Chapter 463: Going Online

Being able to launch a product like Bing Dwen Dwen would be enough for the Dongling High-Tech Investment Department to recoup its investment with interest, not to mention the many other giant panda derivative products; the only difference was whether they earned more or less.

In his previous life, the hottest-selling items weren't dolls like Bing Dwen Dwen. Japan was the one that played the most tricks in this regard. Kumamon brought in over 6.3 billion for Japan, and the Minions from *Despicable Me* sold over 10 billion in merchandise. As for Doraemon, Pikachu, Naruto, and the others, there was no need to mention them—they harvested "leeks" crop after crop with various figures and dolls.

However, as long as the giant panda's reputation was established, its money-making ability would be no less than those created, intangible products.

Giant panda brand licensing in cooperation with major companies, games, souvenirs, clothing, snacks, toys, stationery, and other giant panda derivative products could all sell like crazy. As the most well-known creature in the world, whoever mastered the development rights for giant panda derivative products mastered a gold mine.

Relying on this gold mine in the future, just the licensing fees alone, plus selling various toys, figures, clothing, etc., would probably earn far more than the average listed company!

In his previous life, why did the giant panda's popularity suddenly become so high? It didn't appear out of thin air. Regardless of how people who truly came into contact with giant pandas felt about them, the "giant panda economy" was a real existence.

Zoos in Japan and South Korea made a fortune by introducing giant pandas. Why did South Korea want to keep the giant pandas so badly? Because since introducing giant pandas, the South Korean zoo went from an annual loss to an annual revenue exceeding 1.3 billion RMB!

Launching panda photo albums and merchandise that sold out, even the videos they produced and put on YouTube had hundreds of thousands in monthly revenue. Additionally, there was Samsung sponsorship and co-branded products launched with Samsung's products!

Even the staff at the South Korean zoo, as long as they were related to the pandas, would appear on TV variety shows incessantly. They published book after book, and the copyright fees were simply too much to earn.

Admittedly, those staff members were indeed sincere in taking care of the giant pandas, but it was an undeniable fact that they achieved financial freedom by relying on the giant pandas. In this world, there always had to be some benefits for people to have greater motivation to do something; this was human nature.

Precisely because pandas brought huge traffic, topics, and revenue, people related to these benefits in different regions spared no effort to start promoting them.

The reason Li Dongling wanted to obtain the authorization for giant panda derivative products from the National Wildlife Association was that he needed the National Wildlife Association to endorse the Dongling High-Tech Investment Department!

With this endorsement, the Dongling High-Tech Investment Department could play these tricks. Otherwise, if anyone could develop various derivative products based on giant pandas, how could the Dongling High-Tech Investment Department play? Only businesses with unique scarcity could make money; otherwise, who would care about things that were everywhere?

With the endorsement of the National Wildlife Association, then in the future, the copyrights for derivative products developed based on real giant pandas domestically, and even globally, would belong to the Dongling High-Tech Investment Department.

In the future, whoever dared to use these brands and images without Dongling High-Tech's permission could just wait to receive a lawyer's letter.

Although Dongling High-Tech wouldn't go so far as to rely on suing over images for profit like some image copyright companies, sometimes, when it was time to sue, they absolutely could not be soft-hearted. Even fattening them up and harvesting them in a wave was not out of the question!

Fu Lang didn't know how Li Dongling's ideas would play out; there was no precedent for this domestically yet, and the global derivative product market was far from as hot as it would be in later generations.

He wasn't clear about how big the giant panda derivative product market was, but he had heard the annual licensing fees Li Dongling mentioned for the Hanxi Wildlife Association and the National Wildlife Association.

Funding for various units in the country was tight now, let alone "clear-water yamen" (impoverished government offices) like the Wildlife Association. With this income equivalent to a small treasury, the Hanxi Wildlife Association should be able to live a better life every year from now on.

"This... I cannot guarantee, but the Hanxi Wildlife Association will definitely do its utmost to help the Dongling High-Tech Investment Department obtain the development rights for domestic giant panda derivative products!"

Fu Lang said. Although he said he couldn't guarantee it, looking at his expression, he clearly had quite a bit of certainty.

In reality, the situation of the National Wildlife Association was about the same as the Hanxi Wildlife Association. Although they were affiliated under the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, etc., real estate was not yet the national pillar industry it would be in his previous life, and the power of housing and construction units had not yet reached its peak; it was even just getting started.

With Dongling High-Tech's licensing fees, Fu Lang knew that the National Wildlife Association certainly wouldn't oppose anything. In this day and age, which unit was willing to go against funding? If the leader dared to refuse, the people below would truly stab them in the back.

After reaching an agreement with Fu Lang and He Haize, Li Dongling's purpose for this trip was basically achieved. He didn't need to worry about the future, avoiding the situation where a large sum of money was invested over these years, only to have it go down the drain and have the fruits of his labor snatched by others.

"Mr. Li!"

Seeing that Li Dongling was about to leave, Qian Zhicheng, who had been waiting on the side for a long time, couldn't help but stand up.

