Chapter 375: Meituan sells itself! Pony Ma: Different trades are like different mountains, unless you are Chen Yansen!

On February 2, Liu Qiangdong announced a "recuperation" strategy and took the initiative to end the price war with Suning, Gome, and Yixun.com.

People outside thought that he had turned over a new leaf, but Zhang Jindong knew that he had to go to the Lighthouse Country to study a three-month MBA course and he just couldn't spare the energy.

Zhang Jindong wanted to launch a sneak attack, but he was reluctant to spend money.

After all, each of Suning’s subsidy activities is the result of being forced into a corner by its owner, Dongfang.

Half an hour later, Analysys International released its group buying market report for January, and Kuaipao retained the top spot with a monthly transaction volume of 1.49 billion yuan.

Lashou.com ranked second with 1.02 billion.

Dianping ranked third with 730 million.

Meituan is undoubtedly the fourth largest company in the industry, with a transaction volume of only RMB 470 million.

Lashou.com jumped to second place for the first time.

Although the 'Annan Bride Group Buying' business did not generate any actual transaction volume, it brought a wave of popularity to Lashou.com. Coupled with the traffic and financial support from Qiandu.com, it was expected that it would surpass Dianping.com.

However, the combined transaction volume of Dianping and Meituan is not as much as that of Kuaipao, which really surprised many people.

Now that Meituan is caught up in another public opinion storm, it is not difficult to imagine that its February report card will most likely be at the bottom.

Group purchases of movie tickets accounted for as much as 27.9%, becoming an important sales channel during the Spring Festival.

"Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons" has started pre-sale mode, with the exclusive discounted ticket price on Kuaipao being 19.9 yuan, bringing tens of millions of additional traffic to the group buying business.

Immediately afterwards, China Mobile announced its TD-LTE strategy, preparing to accelerate 4G deployment and build 200,000 base stations by the end of the year.

After completing the commercial testing of 4G networks, China Telecom and China Unicom are also making intensive preparations.

3G network charges have been on a downward trend, and the news of the upcoming 4G is spreading widely.

Ma Liyun, who was hiding in his hometown in Hangzhou, could no longer sit still after learning that the number of WeChat users exceeded 300 million and the number of Orange users exceeded 200 million.

Lu Zhaoxi, Zhang Yong and others were called to a high-level meeting of the group and social software was designated as Ali's core strategy for 2013.

After a day of discussion, an app called 'Laiwang' was listed as the first development priority.

Before the Spring Festival, Ali's human resources department sent the recruitment requirements for the person in charge of the LaiWang APP to the group website, social recruitment software, and headhunting companies.

E-commerce Ma’s first social attempt began quietly.

…

…

"Brother Xin, we still have a chance. It's too early to give up now, right?" Wang Huiwen persuaded carefully.

After suffering multiple blows for three consecutive days, Wang Xin became scared and wanted to admit defeat.

He doesn't understand!

Your own clay doll remains just a clay doll when you hold it in your hand. But when you sell it to someone else, it turns into a golden doll.

For example, Xiaonei.com was sold to Chen Yizhou for 2 million US dollars seven years ago. The other party slightly changed the name and packaging, and took it to NASDAQ to ring the bell for listing. The market value on the first day was 7.4 billion US dollars.

For example, when group buying websites were first established, they realized that they needed to provide services to more users. The more users there are, the higher the value of the product.

It turned out that his business acumen was sound, but there were too many competitors in the group buying market.

Qiandu.com was the first to enter the market, followed closely by Senlian Capital.

It pushed Meituan off the throne of industry champion, and then kicked it to fourth place in the industry. There is no one behind it. If it takes another step back, it will be like WoWotuan and close down.

"Old Wang, I'm sorry that I couldn't lead everyone to live a decent life."

Facing his old classmates and old friends, Wang Xin looked full of guilt.

In his eyes, Meituan’s founding team is his own people, the middle-level management is cattle and horses, and the grassroots employees and riders are just consumables, and he has never looked at them in the eye.

Wang Xin has failed in his business so many times that he can hardly count them with both hands. To him, failure is not terrible; the most shameful thing is not daring to start over.

