Traffic Star Development Program

Chapter 30 Web Series Going Global

Sister Liu replied: Understood, I'll coordinate with Fang Qing tomorrow.

This matter has been pushed forward.

The first resource clause in the contract annex for Dilireba is valid until January next year. It's early November now, so there are still two months left. If the filing goes smoothly, filming can start before the end of the year. The timeframe is tight, but it's enough.

He updated the "Diamond Lover" section in his memo with a line: "Reporting for this week, with a target start date in December, and confirmation of the fulfillment of the Dilireba resource contract terms."

It was completely dark outside the window in Qianhu City. The streetlights downstairs cast long shadows of the sycamore trees. Most of the leaves had fallen, leaving only a few bare branches draped in the lamplight.

Zeng Hao turned on the desk lamp and picked up the last document of the day.

It was Yang Shanshan's weekly status report sent by Xu Wen. It was an A4 sheet of paper. Xu Wen's handwriting was neat and he wrote in a fixed format: Notice completion status, emotional state, and abnormal records.

Five notices were completed this week, all within the contract limit, and none were cancelled.

In the emotional state section, Xu Wen wrote: "Overall stable, cooperation level has improved compared to last week, and there are no obvious negative signs."

The exception log column is blank.

Zeng Hao finished reading the paper and paused for two seconds on the line about emotional state.

In last week's weekly report, Xu Wen described his emotional state as passive and his cooperation level as declining.

This week saw a stable and rebounding trend.

The effect was maintained, but only for a limited time. This stabilization was temporary and essentially nothing was resolved. Yang Shanshan's pent-up emotions were still there; they were just temporarily suppressed.

Zeng Hao decided to remain unchanged in his stance.

It's still about squeezing the most resources out of people.

In his case, there is no such thing as being treated differently just because someone's status has increased.

That makes him, a reborn person, seem incredibly pathetic.

Zeng Hao put the weekly report into a folder, stood up, took his coat off the back of the chair, and prepared to leave.

My phone vibrated at that moment. It was a message from Sister Liu: "President Zeng, the box office for 'Back to 20' has been updated on Maoyan today, reaching 2.13 million yuan."

Zeng Hao looked at the number, put his phone in his pocket, pushed open the door and walked out.

The motion-sensor lights in the hallway flickered on and off in response to him.

2.13 million.

According to his estimate, the final price will be between 2.3 million and 2.5 million. It's still in the process of being paid out, so there's no need to worry about it.

He walked to the stairwell, then suddenly remembered something. He stopped, took out his phone, and sent a message to Sister Liu: "Have Xu Wen come over tomorrow. I have something to tell you."

Then put your phone away and continue walking.

It's time to start working on things in Korea.

"Go Princess Go" has garnered over 200 million views on iQiyi, and while its popularity is still waning, the main benefits have already been exhausted. If this IP isn't utilized further, it would be a waste to simply leave it sitting there.

They licensed the copyright to Korea for adaptation, letting them provide the funding and personnel while they collected the licensing fees. Each series took half a month to film, and they filmed several in a row, making a fortune. They also expanded the IP's reach and squeezed out the last bit of profit.

This matter is not complicated, but to get it moving, someone needs to contact the Korean side first.

This is something I need to tell Xu Wen tomorrow.

The lights in the hallway went out one by one behind him, and the cold wind from the parking lot sneaked in through the crack in the door, making him pull his collar in.

Zeng Hao buttoned up his coat and went outside.

At 10 a.m. the next day, Xu Wen appeared at the office door on time.

Zeng Hao didn't offer her a seat and said directly, "Go and contact the Korean rights to 'Go Princess Go.' Find a Korean production company that has cooperative channels in China. It doesn't have to be a big company, just a medium-sized one. As long as they can make idol dramas and have a broadcasting platform to connect with, that's enough."

Xu Wen took notes in his notebook, "What is the scope of authorization?"

"Adaptation rights, broadcasting rights in Korea, excluding island nations and Southeast Asia, those two are separate," Zeng Hao said. "They provide the money and personnel, we collect licensing fees, we don't participate in production, we don't send supervisors, it's their business how it turns out, but the script adaptation has to go through me first, and the core character settings cannot be changed."

How is the licensing fee determined?

"Let's get a feel for things first," Zeng Hao said. "When you make contact, don't quote a price right away. Let them express their interest first, and then I'll decide whether to accept the offer or not. If we accept, we can discuss the specific figures later."

