Chen Feng didn't know that fans from both sides were starting to fight again at the beginning, because he was busy looking for partners, professional managers, and building a brand company for Android phones.
The production process of Android mobile phones has been determined, and the most important one is of course the design of mobile phone chips. During the experimental stage of Android mobile phones, we commissioned the chip manufacturer Qualcomm and spent more than a month working on our own chip solution.
After getting the solution and code from Qualcomm, the Android company carries out its own integration and customization work. Sometimes it also needs to be customized for operators. Then it assembles the required hardware into a mobile phone.
This is how the previous experimental mobile phones came about.
As an electronic product, a mobile phone is actually similar to a computer. It mainly consists of two major components, software and hardware.
Not everyone can produce software, and it is also the most critical technology. It can bring great added value to an electronic product.
The added value of a mobile phone is its operating system. The iPhone is an iOS system, and the Android phone is an Android system. It is precisely because of the operating system that there are so-called smart phones.
The hardware is ready-made, and almost most hardware manufacturers can produce it, unless it involves some military industry or old secret recipes. Old secret recipes such as Coke and Pepsi.
Android Company is located in Silicon Valley, and Silicon Valley is known as the engine of the world and the leader in computers and the Internet. It is easy to find almost all the hardware accessories needed to assemble a smartphone here.
What's more, in fact, iPhone has already paved a way for them as a pioneer. Android phones only need to follow suit.
Of course, this involves some technical patent barriers. Chen Feng had already started laying out the layout before the iPhone was launched. He applied for many patents to prepare for the production and sales of Android phones. Of course,
There are too many patents involved in the production of a mobile phone, and most of them cannot be avoided. In the original time and space, a domestically produced smartphone cost US$400, and the total patent fees were US$120.
This situation was unavoidable at the beginning, and Chen Feng had previously registered many mobile phone-related patents, which could be regarded as saving himself a lot of money. At the same time, it also set up certain technical barriers for latecomers, including the iPhone.
When Android phones become more powerful in the future, a patent war will be inevitable.
Now everything has to wait for Android phones to develop and grow.
What Chen Feng is currently busy with is actually setting up his own mobile phone production line. He initially wanted to find an OEM, but unfortunately, smartphones have just begun to have this concept, and there is only one OEM, and they have the production list for the iPhone.
We are all a bit busy, let alone OEM for Android phones.
There is no other way. Chen Feng can only build his own production factory in the United States first. This is also an expedient measure. In order to reduce costs and save trouble in the future, he will definitely find an OEM for production.
Moreover, Chen Feng also plans to find someone to jointly establish a mobile phone foundry in China after he is finished working in the United States.
He can fully predict the sales surge after the launch of Android phones. The production lines in the United States will definitely not be able to meet the public's demand for Android phones.
And in terms of cost, it’s not cost-effective either.
In the long run, we will definitely have to rely on Tang State's huge manpower advantage to meet the needs of the global smartphone market.
For the time being, Chen Feng mainly targets the European and American markets, so he can only set up production lines in the United States.
In fact, it is not very appropriate to say that it is production. It is more accurate to say that it is assembly. Because all mobile phone hardware is purchased, the Android mobile phone production line does not produce these. It only gives customized mobile phone spare parts to those hardware manufacturers.
Production, and then after receiving the goods here, assembly begins.
Chen Feng left Los Angeles on the third day after Tina's new album was released, and then went to San Jose in Silicon Valley. After having a closed-door meeting with several Android company executives led by Andy Rubin,
Take Lared to negotiate with the heads of several investment companies.
In fact, after the Android company developed the Android phone, the news leaked out. Originally, Chen Feng and the Android company had no intention of keeping it secret.
So at the beginning, a lot of capital came to Andy Rubin, some came to poach people, some came to make angel investments, but Andy Rubin already had shares in Android Company, and Chen Feng’s capital investment
It's also very big. More importantly, Chen Feng gave him full respect and rights. The entire Android company is almost his voice.