Seeing Wang Xin like this, Wang Huiwen looked painful and couldn't help but said, "Brother Xin, it's not the last moment yet."

"If you sell it earlier, you can get some money. If you wait until Meituan's February sales figures are released, I'm afraid you won't be able to sell it for even 300 million U.S. dollars."

Wang Xin smiled bitterly.

He doesn't want to sell the company unless it is absolutely necessary.

But now there is no investor, no traffic, and little money left in the account. After further troubles, WoWotuan will become a lesson for Meituan.

The founder was being chased by venture capital institutions! "Who will we sell it to?" Wang Huiwen asked helplessly when she saw that Wang Xin had made up his mind.

"Ali." Wang Xin said gritting his teeth.

Chen Yansen and Li Yanhong have forced Meituan into a corner, and he wants to cause some trouble for them.

Ali Baba's strength is not inferior to Senlian Capital and Qiandu. Once Ali takes over Meituan, with the support of traffic and funds, the development of Kuaipao and Lashou.com will be hindered.

"Ali invested in Kuaipao, is Ma Liyun willing to slap him in the face?" Wang Huiwen is not optimistic about this decision.

"Give it a try. If it doesn't work, you can sell it to Penguin."

Wang Xin said indifferently.

"Okay, I'll contact Ji Gang from Ali Investment Department first." Wang Huiwen saw his old friend's plan and nodded in response.

That evening.

Ji Gang received a call from Wang Huiwen. After listening to the other party's statement, an expression of surprise appeared on his face.

He didn't expect that Wang Xin would lose his fighting spirit after being defeated by Kuaipao and Lashou, nor did he expect that Wang Xin's first choice was not to merge with Dianping or sell himself to Senlian Capital, but to find Alibaba.

"Mr. Wang, I have to report to the company first." Ji Gang said after thinking for a while.

Logically speaking, both Ma Liyun and Cai Xin had said before that they would give up investing in Meituan for the time being.

But the bosses' wording was strict and it was only temporary.

If you fail to report a serious situation, you might get scolded.

"Sorry for the trouble, Mr. Ji." Wang Huiwen also knew that Ji Gang could not make the decision with his status.

The other party’s immediate superior is Cai Xin, and Cai Xin has to report to Ma Liyun.

It will be difficult to get any results within two or three days.

So after hanging up the phone, he called Lin Chenfeng from Penguin Investment Department.

He wouldn't wait for Ahri foolishly.

"Mr. Wang, I'm sorry, Penguin has no plans to acquire the group buying website." Lin Chenfeng refused bluntly.

QQ Group Buying is still half dead after merging with Gaopeng.com and Ftuan.com. So why would he buy Meituan, which is plagued by negative news?

Are you kidding me? He didn't want to be criticized by Pony and Martin at the group's regular high-level meeting.

Wang Huiwen laughed dryly and silently put away his phone.

at the same time.

Shen Nanpeng of Sequoia Capital also got the news and immediately called Wang Xin to question why he did not follow his arrangements and merge with Dianping.

"I want to cash out, not equity." Wang Xin answered directly.

Only by selling Meituan can he have the start-up capital for his next project.

What can he gain by merging with Dianping? Wang Xin does not think that Zhang Tao can defeat Kuaipao and Lashou.

“How about I come forward and help you talk to Chen Yansen from Senlian Capital?” Shen Nanpeng suggested.

Not long ago, he participated in the A round of financing for OFO Bike. In his opinion, Chen Yansen would give him some face.

"A few days ago, I asked Zhang Chaoyang to tell me that Chen Yansen had no intention of acquiring Meituan at all."

Wang Xin said truthfully.

“Okay, I get it. If you want to sell the company, I won’t stop you, but the price must be reviewed by Sequoia Capital,” Shen Nanpeng said in a deep voice.

He was afraid that Wang Xin would engage in shady dealings and sell at a low price, thus damaging the interests of Sequoia Capital.

"Okay, I have no objection." Wang Xin replied dryly.

Having said that, Shen Nanpeng did not mention additional investment, which shows that Sequoia Capital had given up on Meituan a long time ago.

