Chapter 509: Master of Dream Creation

Listening to Koogle's words, a group of Yahoo executives broke out in a burst of discussion. If it hadn't been revealed, they wouldn't have thought that the big financier who invested in Yahoo, the newly established internet company, would be so fierce.

Looking at the revealed Himalaya news, Yahoo had a new understanding of their big financier's strength!

Yahoo is nearing listing, and Mo Mo Lizi, representing Sequoia Capital, has basically squatted at Yahoo during this period.

Looking at Himalaya on the news, he couldn't help but feel a bit stunned. In a trance, he couldn't help but recall the banquet held by Li Dongling when he first arrived in Silicon Valley a month ago, which once invited Mo Mo Lizi to invest in Himalaya.

But at that time, thinking about maintaining the reputation of Sequoia Capital, Mo Mo Lizi chose to wait and see.

With Mo Mo Lizi's current reputation, he certainly wouldn't be held accountable by Sequoia Capital for missing a single opportunity, but to say he didn't regret it even a little would be nonsense; this could have been another classic investment, but he had let it slip by.

The news on the television continued, but the subsequent reports left Yang Zhiyuan, Kugel, Mo Mo Lizi, and others quite astonished.

"According to computer industry statistics, since the launch of the Himalaya Radio website, demand for computer hardware, especially audio-related hardware, has increased.

Sales of components such as memory sticks, graphics cards, sound cards, and speakers from brands like Samsung, Toshiba, and Nvidia have risen by over 34% in New York, California, and other regions compared to last month, with some brand component sales even increasing by more than 78%. This is the first time in the internet era that software has had such an impact on hardware sales.

Some analysts believe that future internet software and large-scale games may indirectly influence the performance upgrades and sales of computer components!"

Watching the report on TV, the fact that Himalaya Radio could actually influence the sales of memory sticks, graphics cards, sound cards, and speakers left the Yahoo side somewhat dumbfounded.

Ever since the internet emerged in Silicon Valley, although there has been constant talk about how it would change the world, the reality is that the real world has not yet undergone earth-shaking changes due to the appearance of the internet.

But now, since the launch of Himalaya Radio, many computer users have been upgrading their hardware—especially graphics cards, sound cards, and speakers—so that the Himalaya software can run, bringing about a considerable portion of sales.

This is something that Netscape, Yahoo, eBay, and Amazon had all failed to do previously. The last company that could rely on software to influence the computer hardware industry was named Microsoft!

"For Yahoo, this might just be an opportunity!"

Looking at the Himalaya news reported on TV, Yang Zhiyuan's face wore a look of joy. Li Dongling's Zhixing Foundation is already Yang Zhiyuan's most important supporter on the Yahoo board of directors.

With Li Dongling there, Yahoo and Himalaya are natural allies; the stronger Himalaya Radio is, the more beneficial it actually is for Yahoo.

Hearing Yang Zhiyuan's words, Kugel and other Yahoo executives also showed a hint of excitement, "True, but it's just unclear whether Himalaya would accept Yahoo's investment or swap equity with Yahoo!"

Yahoo is in a critical period for its IPO; if they could swap equity with Himalaya, given Himalaya's current popularity, it would be of great benefit to Yahoo.

After Kugel finished speaking, the gazes of everyone, including Mo Mo Lizi, turned toward Yang Zhiyuan. Within Yahoo, Yang Zhiyuan has the closest relationship with Li Dongling, so naturally, it is most appropriate for him to bring this up.

"I will go to Himalaya and try to discuss this matter!" Yang Zhiyuan said after seeing the gazes of the crowd.

As for whether Li Dongling would agree to let Yahoo invest in Himalaya or swap equity with Yahoo, Yang Zhiyuan dared not guarantee it.

After all, as it stands now, Himalaya seems to be performing much more brilliantly than Yahoo, even if only temporarily. Even now, Yahoo hasn't managed to pull off a sensational event that has caused such a stir in America and even overseas, like Himalaya has.

The current Yahoo is not the Yahoo with a market value exceeding 120 billion dollars, so Yang Zhiyuan has no confidence in whether Himalaya would agree to a stock swap.

……

"ABC's affiliate station in California called, wanting to conduct an exclusive interview about Himalaya!"

Zhou Hualiang came to Li Dongling's office. As the news released by Himalaya Radio shook the entire Silicon Valley and American internet industry, media outlets naturally wanted to ride the wave of popularity to boost their ratings.

"Let them come!"

Li Dongling thought for a moment before saying to Zhou Hualiang. ABC television wants the heat, and Himalaya Radio also needs to strike while the iron is hot.