He has also experienced several ups and downs in the capital and entrepreneurial markets, so naturally he rejected these capital solicitations.
In fact, Chen Feng has received several conveyed cooperation intentions, and Chen Feng did not refuse, saying that he would consider it.
After coming to Silicon Valley this time, Chen Feng went to visit several investment companies that had previously expressed cooperation intentions, that is, many capital managers active in Silicon Valley funds.
First of all, it is clear that neither Chen Feng nor Rubin is willing to accept investment from the Android company. Because this is the core of Android smartphones, just like the iPhone’s iOS system, it is impossible to accept investment from external capital unless it is a last resort.
intervening.
Secondly, Chen Feng mainly talked with them about cooperation with mobile phone brand companies. To mass-produce and sell Android phones, they definitely need a brand, just like the iPhone.
Android is just the name of the operating system of a mobile phone. When it comes to selling a mobile phone, it definitely needs a brand.
And in the future, Chen Feng and Rubin will also consider open source and licensing the Android system to cope with the competition of the iPhone. Of course, unlike the free license of the original time and space, Chen Feng and Andy will definitely charge licensing fees.
In the future, every Android phone will have to pay a certain system licensing fee from the Android company. As you can imagine, this is a profitable business with huge profits.
Of course, it is definitely impossible to release and authorize this right away. You have to make a profit first. The specific time for release will not be too late. If it is too late, there may be an alternative system. It cannot be too early or too early.
I wouldn’t have made any money long ago.
This is also the main reason why Chen Feng and Andy do not want outside capital to join Android now. With the intervention of outside capital, it will affect their ability to make money. Moreover, if multiple people come out to share money with them, no one is willing.
But Android phones must be produced and sold, and another company is needed. Besides, except that the boss Chen Feng is the same person, it has nothing to do with the Android company. The financial accounting is independent, and the ownership is also the same as the Android company.
It doesn't matter.
If Chen Feng wants to set up a mobile phone production line and officially introduce Android phones to the market, he needs a series of work. Not to mention that Andy Rubin is not good at this aspect, even if he is good at it, Chen Feng does not intend to let him join.
Therefore, it is necessary to find another partner.
It's not that he can't do it on his own, but it's really not necessary to do it by himself, and besides his foresight advantage in this industry, when it comes to business management and sales, he has some limitations.
Not to mention, he is a native of the Tang Dynasty. He built a factory in the United States to produce mobile phones and then sold them. There were many hurdles that he, a foreigner, could not easily pass.
This is also the main reason why Chen Feng is looking for one or more capital partners in Silicon Valley. They can help Chen Feng handle some things that he cannot handle.
After several days of meetings and negotiations, Chen Feng finally selected three capital companies as partners.
Chen Feng personally invested US$50 million, plus more than 30 mobile phone patents, accounting for 68% of the company's shares. The remaining three companies invested US$20 million and two US$15 million respectively, accounting for the remaining shares.
The reason why the cooperation agreement was reached so quickly is very simple. These three capital companies have already verified the "power" of Android phones. Even if they are slightly inferior to iPhones, the gap is not very big. More importantly, if they are produced and sold
When it comes out, the price is at most half of the iPhone, but the profit is not low at all.
In less than a year since the launch of the iPhone, Apple's stock price has more than doubled. The world is selling like crazy.
How could such a huge market prospect not make people jealous?
In fact, countless technology companies have been trying to develop smartphones similar to the iPhone in the past few months, but how can it be so easy?
The iPhone has a strong technical background from its development to its launch. Even so, it took them two or three years of research before it was successfully launched. Not to mention the huge knowledge system involved. It cannot be completed casually.
And Andy Rubin is just such a talented person who can independently complete the Android system. When Chen Feng found him, he had already been developing the Android system for a year or two. He is not only very good at software development, but also in hardware research.
, is also very capable, and with the help of several other software and hardware technologies, he successfully developed an Android phone.
Although it may not be impossible to develop it with other people and other teams, it will definitely require a lot of time and energy.