Wang Xin sneered and pressed the hang-up button.

Half an hour later, Wang Huiwen returned and sent Wang Xin the replies from Ali and Penguin.

"Since Penguin doesn't buy it, then let's ask Baidu." After thinking for a moment, Wang Xin came up with a new idea.

Firstly, it can allow Kuaipao and Lashou.com to fight each other; secondly, with Qiandu.com joining the game, he can also raise his own status with Ali.

Otherwise, if Ali is the only buyer, the other party will definitely lower the price to the extreme.

Wang Huiwen was a smart man and understood it immediately. He didn't ask any more questions. He pulled over a chair and started making a phone call in the office.

Wang Xin was like a dying hyena, staring at Kuaipao and Lashou menacingly, wanting to take a bite of both of them.

The other side.

Ali headquarters in Hangzhou, Taohua Island office.

Ma Liyun glanced at Tang Yongbo, Zhang Yong, and Lu Zhaoxi, and then asked, "What do you think?"

"Buying Meituan can make up for another shortcoming of Ali Local Life. In this way, we can walk on two legs." Lu Zhaoxi said lightly.

"A head-on confrontation with Kuaipao and Lashou.com at this time will only consume the group's resources and funds, and may also affect the subsequent listing work." Zhang Yong shook his head, obviously disagreeing.

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Chen Yansen is well-known in the industry for his vindictiveness. After Kuaipao entered the group buying track, Wang Xin was forced to quit after just showing his teeth once.

What if Ali’s acquisition of Meituan provokes retaliation from Kuaipao? Should we start a price war then?

If they fight, it will cost money and affect the health of the group's cash flow; if they don't fight, then what's the point of buying Meituan? "Combining Taobao Waimai and Meituan.com, using high frequency to bring low frequency, can form a complete business ecosystem. I support the acquisition."

Tang Yongbo added.

After buying Meituan and merging it with its food delivery business, he will have more power, more resources and more say.

If it is beneficial to him, he naturally won't object.

Ma Liyun frowned. With two votes in favor and one vote against, he actually didn't want to buy it.

But he changed his mind and thought that Taobao had already entered the food delivery industry, and local life was also part of Ali's strategy, and it would sooner or later compete with Kuaipao.

From the day he decided to try the food delivery business, cracks began to appear in the cooperation between Ali and Senlian Capital.

"Tell Ji Gang to start the acquisition process of Meituan." After pondering for a while, Ma Liyun made the decision immediately.

Instead of hiding it, it is better to openly admit Ali's determination to enter local life.

"Okay, Mr. Ma." Tang Yongbo nodded slightly.

…

…

"You mean, Wang Xin is planning to sell Meituan?"

In the Qiandu headquarters building, Li Yanhong looked at Gong Zhenbing and asked.

"What Wang Huiwen said himself should be true. Meituan's transaction volume in January was only 470 million, a drop of nearly 60% compared to three months ago. Once the data for February is released, it is likely that it will not even be able to maintain 400 million."

Gong Zhenbing said with a smile.

Although it was scolded last month and criticized by the General Inspection Association, Lashou.com's monthly transaction volume reached 1 billion for the first time, making it the second largest in the industry, second only to Kuaipao.

Li Yanhong became friendly to him again!

In a large company like BAT, if you want to succeed, timing is very important. You must complete the project to the expected level before your boss's time and patience run out.

Otherwise, the project will be disbanded and the person in charge will be fired.

"What is Wang Huiwen's offer?" Li Yanhong asked, with a hint of interest in his eyes.

"370 million US dollars." Gong Zhenbing replied.

Li Yanhong recalled that when Qiandu acquired Lashou.com, the price was 420 million US dollars. At that time, the monthly transaction volume of Lashou.com was about 600 million. By comparison, the price of 370 million US dollars was not high.

"Keep the price down and keep it around 300 million. I will ask the investment department to assist you." Li Yanhong said.

If it takes over Meituan and then merges and reorganizes with Lashou.com, Qiandu.com will be able to become the industry leader in group buying.

But Li Yanhong overlooked one thing. Business merger is an extremely complex task. From a macro perspective, it is very simple, as simple as '1+1=2'.

