A Free Marketing Power Play
Seongsam Electronics Headquarters, main conference room.
"Any opinions?"
Even after Kim Hyeoncheol asked again, the conference room remained silent.
The staff from the Future Innovation Office at least mouthed a few words to one another, but no one from the wireless division was willing to speak up.
At a moment like this, everyone was clearly worried that if they made a half-baked suggestion, they’d end up being the one held responsible.
"Hmm..."
Just as Kim Hyeoncheol let out a faint sigh, one of the Future Innovation Office employees raised his hand cautiously.
"Director, may I offer an opinion?"
It was Assistant Manager Choi, the man who had accompanied Kim Hyeoncheol during the last negotiation with Another Tech.
"Assistant Manager Choi. Yes, go ahead."
"Yes. First, I think we need to revisit the core reason we were able to win over Another Technology the last time."
Assistant Manager Choi continued slowly.
"We made the contract happen by offering them what they needed most—things only Seongsam Electronics could provide, such as data center support."
Kim Hyeoncheol nodded.
"Vincent Lightman was satisfied with that part, too."
"Then I believe this time should be the same. Simple cash or equity investment won't mean much. Of course, there’s nothing money can’t buy, but I don’t think money is the means to convince Another Tech right now."
He went on.
"As everyone knows, Another Technology has recently been testing a ride-sharing service centered on elite universities on the West Coast of the United States."
"You're talking about Ride Together."
"Correct."
The executives in the room nodded.
Anyone with even a passing interest in Another Technology would know that red-hot service.
"For now it’s only being offered to students and faculty at certain universities, but it’s expected to spread to colleges across the United States soon, and then to the general public after that."
"Mm."
"And if it succeeds in the U.S., the next step is obviously global expansion. In particular, South Korea—our country, with its advanced IT infrastructure—will be a top priority."
In fact, Another Technology already had its marketing operations office in Korea.
Even Seongsam Electronics didn’t know why they’d bothered to place an office there, but the mere fact that they had one meant they were definitely interested in the Korean market.
Besides, the CEO had personally come to Korea when they signed the previous contract.
"But Director, I can guarantee that service will fail in Korea one hundred percent."
"Fail?"
Kim Hyeoncheol repeated it.
Assistant Manager Choi nodded firmly.
"Yes. It’s not a matter of technology. It’s a matter of sentiment and politics."
He explained further.
"In the U.S., lobbying is legal, and Vincent Lightman, as a lawyer, can legally build a protective shield around it. But Korea is different. The moment they try to launch Ride Together here, taxi drivers nationwide will storm Gwanghwamun with headbands tied around their foreheads."
"Hmm... that's true."
A groan escaped Kim Hyeoncheol’s mouth.
The picture was painfully easy to imagine.
"That’s exactly what we’re going to solve for them."
"We are?"
"Yes. We’ll move the media to run stories emphasizing Ride Together’s consumer benefits and innovation, and we’ll pull strings in the National Assembly to get the regulations loosened. If public opinion follows, politicians won’t feel burdened by easing the restrictions, and we can handle the taxi industry’s backlash, can’t we?"
He wasn’t wrong.
Seongsam was the only company where the joke "we're above the law" could actually pass for reality.
"Hmm..."
Kim Hyeoncheol fell into thought.
That’s definitely a good idea.
This wasn’t just a simple technology partnership or a marketing collaboration.
It would let one of Another Technology’s key businesses enter Korea without spilling a single drop of blood.
If we go out of our way to handle something this difficult for them, Another Technology will definitely be grateful.
But then again—
Isn’t this a little too much? This isn’t the kind of thing we should do just to curry favor with Another Technology.
Suppressing the taxi industry’s backlash.
At the same time, shaping favorable public opinion through the media.
That wasn’t just spending money. It was a highly political move, one that came with a level of burden far beyond simple investment.
If Seongsam was going to clear the board for them to that extent, then naturally it should receive something of equal value in return.
Otherwise, Seongsam Electronics’ pride wouldn’t allow it.
After a moment of thought, Kim Hyeoncheol said, "It’s a good idea, but there’s a bit too much of a submissive tone to it. So let’s ask Another Technology for one more thing in return."
"If we're making a request... what exactly do you mean?"
"To beat the Apple phone, we can never have too many killer apps. Let’s ask for one more exclusive application made just for us."
The employees nodded at Kim Hyeoncheol’s words.
No matter how friendly they had to be with Another Technology, they also believed it wasn’t right to help them that much for nothing.