Xu Wen noted down these points. "Regarding the channels, I know a middleman who manages Korean artists. I dealt with him before when I was handling Lu Han's recording. I can ask him first."

Zeng Hao thought for a moment, "Chen Mo?"

"right."

"Okay," Zeng Hao said. "Let him make the connection, but you handle the negotiations yourself. Don't let the middleman get involved in the core terms. Give Chen Mo a referral commission separately. Don't make the amount too high, just enough to show your sincerity."

Xu Wen nodded. "Are there any time constraints?"

"Give me a preliminary indication this month," Zeng Hao said. "We'll talk if we can, but we won't force it if we can't reach an agreement. The popularity of 'Go Princess Go' is still there, but the longer it drags on, the narrower the window of opportunity will become."

"Understood," Xu Wen closed the notebook. "Anything else?"

"Today is the third day since Xue Zhijian and Xu Jiaying responded," Zeng Hao said. "If they haven't contacted Sister Liu today, go and follow up. Don't rush them, just ask if they've finished reading the contract and if there are any problems."

Xu Wen agreed and went out.

Xue Zhijian's reply arrived at 11:30 a.m.

Instead of sending a message, I called Sister Liu directly and said that I had read the contract and there were no problems, and asked when I could come over to sign it.

Sister Liu relayed this to Zeng Hao, who said to come at 2 PM.

Xue Zhijian appeared at the front desk at 2:00 PM sharp. This time, he had combed his hair and changed into a dark gray sweater, which was a bit more formal than last time, but he still walked with that casual gait. He greeted the front desk upon entering, and his tone was no different from when he first came.

The signing procedures were completed in the conference room.

Sister Liu printed out two copies of the contract, went through them clause by clause, and Xue Zhijian raised no objections. He turned to the last page, picked up a pen, and signed it.

Sister Liu stamped the document, pushed the copy forward, and said, "Teacher Xue, welcome to the team."

Xue Zhijian folded the contract, put it in his bag, and stood up. "Is President Zeng here today?"

"Mr. Zeng is here," Sister Liu said. "I'll pass on any message you need."

Xue Zhijian thought for a moment, "Then please tell him that I can play my seven complete arrangements for him anytime, he can just set a time."

Sister Liu wrote down his words and saw him out.

Xu Jiaying replied half a day later than Xue Zhijian.

At 4 p.m., she had her lawyer send her a list of proposed revisions, which included four points: the maximum penalty for breach of contract, the duration of the recording copyright, the minimum guarantee of participation in variety shows, and the priority clause for contract renewal upon expiration.

Sister Liu printed out the list and delivered it to Zeng Hao's desk.

Zeng Hao read through all four opinions from beginning to end.

The first clause, the maximum penalty for breach of contract, was being discussed. The other party wanted it reduced from the eight-figure sum stated in the contract, arguing that it was based on the industry average. Zeng Hao wrote two words next to it: "No change."

The second clause stipulated a five-year copyright usage period, after which a new agreement would be required. Zeng Hao thought for a moment and wrote on the side: "Accepted, changed to five years, to be renewed at market price after five years."

The third clause guarantees a minimum frequency of variety show participation; the other party wants to specify no fewer than two confirmed variety show opportunities per year. Zeng Hao wrote next to him: Accepted. Additional terms: specific program names not specified, resource level comparable to Hunan TV or Zhejiang TV.

Article 4: Renewal Priority Right. The other party wishes to have the priority right to renew the contract under the same conditions upon its expiration. Zeng Hao wrote next to it: Accepted.

Of the four opinions, two remained unchanged, and two were accepted. There were concessions, but they were made in insignificant areas.

He pushed the list to the side of the table and sent a message to Sister Liu: Reply to the opposing lawyer according to the annotations, send it out today, and ask Xu Jiaying to come and sign it tomorrow morning.

Sister Liu replied: Okay.

Xu Jiaying arrived at 9:30 a.m. the next day, half an hour earlier than the agreed time.

The signing process was the same as Xue Zhijian's. Sister Liu went through each clause one by one, and Xu Jiaying carefully reviewed the documents, stopping in three places to confirm the wording before signing.

After signing the contract, she put it in the folder, looked up, and asked, "Sister Liu, Mr. Zeng mentioned the 'I Am a Singer' program before. Is it mentioned in the contract appendix?"