The last thing that capital can't wait for is time, especially when looking at the situation where the iPhone is the only one company.
Therefore, under the strength of Chen Feng, the three capital companies finally compromised and made the greatest concessions. Because they all knew that Chen Feng and Android Company were irreplaceable.
The content of the contract was drawn up by Chen Feng and Lared after many discussions. After analysis and confirmation by the legal teams of the three capital companies, it was quickly signed.
After that, the company named Shengtang Technology Co., Ltd. was quickly registered and established. Under Lared's suggestion, two offshore companies were established to entrust the shares of Shengtang Technology Co., Ltd. to one of them, and then to the other.
Cross-shareholding with this company.
In addition to tax avoidance, this can also eliminate policy review issues in some countries. There are other more complex operations, which are not used yet.
After Shengtang Technology was established, it immediately allocated funds to acquire an electronics factory in Fremont, and then immediately established a management team. The three capital companies made great efforts in this regard. Through headhunting companies, they quickly gathered a dozen people for preliminary management.
tier teams, and then begin large-scale recruitment.
However, professional managers have not yet been identified. Chen Feng, the chairman of Shengtang Technology, must have the personnel power in this area in his own hands.
In fact, Chen Feng interviewed everyone in the newly established management team of more than a dozen people, and it was only confirmed after they got their approval. In this regard, there was an agreement in the contract.
The three capital companies do not participate in the specific management of Shengtang Technology, but they have the right to supervise. If the three companies agree, they can convene a board of directors. Each of them has one vote. As the largest shareholder, Chen Feng has two votes and the chairman has one vote. And now
Chen Feng is the chairman, so he also has three votes.
If all three capital companies oppose Chen Feng on some major decisions, then the decision will be put on hold temporarily.
This aspect is actually very beneficial to Chen Feng, because as long as Chen Feng wins over one of the three of them, he will definitely be on the winning side. And as long as he does not step down from his position as chairman, he will already be in an undefeated position.
.
It is also because of the irreplaceability of Chen Feng and Android Company, and the fact that the current smartphone market is so enviable, that they even agreed to such harsh conditions.
Other capitals were simply ignored by Chen Feng because they were dissatisfied with such harsh conditions.
Of course, as long as everyone makes money, their capital will absolutely 100% support all decisions made by Chen Feng.
Fremont is not far from Silicon Valley. It is in the southeastern part of the San Francisco Bay Area. It is the fourth most populous city in the area and is a county seat. It is also close to Silicon Valley. It has trained a group of qualified technical workers in the early days, and they can get started very quickly.
, there is no need to carry out long-term training.
After recruiting almost 3,000 people, a customized production line was put in place. While employees were being given short-term training on a rotating basis, the production line was being installed and debugged at the same time.
Chen Feng basically stays in the factory every day, coordinating and directing all aspects, so he doesn't even have time to surf the Internet.
Therefore, I was completely unaware of Tina and Beyoncé’s affairs at first.
Until that day Miranda called him.
"Dear, don't forget, the day after tomorrow is the premiere of "Juno", you have to come over. It's best to come over tomorrow, and then we go to the premiere together."
In the past two days, Chen Feng was too busy, and even the time he spent on the phone with Miranda in the evening was shortened. Sometimes the conversation could only be ended in a hurry after a few minutes because of a call from his subordinate.
Before Chen Feng came here, he told Miranda about his investment in building a factory here. Miranda was very surprised by this at first, but later she understood it and of course she was very supportive.
Therefore, Chen Feng has been very busy these days, and she did not disturb Chen Feng or get into trouble with Chen Feng. After all, Chen Feng is busy with his own career. And he looks very high-end and high-tech.
"Okay, dear, I will go the day after tomorrow. However, I can't go back tomorrow. Because I have to interview several people to find a professional manager. This candidate is very important, and I want to confirm it as soon as possible."
Chen Feng didn't lie. Professional managers, the future CEO candidates of Shengtang Technology are too important to Shengtang Technology, and Chen Feng cannot be careless.