anyone.
After leaving the site, Kim Yoon-soo even made this remark.
“Our employee stock ownership has skyrocketed.”
“How much has it risen?”
“Oh, Chairman Lee, you don’t care about other company stocks? It’s doubled compared to the beginning of the year, doubled!”
“Wow…”
But this was only the beginning.
The sales of Blossom 2 were sure to be several times higher than the first one.
From next year, the smartphone ecosystem would begin in the US and Europe, just like in our country.
This was why they didn’t reduce the production of the existing Blossom.
‘Next time I come, won’t they give me a big welcome?’
A while later, rumors circulated that Pineapple’s a-Phone launch was imminent.
Although it wasn’t confirmed by Steven Job’s mouth, Lee Hyun-woo half-believed the rumor.
‘It’s about time.’
So, would there be a three-way battle among Guseong Electronics, Pineapple, and Jungle in the smartphone market?
He didn’t know, but Lee Hyun-woo only dreamed of hitting a market capitalization of 150 trillion won and retiring before that.
Already, he had included Ku Man-hoe, the head of talent development, and two secretariat chiefs in tea time, creating an atmosphere where the meeting could run without him by encouraging their remarks.
Whether it was because of his efforts or because they had been watching Lee Hyun-woo closely and improving their capabilities, they freely expressed their creative ideas.
“Personally, I think the boundaries of the media market will disappear. Aren’t we already generating a lot of revenue through download VOD?”
“Because of that, video rental stores have completely become a declining industry. In a few years, it will be hard to find them in the neighborhood.”
“So, will people rely only on download VOD at that time? No matter what, watching videos on smartphones isn’t as good as on TV. The same goes for PCs.”
“That’s exactly it. I think a time will come when TVs will be combined with VOD, including real-time terrestrial broadcasts.”
Surprisingly, when the concept of IPTV came out of their mouths, Lee Hyun-woo listened with an interested expression.
Not only Lee Hyun-woo but also Jang Yoo-cheol of Jungle Content, who owned channels for games and music, held his breath for a moment.
In fact, the three of them kept glancing at Jang Yoo-cheol while continuing to suggest ideas.
“How about we become a content distribution business ourselves since we already have channels?”
“While we’re at it, how about entering the telecommunications market? You mentioned that the boundaries of the media market are breaking down, but isn’t it more accurate to say the boundary between broadcasting and telecommunications?”
“Of course. And there’s nothing we can’t do. GB Group will also make smartphones soon. But don’t they have a telecommunications company in their affiliates?”
At this point, Jang Yoo-cheol finally joined in.
“So, are you suggesting we provide services like landline phones, high-speed internet, and broadcasting?”
“Plus mobile communications.”
“Ah, yes, of course. Wired and wireless communications, high-speed internet, and broadcasting.”
At this point, Jang Yoo-cheol swallowed hard as he looked at Lee Hyun-woo.
Since it was such a massive business scale, he needed Lee Hyun-woo’s decision.
Lee Hyun-woo pretended not to know and didn’t join in their conversation.
Originally, tea time wasn’t a place to make decisions.
‘If you want to, go ahead and try it.’
As the topic expanded infinitely, the heads of each subsidiary could freely pick up the ideas.
Eventually, after tea time ended, Jang Yoo-cheol had to have a one-on-one with Lee Hyun-woo.
“I desire it.”
“Then do it.”
“What? Really?”
“Are you confident you’ll succeed?”
“Of course. I’m confident.”
“Good, go ahead.”
Lee Hyun-woo nodded with a smile.
Although internet broadcasting had emerged on portals, the media was monopolized by major broadcasters, and the wired and wireless telecommunications companies were also being reorganized.
‘We will be the first to break down the boundaries and start integrated media.’
In addition, a video-sharing website they had been preparing for was about to launch.
In simple terms, a Korean version of We Tube was on the horizon.
“We’ll have to hire a lot of new employees next year to handle everything.”
“Yes, I’ll discuss that with Head Ku.”
Jang Yoo-cheol’s voice was already excited.
But he couldn’t yet imagine what kind of results Jungle’s real-time broadcasting and VOD services would create.
Only Lee Hyun-woo, who had experienced the future, could envision it.
‘If we do well, a giant media company combining Netflix and We Tube will be born.’
The more popular smartphones became, the bigger it would grow.
As soon as the new year began, Jang Yoo-cheol entered negotiations with the target company for acquisition.
The company was Shinsegae Communications, which was originally assigned to KS Group but was returned due to issues of collusion between politics and business, and was now operated by another company in a consortium form.
Currently, the place was in a state of questioning its viability due to the oversaturation of mobile carriers, with its future prospects leaning more toward negative than positive.
To compete, continuous investment in network infrastructure was necessary, but as the parent company was in a consortium form, it couldn’t be properly managed.
Because of this, Jang Yoo-cheol quickly knocked on the door.
Of course, how could they refuse when a wealthy company like Jungle wanted to acquire them?
Soon, a big headline appeared on the portal site.
“Jungle takes over mobile communications!”
Jang Yoo-cheol was satisfied with the smile of satisfaction seeing Jungle Content take the first step towards becoming a 21st-century media company.
