"Daming Telecommunications Company has officially opened the telephone service. Even if you are thousands of miles apart, you can make real-time calls and hear the voices of your loved ones in your hometown."
"Sell newspapers, sell newspapers!"
"Kuang Xiong, the inventor of the telegraph, was awarded the title of earl, which is hereditary!"
With the beginning of a new day, newsboys kept shouting in the streets and alleys of the capital, and soon a large number of people emerged from the streets and alleys to buy up all the newspapers in the hands of the newsboys.
"Does anyone know what this phone is?"
"Yes, what's the difference with this telegram?"
In the tea house, the old and young men from Beijing who were having morning tea were reading newspapers and were full of curiosity about this call.
"This telephone is actually a very popular thing recently. It is similar to the telegraph, and it is a tool that can realize communication over a long distance."
"But the difference with the telegraph is that it can be directly like a face-to-face conversation, and you can hear the voice, instead of a telegram that needs to be translated before it can be read."
"I heard that the main departments of the palace and the court, as well as the homes of the cabinet ministers and the six ministers of the court, have installed this telephone. Now, as long as the wealthy families in the capital have status and status, they are applying for the installation of this telephone."
"Having this phone number is very convenient. For example, if you want to ask whether Zhang San is going out for a drink, you can call Zhang San's home directly and ask about Zhang San's situation."
"For another example, if you have business in Tianjin, you can call Tianjin to ask about the situation in Tianjin. There is no need for people to make a hard trip."
"Isn't this similar to a telegram?"
"It's almost the same, but the difference is that you can hear the other party's voice directly, just like a gramophone."
"You can hear the other party's voice directly, which is pretty good!"
"Isn't that right? The emperor also praised this invention very much, so he directly rewarded the inventor Kuang Xiong with an iron rice bowl of an earl."
"How much does it cost to install this phone?"
"I think it's quite convenient. If there is a phone in this house, it will be very useful."
"Come on, do you know how expensive this phone is now?"
"There was a rich man named Li in the courtyard of our community who went to install a phone. Do you know the result? He was frightened right away."
"I heard that the installation fee and line fee alone cost more than 100 taels of silver. In addition, buying a phone costs more than ten taels of silver. In addition, whether the phone is used or not, you still need to pay several taels of silver every month."
"After all these miscellaneous calculations, more than 200 taels of silver are gone. The key is that we will have to pay several taels of silver every month in the future. This is a fixed expense. It is required after installing the phone. You must pay it regardless of whether you use it or not.
For ordinary families, this expense is too great, and they are simply not willing to spend money to install a telephone.
Of course, when this phone first came out, it was not for ordinary people, but for the rich, and the most indispensable thing in the capital was the rich.
Here at Daming Telecommunications Company, along with the emperor of Ming Dynasty and various departments in the DPRK and the Central Government, all the princes in the DPRK and the Central Government have used telephones. The elders in the DPRK and the Central Government also feel the convenience of telephones. Naturally, they also want to install them in their homes.
One piece...
In addition, commercial trade in the Beijing-Tianjin region of the Ming Dynasty is extremely prosperous, and the demand for various trade transactions is also very hot. There is also a huge demand for telephones.
All of a sudden, there was a long queue at the entire Daming Telecommunications Company, all of whom came to handle the installation of telephone services.
Although it is very expensive to install and use telephones now, it still cannot be explained by the large number of wealthy people in Beijing.
Don’t you just want money?
Men in the capital are least in need of money. What they want is face and fashion.
The emperor and the main ministers of the DPRK are all using phones. It would be shameful if you didn't have a phone in your home. It would make you look weak, and you would be embarrassed when you go out to chat with your friends.
Not to mention it's just a matter of more than 200 taels of silver. Even if it costs 2,000 taels of silver, there are still a lot of people in the capital who can afford it.
"My master is Li Hanlin of Hanlin Academy. Can you give me priority to install it?"
"Everyone is on a first-come, first-served basis. Whoever pays for registration first will be installed first. It's not just your master who's waiting in line here. Even the family of the Sixth Minister is still waiting in line."
After hearing what the other party said, the staff of the telecommunications company also said that they were not surprised.
When it comes to talking about high-ranking officials and small-ranking officials, even if you throw a brick in this capital, you will still get a third-grade official. A small Hanlin official is just a ball.
After hearing this, the other party immediately had nothing to say. He could only register honestly, pay the money, and then go home and wait.