"Then what kind of app should we ask Another Technology to make? Should we direct them toward the main marketing appeal of the Galleon—'a magical assistant in the palm of my hand, ready for real work'?"
"Hmm..."
Kim Hyeoncheol fell into thought again.
What kind of app should they ask for?
Usually, when Seongsam Electronics outsourced advertising and the like, they issued extremely specific and clear directions.
"Make the UI in blue tones," "Put the button here," "The function must include A and B," and so on.
They dictated everything from start to finish.
That was Seongsam’s way, and it was a reliable method for controlling subcontractors exactly as intended.
But our partner is Another Technology.
If they gave too many detailed directions, their own rigid instructions might end up killing the planning ability and creativity that company possessed.
Another Technology has strengths we don't have—creativity and planning. We can't afford to restrict that.
"No. Let’s go without directions."
"Pardon? What do you mean by that...?"
Kim Hyeoncheol said firmly, "Let’s just tell them to make whatever app people will love. Tell them we're leaving everything to them."
"Everything? From planning to development?"
"Yes. Anything is fine as long as it can make customers choose our Galleon smartphone instead of the Apple phone. They’re the experts when it comes to applications, more than we are, so they’ll know better what our smartphone needs."
The employees’ eyes widened.
Seongsam Electronics, the top conglomerate in South Korea and a company famous for its meticulousness, was telling an outside vendor to "just handle it themselves."
It was unimaginable.
And yet, because these were the words of Kim Hyeoncheol, who had been given full authority by the vice chairman—
"Understood. We’ll proceed that way."
It was the first time in Seongsam Electronics history that a partner company had been given that much autonomy.
However, there was one more condition Kim Hyeoncheol needed to add.
"Instead, let’s say that the app will be installed exclusively by default on our new smartphone, and depending on the app’s performance, we may—or may not—support Ride Together."
Even at the end, Kim Hyeoncheol was making sure the insurance policy was in place.
Hankuk University student cafeteria.
After the morning lectures ended, I was eating the school cafeteria food with some friends from class.
One of them said, "It’s cheap, so that part’s nice, but something about the taste is just off."
"Right? It’s not bad, exactly, but it’s not good either."
"Feels like it’s been seasoned a little too lightly."
"Still, for this price, isn’t it great?"
"That’s true."
They were complaining about the side dishes.
This is perfectly fine.
Kids these days.
Today's menu was cubed radish kimchi, seaweed soup, shredded dried squid, and spicy stir-fried pork.
Spicy stir-fried pork was man’s soul food.
And they had complaints? They shouldn’t have.
"By the way, what are you going to do about the class assignment? The professor said we could do it individually or in a team."
"Doing it in a group sounds like more of a pain. I’m just going to research everything and handle it myself."
"Afraid someone’ll freeload?"
"Yeah. Especially someone like you."
"You punk, what do you take me for... hey, that’s actually kind of accurate?"
Snort.
I was smiling faintly at one guy’s joke when Zero’s voice came to me.
Master. A proposal has just come in from Seongsam Electronics.
I crunched on some shredded squid and answered inwardly.
A proposal?
Was this another acquisition offer?
Apple was like that, and Seongsam too—everyone was awfully talkative today.
What kind of proposal?
Seongsam Electronics says they will fully support Ride Together’s entry into the Korean market.
Out of nowhere? What exactly are they going to do to help?
Seongsam Electronics had nothing to gain from this.
I’ll keep the preamble short and give you the core of it.
Zero went on to explain.
To service Ride Together in Korea, there will likely be resistance from the domestic taxi industry... so they intend to ease that backlash and, further, use the media and the National Assembly to loosen regulations. In effect, Seongsam is saying it will clear away every obstacle to Ride Together’s entry into the Korean market.
Oh...
I paused with my jaw mid-chew on the shredded squid.
That was an unexpected proposal.
So Seongsam is willing to solve the reason future Uber couldn’t enter Korea?
Correct.
Do you think Seongsam can really pull that off?
Yes. It will take a little time, but with Seongsam’s influence, it is certainly possible.
Not bad.
No, it was very good.
No matter how much technology and money I had, Korea’s unique sentiment and regulations were hard to overcome.
And now the number one chaebol in the country was saying it would carry the burden for me. How could that be anything but excellent?
They’re not doing this for free, are they?
They said they wanted to maintain a close relationship going forward.
So, they want us to stay on good terms?
Maybe Seongsam Electronics was trying to keep me from getting too close to Apple before the Galleon smartphone even launched.