Qian Zhicheng didn't understand things like panda adoption, naming rights, panda publicity, or derivative product development; that wasn't his specialty. But academically, he knew.

"There is also the matter of protecting the Hanxi giant panda habitat. This was already decided before, when the giant panda research center was built in Pingyang. The Pingyang Giant Xiong Mao Research Center is responsible for the protection of the giant panda habitat!"

Qian Zhicheng said. He said the Pingyang Giant Xiong Mao Research Center was responsible for habitat protection, but where would the research institute get so much funding? It still needed the Pingyang Municipal Government and the big financier, Dongling High-Tech, to bear the costs.

"How much funding is needed for the giant panda habitat every year?" Li Dongling asked.

Hearing that there seemed to be a chance, Qian Zhicheng hurriedly said, "It mainly requires species surveys of the giant panda habitat, tracking and scientific research on giant pandas, protecting endangered species, and additionally preventing poaching, fires, planting vegetation, etc. The annual funding needed is... 2 million, no, 1.2 million yuan!"

When saying this number, Qian Zhicheng was almost gritting his teeth. In reality, he had no bottom in his heart. This sum of money was not a small amount in the current day; it was enough for an average small company to pay the salaries of nearly a hundred employees for a year.

But this funding was already the minimum funding for protecting the habitat. They needed to set up observation points, purchase scientific research equipment, and hire scientific research and patrol personnel. With scientific research plus personnel costs, the budget was quite tight.

Looking at Qian Zhicheng for a few moments, he had already spent the big money, so it was impossible to be stingy with the small money. Not protecting the giant panda habitat was like draining a pond to catch fish; the number of wild pandas they could get in the future would become fewer and fewer.

But Li Dongling still made a pact with Qian Zhicheng, "The Dongling High-Tech Investment Department can share the funding with the Municipal Forestry Bureau, but the same rule applies: the species and vegetation in the habitat belong to the Pingyang Giant Xiong Mao Research Center and cannot be borrowed or transferred to external parties at will!"

"I know!"

Qian Zhicheng pushed the glasses on the bridge of his nose and nodded to indicate he understood Li Dongling's meaning. He wouldn't do anything disloyal, like handing over the animals and plants in the habitat to some external research institute or zoo at will. Otherwise, wouldn't the big financier be paying for nothing?

In the Li family's courtyard, it was already covered in red lanterns. After returning from the Pingyang Giant Xiong Mao Research Center, aside from visiting Yao Zhengru's home in the municipal government family quarters as he did every year, Li Dongling basically declined other unimportant social engagements and rested at the Li family home for a few days.

On the 30th, the Li family posted the couplets early, and the entire village where the Li family lived basically did the same.

Although Li Dongling didn't deliberately do anything for the village where the Li family lived, this village had now become the village with the best economic conditions in the surrounding area.

The Pingyang Municipal Government and the Shangguan Development Zone focused on supporting the village where the Li family lived. The roads in the entire village were the first to be paved with cement, even extending all the way to the fields. Additionally, irrigation ditches and wells covered all the agricultural land of the entire village.

Moreover, for the crops and fruits grown, the TV shopping department under Focus Media basically helped sell them all. That is to say, as long as one was willing to put in the effort, there was basically no need to worry about not having a harvest.

Those who didn't want to farm could also go to work in the Dongling High-Tech Electronic Industrial Park, Feiyan Technology, Torch Group, or the kitchens, warehouses, logistics, and security departments of Feiyan Technology, and their income was also guaranteed.

"Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." If he just gave money to the people in the village every year, no matter how much he gave, he probably wouldn't be able to fill their selfish desires, and he didn't know how they would comment on the Li family behind his back. Solving a livelihood for them, however, would make them always remember the Li family's kindness. Now, in the Li family's village, the original old houses were beginning to be replaced by new ones one by one.

Although Li Zhenlin had no intention of being an official in the village, he was still elected to the Village Committee by the Li family village, and Wang Xiulan even became the Deputy Director of Women's Affairs. When there were inspections by higher-level leaders in the village or when important matters needed to be decided, they had to invite the old couple, Li Zhenlin and Wang Xiulan, to preside over them.

During this period, there were firecrackers basically every day, but today, from early in the morning, the sound of firecrackers had not stopped.

The group of people at the Li family, after posting the couplets and cleaning the courtyard, began to prepare the food for the New Year's Eve dinner. Even though materials were not as abundant as they would be ten years later, the New Year's Eve dinner was still the meal that every family valued the most.

On this matter, the old couple Li Zhenlin and Wang Xiulan had always done it themselves, and this year they prepared even more. Li Dongling also let the bodyguards responsible for the Li family's security—Yang Zhi Gao, Gong Qing, and two other bodyguards on shift—bring their wives over, so the Li family was exceptionally noisy today.

Just as Li Dongling finished helping to clean a fish, a call from Yanjing came through.

Li Dongling knew what this call was about. After connecting, he asked directly, "How is the preparation for Tianya Net? It won't be delayed tonight, will it?!" ===== CHAPTER 464 =====