Internet companies now also need heat, and a lot of it. Internet companies like Netscape and Yahoo even spend money to advertise on television stations just to get media exposure. Since ABC has come to their doorstep this time, Himalaya certainly cannot miss out.

With media exposure comes heat, and with heat, they can attract more new users to join, the valuation will be higher, they can raise more dollars after going public, and harvest more leeks...

"How many open radio stations and major radio stations are currently willing to cooperate with Himalaya?" Li Dongling asked Zhou Hualiang.

Himalaya Radio seems to be infinitely glorious, but what truly allows Himalaya Radio to demonstrate its influence is its cooperation with offline radio stations.

The truth is that Himalaya Radio still has too few users. These one million registered internet users are somewhat inflated, and the truly active users are only a few hundred thousand.

It seems like a lot, but to truly make Himalaya Radio influential, they need at least ten million users, with daily active users reaching the million-level or higher; only then can they stand tall.

In the short term, Himalaya Radio still needs to cooperate with offline radio stations, letting those offline stations become Himalaya's distribution channels—that is, Himalaya Radio produces content, then selects high-quality content to hand over to offline stations for broadcast.

This is a bit like internet video platforms in the previous life, such as Netflix, Youku, and iQIYI, which produce TV series and then select premium ones to hand over to offline television stations for broadcast. Although the content is different, the model is not much different.

The way Himalaya produces programs is completely different from offline radio stations. It takes offline stations at least several months to produce a program, and the cost and time spent are high, as is the cost of trial and error.

But Himalaya lets podcasters produce their own programs, lowering the threshold. Although the quality of the programs varies due to different skill levels, it gives podcast creators more permission. Even if it's just luck, one might end up with podcasts like Joli Sports, The Logan Experience, Toni's Day, or Hainam, and the production costs are low.

"Currently, radio stations in nine states and over 340 open radio programs have reached cooperation agreements with Himalaya Radio. Over 100 radio stations have signed agreements agreeing to enter Himalaya Radio, putting their program content on Himalaya Radio for broadcast, and likewise, broadcasting Himalaya Radio's self-produced content.

But more radio stations are still on the sidelines, still hesitant about whether to sign an agreement with Himalaya Radio!"

"Especially the major radio stations; apart from the American Satellite Radio Corporation, the other major stations have not accepted Himalaya Radio's invitation to cooperate," Zhou Hualiang said.

Li Dongling nodded, but he wasn't surprised. People's fear of new things is always greater than their curiosity, especially regarding matters of absolute profession and income, where they are even more cautious. Of course, one cannot say this is wrong, but sometimes, it also leads to missing out on dividends!

Just like now, while many people are still hesitating, podcasters like Joli Kings, Logan, and Toni, who were the first to enter Himalaya Radio, are now reaping the rewards.

"We need to recruit more radio stations to enter the Himalaya platform. Those open radio stations, small and medium-sized stations, and even large radio stations will sooner or later enter Himalaya or other podcast platforms.

The internet era will reshape the media industry!" Li Dongling said.

"Tell Lu Kui and the technical department to launch the Himalaya comment section feature as soon as possible, and also start researching features like the community square!"

The comment feature is a major killer app in the internet era. Just like NetEase Cloud Music, every night at 12 o'clock, it turns into 'NetEase Depression Cloud,' where people listen to sad songs, look at sad music, recall sad days in the past, and then cry until their pillows are soaked...

But the comment section is indeed a characteristic of NetEase Cloud, increasing user stickiness and allowing countless fans who like the same type of music, the same singer, and the same song to gather together. This is also one of the important reasons why NetEase Cloud can hold on despite having so many fewer song copyrights than Tencent Music.

Himalaya Radio launching a comment feature actually serves the same purpose: it can increase its social attributes. Just like Flat Earth supporters can gather in the comment section of a Joli program to discuss and comment vigorously.

Once the community circle is built, it would be best if millions of Flat Earth believers from all over the world gathered there. When Flat Earth believers treat the Himalaya Radio community as their base camp, will there be any fear of a lack of heat then?

ABC's California television station arrived very quickly. After receiving the news that Himalaya agreed to an exclusive interview, they immediately pulled together an interview team and rushed over without stopping.

Gary Hansen, who led the team this time, curiously looked around the Himalaya Silicon Valley office. It was this office that, in just over a month, swept up over a million users. To be honest, as a media person, he was very astonished by this number.

"Li, back in the day, our television station also reported on the patent lawsuit between you and Microsoft!"