[Chapter 784: The Pit He Dug for Himself]
Bill was quite torn about whether or not to invest in the company; it was indeed a tough question. It was almost certain that William White would not take his dollars. As for the shares, Bill Gates was somewhat unwilling.
There was no doubt that Microsoft was no longer the small player it once was. Whether in operating systems or office software, they had become the dominant force.
Looking around his home, he noticed that he had accumulated quite a bit already. The White System was deliberately fragmented; anything that could be split into two companies would definitely not be merged. Microsoft, however, was different; everything in its basket was ripe for picking. As long as it could expand, Bill would gladly absorb all other software companies.
The two companies had completely different styles, and this had long been a source of gossip amongst their peers in Silicon Valley. It was hard to say which approach was better at that point in time. William White seemed to have become cautious due to the Justice Department's scrutiny. Otherwise, who would be eager to increase their management layers?
"What's the deal with this Netscape company? Can we sue them for infringement?"
"Sir, that wouldn't work. Not only would there be no results, but they would also seize the opportunity for publicity. This software called Navigator isn't that great in terms of user experience. However, White System's search engine does provide support."
"So easy? Damn it, I'm still a shareholder in this company."
Bill Gates felt at a loss for words. His voting power was limited to half his shares. William White wouldn't care about his objections. Besides, that company only belonged to his daughter.
...
"Abandon support for Netscape? Did I mishear, or has little Bill gone crazy? If I did that, do you think Netscape would refrain from suing him for unfair competition?"
"Really, sir, this is like walking down a dead-end road."
"Tom, that company won't do very well. As long as Microsoft's upcoming systems excel, there's no need to worry."
"Do you know why ICQ is free?"
"I don't know?! Sir, there are many rumors out there. Cough, anyway, there's not much good being said."
"I don't care about any of that. The only reason it's free is to limit competitors from joining. As long as I keep insisting on being free, my competitors will be buried under my massive funding. By the time we hit one hundred million users, is it really that hard to make money?"
One hundred million users -- Tom appeared quite stunned. My God, the personal computer market was actually measured in hundreds of millions. It seemed he too needed to adjust strategies.
"By the way, Tom, tell Bill to improve the software a little. No more blue screens -- crashing during demonstrations is incredibly embarrassing. Also, it actually needs DOS booting. I am old and cannot remember so many DOS commands. Could he do me a favor? And it's been ages since we got the browser, why has there been no noticeable improvement? If it really doesn't work out, it's better to split it off."
"Cough cough, uh, sir, are you sure you want to say that?"
"Of course, good advice is often bitter, and with the amount I've invested, I naturally hope it does well. If he can't even sort this out, then it really loses its meaning."
There was really nothing good to say about Bill Gates, and William White was still polite. If you ask Steve Jobs, I am afraid there would be no other words besides liar and thief.
William White wasn't worried about Netscape making a comeback. After all, in a previous life, Microsoft made plenty of self-destructive choices, and Netscape ultimately fell apart.
Currently, browsers were merely about browsing some web pages with little additional functionality. If they still managed to mess that up, then he wasn't Bill Gates.
Bill Gates was exceptionally good at limiting his competitors. Netscape fell apart, Lotus collapsed -- his combat effectiveness was nothing short of explosive.
William White even found the current Microsoft tough to deal with; saying anything bad about them was an uphill battle.
...
"Sir, Mexico has some problems."
"Filson, what problems? Haven't they been doing well with their growth?"
"Sir, their short-term loans have surpassed thirty billion U.S. dollars, and their foreign exchange reserves can only be described as pitiful."
"Ah, I honestly don't know what to say. This North American Free Trade Agreement turned out to be quite a pit. So, does the think-tank want to short the peso? Doesn't seem too meaningful."
"Sir, well..."
"Fine, fine, let's keep it discreet; their scale is simply too small. Let's just make some pocket money."
Filson forced a smile; while there wouldn't be substantial returns, the numbers still added up in the billions.
He actually didn't know that William White was quite conflicted about Mexico's current situation. He had never been optimistic about the North American Free Trade Agreement. Now, just when things seemed to be calming down, trouble arrived.
Things in Mexico had been quite tumultuous lately. As cheap American agricultural products flooded in, numerous farmers fell into dire straits. With half-mechanized farming, how could they possibly compete against American farmers?
The U.S. heavily subsidized its agriculture, with enormous, well-scaled farms involved. With their fragile foundation, they dared to compete against America?
If agricultural products engaged in a price war, no one stood a chance against the U.S., especially in corn and wheat.
When the farmers went bankrupt, they naturally would no longer engage in the industry. To make matters worse, they still dared to impose taxes -- direct conflict ensued.
Why did Mexico become so chaotic? This was all brought about by American interference. If farming led to bankruptcy, then they'd switch to growing something else. Since Americans liked drugs, they would produce more.
In the end, they succeeded -- cheap prices with good quality. Over ninety percent of the commodities in the U.S. came from them. The profits they made were exchanged for weapons to use against American interests.
It wasn't that William White had some kind of messianic complex. What they were doing would undoubtedly lead to major issues.
What? Build a wall?
Hahaha, indeed, a very reckless decision. Unfortunately, a wall that cost hundreds of billions fell to a rope ladder costing five dollars.
This person must not be well-read; if he were, he would know that the Berlin Wall was not particularly successful.
The Soviet troops truly had the guts to shoot; that wouldn't deter them. You were merely deporting; what's so great about that? Just come back again next week. At most, you'd waste five dollars.
Sigh, "Mexico is really in trouble this time. With no growth in industry and agriculture collapsing, can they really pay back all those short-term loans?"
"Sir, if problems arise in Mexico, those investment banks will surely become very vigilant. Cough, if they withdraw investments en masse from Asia..."
"Keep an eye on it. The way this is going, it's only a matter of time until problems arise."
"Alright, I understand. I'll arrange for a dedicated team. Mexico is just one country and doesn't hold much significance with its neighbors, but Asia is a different story."
William White thought to himself that Mexico was hardly alone in this. This was what they called the middle-income trap. After a storm passed, the whole American continent would seem lackluster.
If the surrounding neighbors were weaker, that naturally benefited America. If they became too powerful, it would be quite troublesome. The U.S. surely hadn't anticipated that being overly weak wouldn't work either; if they couldn't survive, wouldn't they just run to the U.S.?
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