Chương 681: Chapter 681: Small Conditions
New York, Manhattan Club, Charles met Rupert Murdoch.
"Charles, out with it. There's no need to keep wasting time," Rupert Murdoch was utterly exhausted.
NBC started reporting on the day Rupert Murdoch faced the UK Parliament. Wendy Deng's slap of a radical at the hearing was supposed to be a PR move for News Corp. But NBC and other American networks analyzed it from the victim's perspective.
The despicable actions of News of the World had caused too much damage, and the radicals deserved more sympathy than the Murdoch family. Even the heroic image of Wendy Deng defending her husband was twisted into her being an accomplice to an ugly demon.
"Mr. Murdoch, I don't quite understand what you mean!" Charles said calmly.
Shaking his head, Rupert Murdoch replied, "News Corp's stock has already fallen significantly; it's time to stop the negative publicity!"
Internal News Corp shareholders had put immense pressure on Rupert Murdoch, some even claiming the Murdoch family was no longer fit to lead the company.
Charles nodded, "It's true that News Corp's stock has fallen a lot and it probably needs funds to repurchase shares?"
"How exactly does Capet want to cooperate?" Rupert Murdoch asked directly.
"Capet wants to recover the rights to X-Men and Fantastic Four from Marvel, as well as Daredevil," Charles said slowly.
"That's not possible. Daredevil might return to Marvel after expiration, but not the other two," Rupert Murdoch was firm.
Charles pressed his hands down, continuing, "I'm not done yet. News Corp also owns 34% of DirecTV's shares, right..."
Rupert Murdoch smacked the table excitedly: "That's even more impossible. If you want The Wall Street Journal, that can be sold!"
"What would I do with The Wall Street Journal?" Charles raised an eyebrow, knowing that News Corp's acquisition of Dow Jones was already a proven money sink. Charles, who owned Twitter, had no use for the newspaper.
"Do you really think newspaper and book sales are still significant? It's all about moving with the times. You won't agree to this, you won't agree to that, but you think News Corp can land smoothly?" Charles glared.
"News Corp's UK newspaper division is a toxic asset. Do you want News International to drag down the American business too? The Wall Street Journal, the New York Post - these can easily be affected. You don't want Fox being dragged down too, do you?"
News Corp's reputation was in the gutter. Fox TV and 20th Century Fox, along with DirecTV, were valuable assets. To protect them, the best measure was to separate them from the newspaper business - that means splitting News Corp.
Charles never actually wanted DirecTV shares, he only mentioned it to provoke Rupert Murdoch;
Seeing him get so agitated made Charles feel assured.
"Fantastic Four can return to you, but not the mutants series. 20th Century Fox already has comprehensive plans for them," Rupert Murdoch wouldn't relinquish the X-Men series as it was one of Fox's rare blockbusters.
"Netflix needs to extend its licensing agreement with 20th Century Fox until 2021, with prices adjusted slightly upward," Charles continued.
"Aren't we both shareholders of Hulu?" Rupert Murdoch asked, puzzled.
"Hulu is a joint venture with Disney. Netflix is solely owned by Capet," Charles waved his hand, "It's a small request, just a five-year extension of licensing rights."
"The current agreement runs until 2016, and who knows what prices will be like in five years. Extending for another five years is a bit greedy, isn't it?" Rupert Murdoch frowned.
"A small price to pay. It's just a streaming license, and 20th Century Fox gains additional income, what's there to lose?"
Charles took a sip of his drink.
Rupert Murdoch looked at Charles, "But you have to make NBC stop its negative reports on News Corp immediately!"
"No problem. Once we sign the contract tomorrow, the news that evening will shift to Capet going public, the NBA lockout, and the release of Transformers 3," Charles grinned; finance, sports, and entertainment news were certainly not lacking.
Rupert Murdoch nodded and then asked, "Do you also think it's time to split News Corp?"
With the main issue resolved, they chatted about other matters.
"What other options are there? Publishing and newspaper businesses are in decline, and 70% of News Corp's revenue comes from the USA. Internationally, without European Sky interests, how much do books and newspapers bring in?
Fox TV is News Corp's ace, and 20th Century Fox provides content. The value of The Wall Street Journal is evident. With News Corp's name tarnished, it can't drag down Fox TV and 20th Century Fox's valuable assets. As long as it's under News Corp, people will remember the News of the World scandal!"
Charles smiled, "Even if you don't want to split News Corp, the shareholders won't agree!"
Rupert Murdoch smiled bitterly, "The shareholders think the same. They're worried that these valuable American assets will be tainted by the current reputation of News Corp!"
Splitting News Corp would mean Murdoch family losing its long-held control. Placing assets like Fox TV, 20th Century Fox, and Sky TV into a new company, which wouldn't be named News Corp, would mean Rupert Murdoch's position wouldn't be like before!
"Alright, let's have our people expedite the transition tomorrow. This needs to be done," said Rupert Murdoch, standing up,
"Goodbye, Charles!"
Charles smiled, standing up to see Rupert Murdoch off. He wasn't too concerned about the return of Daredevil. But Fantastic Four had significant fame, with major villains like Doctor Doom and Galactus capable of facing the Avengers.
The rights to Daredevil, Fantastic Four, and the streaming rights to 20th Century Fox's films were sufficient!
*****
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