But from a micro perspective, factors such as high-level handover, business docking, and personnel turnover will all affect the combat effectiveness of the merged team.

If the operation is successful, 1+1>2; if the operation fails, 1+1<2.

The next morning, when Ma Wenteng was attending an Internet entrepreneur exchange meeting, a reporter asked him, "Hello, Mr. Ma, what do you think of Qiandu.com's cross-industry online car-hailing and group-buying businesses?"

A dozen years later, Pony Ma would certainly say perfunctorily: "Qiandu has a very good technical accumulation, and I believe Robin can also achieve certain results in new fields."

But Gaopeng.com and QQ group buying made him lose face in the group buying industry, so Ma Wenteng was very blunt: "Generally speaking, it is impossible for a company to cross over and do well in two different businesses, unless you are Chen Yansen."

The reporter was stunned and subconsciously asked: "So, is this the reason why Penguin has been defeated repeatedly in the e-commerce industry?"

Xiao Ma's face darkened, and he narrowed his eyes and asked, "Which media are you a reporter from?"

Damn, you only hit people in the face, right? The reporter was startled, smiled awkwardly, covered the logo on the microphone without leaving any trace, and then ran away.

But what Ma Liyun and Li Yanhong didn't expect was that Wang Xin changed his mind the next day.

Because Hong Jing from General Atlantic Capital approached him and wanted to invest 100 million US dollars in Meituan.

In the eyes of foreign capital, Meituan’s market share is not high, but it also occupies the fourth position in the industry.

Although Wang Xin didn't understand, he didn't refuse and agreed readily.

In exchange for 20% of the equity, it received US$100 million in financing.

Ma Liyun was dragged for a walk by Wang Xin and became so angry that he started cursing.

Li Yanhong was also dumbfounded. His and Lao Ma's actions actually helped Wang Xin successfully raise the price.

But he could do nothing but mutter and curse a few words.

…

…

"It seems that the 4% equity ratio of Kuaipao can't satisfy Ma Liyun's appetite at all."

After knowing that Wang Xin had played a trick on Li Yanhong and Ma Liyun, Chen Yansen did not gloat over it.

Ma Liyun wants to buy Meituan?

What does this old guy want to do! Not satisfied with just delivering food, he wants to enter the group buying market?

The 100 million yuan of funding that General Atlantic gave to Wang Xin undoubtedly pulled Meituan back from the brink of death.

But he didn't care too much. At most, he just let Meituan hold on for a few more months.

There is snow outside the window and the wind is cold. There are only three days left before the Spring Festival holiday.

There are now 5,700 users who have collected all five blessings. Compared with the previous few days, the number of new users who have collected all five blessings every day has increased by more than 100, and the average amount of money shared per person shown on the activity page is also getting smaller and smaller.

Users are in a very contradictory mood. Before collecting all five blessings, they wish Orange Pay would issue 10,000 Jingyefu cards a day; after collecting all five blessings, they wish Orange Pay would only issue one card a day.

But no matter what, Orange Pay's marketing campaign has successfully attracted the attention and high participation of hundreds of millions of users.

At the same time.

Beacon country, Stanford University next to Silicon Valley.

"Jerry, look what I found? A brand new mobile operating system. Wow, they even have their own open source community."

A college student majoring in computer science shared it with his classmates enthusiastically.

"Aurora Future OS? What about its architectural design?" Jerry asked, turning sideways and glancing at the computer screen.

"I'm still researching. The underlying technology of this system is very advanced, the layered architecture is clear, the memory management and multi-task scheduling are also optimized, and the message transmission mechanism is stronger than IOS."

Bunyan replied.

"Send me the link to the open source BBS." Jerry became interested immediately after hearing this.

With the promotion of channels such as Mimo and Wired magazine, Aurora Future OS has gradually become well-known among development enthusiasts.

Coupled with the Aurora Future vulnerability reward program with a total of 30 million US dollars, a large number of developers have begun to study the Aurora Future system.

Apple, which has obtained the Orange Z1 instruction set architecture license, is using a new CPU architecture to design the A7 chip.

(End of this chapter)