At that time, there were very few users worldwide who could dial up to the internet, totaling less than 50,000.
The internet market has not yet been fully explored, and ISPs (Internet Service Providers) are struggling to survive. They are small in scale and usually just rent telephone lines from telephone companies to provide internet access services.
Therefore, Zhao Ye decided to keep a low profile and make a fortune, striving to obtain ISP licenses in various countries.
...
U.K.
Representatives of Wujiang Group submitted an application to the relevant British authorities.
"What? Are you sure you're not mistaken? You want to become an ISP network service provider?" a British official exclaimed in astonishment.
“Of course there’s no mistake. Wujiang Group does indeed want to become an ISP network service provider, and we are willing to invest $500 million in the UK to develop this business!” said the Wujiang Group representative sitting opposite him.
The $500 million will primarily be used to upgrade network equipment and lay fiber optic cables between several major cities.
However, achieving fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) requires far more investment than this, and time constraints also prevent it. Therefore, Wujiang Group's ISP business development in Europe will involve partnering with local landline companies, leasing their phone lines to enable dial-up internet access.
This cooperation is entirely beneficial to the landline company; it's like opening up a new business and a new profit growth point. Why not take advantage of it?
When British authorities heard that Wujiang Group was investing $500 million, their eyes lit up immediately, and they said they would consider it.
Subsequently, the British side held a meeting to discuss the matter.
Unfortunately, there were no websites or web pages at that time, so the value of the internet could not be realized at all.
The consensus is that since Wujiang Group is willing to invest $500 million in developing its ISP business and building network infrastructure, it should be supported, as this would not be a loss for the UK.
Not only Britain, but other European countries were also discussing the same issue at this time.
Despite Europe's wariness of Wujiang Group, its investments are quite attractive.
The fact that Wujiang Group alone invested heavily in laying fiber optic cables can drive local economic development.
Europe at that time clearly did not realize the importance of the Internet, so what was there for them to be reluctant about a mere ISP license?
Wujiang Group made a very quick decision, and the European side also welcomed Wujiang Group's investment. The two sides hit it off immediately.
In less than a month, Wujiang Group established an ISP company in each of the European countries, all named "European Online," directly targeting "America Online."
Zhao Ye didn't intend to keep it all to himself. When the benefits of the internet became apparent, he would arrange for "Europe Online" to raise funds and involve major European capital firms to grow "Europe Online" into a larger and stronger company, thereby firmly aligning it with the IVP6 network protocol standard proposed by Wujiang Group.
Immediately after the establishment of "Europe Online", it partnered with a landline company and signed a long-term cooperation agreement.
Before fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) was available, dial-up internet access via telephone lines was the most economical and reasonable method, thus solving the "last mile" problem of the internet, namely, access from the backbone network to the network user.
...
On the Japanese side, the Wujiang Group's actions have not been going very smoothly.
Japan insists on not issuing an ISP license to Wujiang Group.
This left Wujiang Group feeling quite helpless.
South Korea is also very conservative and stubborn, and did not grant Wujiang Group an ISP license.
However, good news came from Southeast Asia. On the one hand, Wujiang Group has made significant investments in Southeast Asia and they attach great importance to Wujiang Group. On the other hand, they hope that Wujiang Group will invest in local telecommunications infrastructure and lay more fiber optic cables.
Southeast Asian countries are even less likely to realize the importance of the internet; they only see that Wujiang Group is investing here and they can profit from it, which is enough for them.
Of course, Wujiang Group will also only build internet backbone networks in Southeast Asia, and will be open to financing in the future.
Wujiang Group is a small and weak company, making it difficult to establish fiber optic connections to homes. This is not just an economic issue, but involves many other factors. Bringing in local experts as partners is naturally the best option.
Currently, Zhao Ye is hesitating about whether to invest in building a submarine optical cable connecting China to Europe. This cable is expected to be kilometers long and would require a huge investment.
Without the construction of this submarine fiber optic cable, Asia and Europe would be operating their own separate networks, unable to connect.
Such a massive mega-project would be difficult to accomplish with the influence of Wujiang Group alone, so national intervention and cooperation with Europe are necessary.
At this point, even if the United States doesn't value the internet, it certainly doesn't want to see this mega-project successfully completed.
Therefore, it will be very difficult to implement this mega-project!
"Does this mean China will end up like it did in the past, turning the Chinese internet into a giant intranet?"
Zhao Ye frowned slightly, deep in thought.
It seems that even if an undersea fiber optic cable were laid between Asia and Europe, ordinary internet users would not be able to browse European websites due to language barriers.
However, submarine optical cables are not only involved in economic matters, but also have strategic significance.
After several days of careful consideration, Zhao Ye decided to invest in this mega-project.
The completion of this optical cable will strengthen China-Europe communications and greatly improve the data transmission speed between the two countries, which is especially important at a time when China is strengthening its economic ties with Europe.
The closer China and Europe get, the higher China's status will become.
Only with the support of the motherland can Wujiang Group resist the shameless tricks of all kinds of evil spirits.
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