[Chapter 633: Bill's Dilemma]
Two unscrupulous profiteers were discussing how to make a fortune, while Bill Gates was starting to feel the pressure. If he wanted to acquire this browser, this little guy that was not even a year old, it would have to make it onto the board of directors.
Well, that's fine; the daughter of the richest man in the world naturally comes into the world with a silver spoon in her mouth. But how should this valuation be calculated?
Talking about money?
Now that's just ridiculous; this billionaire wouldn't stand for it. It'd either be stock swaps or mutual equity holdings -- there was no other option.
"What do you mean, these are two companies?"
Seeing the tortured and conflicted look on his subordinate's face only fueled Bill Gates' frustration. Why was that damn William White's way of thinking so out of sync with everyone else?
"It's like this, sir. A browser is a browser, and a search engine is a search engine. They have nothing to do with each other. Now, this search engine belongs to his oldest daughter. They just want to know if you're going to invest in Netscape or in the search engine."
Damn, Bill Gates didn't want to think about anything right now; he just wanted to curse. This guy is playing dirty!
Wait a minute, each daughter gets a company? That would imply that in his eyes, the value of these two companies is roughly the same.
Is it really that exaggerated?
What Bill Gates didn't realize was that what he considered to be a promising Netscape was actually only so-so. Meanwhile, that search engine has more room for growth in the future.
"Is this search engine really that difficult?"
"We don't know the specifics of its workings; its operational rules are quite strange. I think we may have over-simplified it, and as time goes on, it's getting better at finding things."
"What's this? Is it about growth potential? Send someone to investigate and find out what's going on."
At this point, Bill Gates was actually less angry. Although William White was crafty, he wasn't a swindler. Or rather, the products he sold had a reputation for quality. You might call him shameless, but you couldn't label his products as garbage.
The attitude of his subordinates indicated that William White wasn't in a hurry to sell off this part of his assets.
Some people are just like that; the more someone doesn't want to sell, the more interested they become. Clearly, Bill Gates fit this description.
The initial office suite deal had been just like this; the longer he dragged it out, the worse it became for him. While his company's valuation skyrocketed, others were not lagging behind either.
"If this guy has a few more daughters, I might as well just hand my company over to him," Bill Gates thought bitterly, while William White remained unaware -- a realization would hardly elicit a response. It all came down to one phrase: whatever will be, will be.
...
"Sir, the latest news is that the Japanese government plans to increase property taxes. They also intend to raise the benchmark interest rate."
"Isn't that just asking for trouble? The bubble exists; popping it gently shouldn't be that hard, right? Ugh, these guys -- did they play whack-a-mole too much and now only think about swinging a hammer?" William White laughed derisively.
Seeing his boss's amusement, Filson couldn't help but chime in, "Yeah, at this rate, that hammer could just pop the bubble right away."
"Ha! These guys... They really have no appreciation for the fine things."
"Sir, in that case, those wall street guys are still leaving a trail. They've still got about 20% of their properties that haven't been closed on yet."
"Not too shabby; if they all bolted, wouldn't those Japanese guys be crying?"
The economic downturn in America this year had yielded substantial gains. The Soviets were bankrupted, and the government weaknesses that posed risks to the economy were set to fail as well. As for Europe, wars were breaking out everywhere; all they needed to do was stir the pot a little, and the whole of Europe would turn into a sea of refugees.
Perhaps due to over-calculation, America included itself in the equation. Remembering the makeshift construction of walls, William White couldn't help but laugh. Didn't they read history books?
To cross the Berlin Wall, the Germans used every means possible. Digging tunnels and hot air balloons were no big deal.
That guy who dug tunnels apparently used a spoon as a tool. Can you imagine? The Mexicans don't need to be inventive; they can just copy those guys.
Ultimately, the world will turn into a flat plane. Man-made barriers have only a very minimal effect. People seek higher ground while water flows downward. In that sense, helping out a struggling neighbor is quite necessary.
Unfortunately, the North American Free Trade Agreement currently in talks was pushing Mexico toward the abyss. To say that the U.S. was entirely malicious wouldn't be fair.
Sure, GDP went up, incomes rose, and job opportunities increased. The biggest losers were just some agricultural products.
But sadly, most Mexicans are not industrious. Starting a little business? They're just not interested. When severe income inequality struck, their fragile economy would collapse right away.
...
"Sir, don't you want to talk to Bill Gates now?" Filson asked, eyeing William White as he puffed away.
"Not now; it's too early. This guy has a good eye for potential. If he weren't worried about me suing him for unfair competition, he'd definitely be starting something on his own," William replied.
"Seems like he's really greedy. Does he want to monopolize the entire PC software market?"
William White only shrugged; Bill Gates had ambitions that exceeded mere greed.
"If I'm right, his next target will be servers. Look, he recently fell out with IBM. If it were just about those compatible machines, IBM wouldn't be this petty."
"Ah, I get it now! That explains why things went from sweet to sour in no time. Haha, this guy really is ambitious."
"So, it's best we keep him dangling. If we can manage mutual equity stakes, that would be just perfect."
"Alright, I'll give it a shot to persuade him; I believe that in a difficult situation, he'll choose the correct path."
...
Bill Gates was truly caught in a dilemma. As he got more information, he began to lose his composure.
These two companies owned by the richest man in the world were no trivial matter. They ordered three supercomputers in one go.
How much data needs processing?
Bill Gates was genuinely baffled; with such specifications, processing Earth's orbit would be more than sufficient. What on earth was he planning to do?
He no longer wanted to drag this out. Every day wasted was one more leap in the number of users for the Netscape browser. He believed that without much time passing, this thing would become widespread.
"Leit, what's the legal department saying?"
"Bill, we can't avoid it. The most important thing is, he's definitely going to sue us."
"Tch, this unfair competition. Damn it, this guy's industries have many monopolistic traits. Why isn't anyone investigating him?"
Leitston chuckled bitterly, "Sir, it's not that no one is, but this guy is sharp and doesn't like to hog everything. Right now, that PS gaming alliance is more akin to an industry association. Most importantly, those getting hit and pressed are all the local companies."
"I see! It looks like I'll have to go pay him a visit personally. I hope this guy doesn't have too lofty of expectations."
*****
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