The entire business hall of the telecommunications company was very busy. There were so many people coming to register and install phones that the cashier also had hand cramps.
It costs more than 200 taels of silver to install a telephone for one household. In this capital, there are hundreds of thousands of households. Calculating, this amount of money alone can be received in tens of millions of taels.
For wealthy people, a telephone must be installed in their home, and there may not only be one phone, but multiple phones. In addition, the place where you work must have a phone, and your family's property must also have a phone installed.
In short, there are many places that need telephones. There are so many yamen, factories, commercial banks, etc. in Beijing. There are too many telephones that need to be installed. Too many.
At this moment, Kuang Xiong, the general manager of the telecommunications company, was also very busy. There were many people who came to Kuang Xiong directly. They just wanted to give Kuang Xiong priority to install the phone or something.
But this is not the main thing, just deal with it how you want.
What really worries Kuang Xiong is the expansion of Daming Telecommunications Company in Daming.
According to Liu Jin's request, the telecommunications companies are required to basically set up telephone lines covering most of the provinces in the Ming Dynasty within half a year, and open telephone services in major large and medium-sized cities.
At the same time, in order to popularize and facilitate people's information exchanges, telecommunications companies are also required to establish telephone halls in major public areas established in major cities in Ming Dynasty to facilitate the use of telephones by those who do not have money to make calls but still need to use telephones.
Liu Jin's requirements have always been extremely high, and this is undoubtedly a huge test for Kuang Xiong...
This phone has just started to be launched on the market, and Liu Jin is already thinking about the comprehensive layout. Naturally, the people working below are so troubled that they broke their legs.
"Manager, we are seriously short of manpower!"
"If you don't have enough, then recruit people. If you raise the salary, I don't believe that we can't recruit people. We should also go to major universities and recruit more technical personnel. Mr. Liu has very high requirements for us. We must keep pace with the times.
We will innovate technology as quickly as possible and continue to promote our telephone services."
"yes!"
"Manager, there is a call from the Tianjin branch. Their business there is very busy and there is a serious shortage of manpower. They are requesting the headquarters to send more manpower."
"Tell them to recruit people themselves. Now there is a shortage of people everywhere in the headquarters."
"Manager, our wires have been set up in Songhu. The Songhu line has been officially opened. The establishment of the Songhu branch will be put on the agenda soon."
"I understand. Send Xiao Chen to Songhu to establish the Songhu branch."
"Manager, is this okay? Xiao Chen just graduated and entered the commercial bank at the end of last year. He is still very young."
"It has to be done even if it doesn't work. There is a serious shortage of manpower now. I don't need this person who understands technology and graduated from a prestigious school. Who should I use? Just send him to Songhu to set up Songhu Commercial Bank."
"yes!"
Kuang Xiong never stopped, he was too busy.
The business of the telephone company is very hot. The key is to seize the current advantages and opportunities and take the lead in laying basic lines across the country. Then use the basic lines as the backbone to continuously cover a wider area and eventually cover the entire Ming Dynasty.
.
Once this layout is completed, it will be difficult for others to come in and get a share of the pie, because everyone is already accustomed to using Daming Telecom, and their services are better and wider.
Others who just want to enter this field are far behind, and in the end they can firmly control the entire telecommunications business in their own hands.
This is a super big cake, as long as it is a basic service, it has huge benefits, and it can also bring abundant cash flow continuously.
"Hey, I'm so exhausted. I've been busy all day and I don't even have time to drink."
Kuang Xiong lay down on his chair to rest for a while. Management was much more difficult and tiring than doing research. Thinking about it, it was more comfortable to concentrate on research in the laboratory.
But this is also a new challenge. There are many people in the factories and commercial banks in Daming who have transitioned from technology to management. As long as they study hard, they can also adapt quickly.
What's more, the income now is much higher than that in school. The salary alone is several thousand taels a year. After counting the dividends and rewards at the end of the year, it is enough to earn tens of thousands taels a year.
There is no problem at all. This kind of income is enough to live a prosperous life in a place like Beijing.
"It will take half a year to cover the main provinces and major cities in Ming Dynasty."
"In the second half of the year, we will have to cover major identities outside the customs. Next year we will open overseas stores. We will also open phone booths in major public areas in major cities. This is quite busy."
Kuang Xiong gets overwhelmed when he thinks about what he has to do next. There are too many things to do and he is really busy at work.
But there is no way. Now is the period of rapid development of the telephone service. Only by expanding as quickly as possible and continuously improving the service can the telephone truly enter thousands of households.