Master’s guess is correct. From Seongsam’s perspective, cooperation with Another Technology is absolutely necessary for the time being. Seeing Master get too close to Apple would be a burden to them.
Probably. But there’s another request, isn’t there? They didn’t offer this just to be friendly.
Yes. They want us to develop one more application for the Galleon smartphone, which is scheduled to launch three weeks from now.
Of course.
I’d expected something like that.
But asking for an app in just three weeks... do they think apps grow out of the ground or something?
They likely judged the request based on Master’s abilities, having seen the three applications Master presented within a matter of days before.
I nodded.
Honestly, it wasn’t even that difficult for me.
It irritates me that they seem to be doubting my skills, but from my perspective, it’s not a bad offer.
So then—
What kind of app did they ask for? They must have wanted something.
There are no directions.
None?
Yes. They said anything made by Another Technology would be fine. They conveyed that they would entrust you with everything from planning to development. However, they did ask that you share even a simple concept proposal before development begins.
"Pfft."
A small laugh slipped out before I could stop it.
The classmate sitting across from me looked my way.
"See? Even Dohyun hyung is laughing. I told you I was right."
"?"
I hadn’t been listening, so I just nodded along.
"Yeah, I think so too."
"Right?!"
After answering vaguely, I spoke to Zero again.
Make me a good app on my own, huh...
I already knew countless apps that would succeed.
The problem was that I knew too many.
If Seongsam was giving me full authority, that meant the expectations were high.
If I tossed them some half-assed filler app just to make the numbers look good, I’d be smearing my own name in the dirt.
Honestly, if Seongsam is going to compete with Apple to some extent, that’s good for me too. If I’m going to help, I might as well help properly.
Only when Apple and Seongsam competed and checked each other could I harvest all the scraps in between.
Attach myself to Seongsam once, then to Apple, then back to Seongsam—
That way, there’d be plenty to gain on both sides.
Anyway.
What should I make so people say I did a good job?
I thought back on the apps I’d already provided to Seongsam Electronics.
A business card recognition and filing app, a mobile fax app, a public transportation app...
Each one of them is practical and excellent.
But the target users were clear.
Office workers and working adults—in other words, they had the feel of "tools for grown-ups."
That’s not enough to blow up the impact of the smartphone.
For a smartphone to completely replace feature phones, it had to be more than just a convenient machine.
The smartphone itself had to be fun.
In fact, when it came to the Apple phone, consumers were going wild for the fun of it rather than its usefulness.
In other words, I needed to make something that would get students huddling around it during breaks, staring at the screen together.
Something that would make college students sit blankly with a smartphone in hand during their empty periods between classes.
If that’s the goal...
There’s nothing better than a game.
No matter what anyone said, weren’t we the people of games?
It wasn’t for nothing that overseas gamers said things like, "Don’t queue up against Koreans when it’s time to game," or "A lone Korean wiped out our entire squad in a shooter. And he was thirteen. What kind of country is Korea?"
So the game I need to make is... yes, that one.
The game that came to mind was incredibly simple.
All you had to do was place your finger on the smartphone screen, pull back like you were stretching a rubber-band slingshot, and let go.
When you pulled the slingshot on the screen, the angle adjusted under the tension.
Then, the moment you lifted your finger, a cute bird character would fly off in a parabola.
The bird you launched would crash into a tower made of wood or stone where the villains were hiding, and bang!—it would smash the whole thing apart.
A game where the key is the visceral impact you feel through one finger, and the physics engine behind it.
But the villains and structures didn’t just collapse in some sloppy, arbitrary way.
The damage changed depending on the angle and force with which the bird struck.
You couldn’t just fire with all your strength, and you couldn’t shoot too weakly either; the angle of impact mattered as well.
And then there was the visual thrill of calculating your shot, launching the bird, and watching it wipe out the villains and destroy the structure!
That thrill was what made it addictive.
And if you missed by a hair and failed at the last second, there was something strangely addictive about it that made you grit your teeth and try again.
I knew it because I’d played it myself.
It felt like nothing special, and yet it was fun enough to keep you going.
That’s why a billion people around the world would download it, and why it would turn the smartphone into the best toy in history instead of just a machine.
The name of that game is... Crazy Bird.
There was no more perfect time-killer for a quick break on the subway or bus.
It would be great if I could link it to FreeChat and let friends compete against each other too.
If I made that kind of game for them, even Seongsam Electronics would be satisfied.
Still, it would be a shame to make a mega-hit like that exclusive to Seongsam Electronics’ smartphone forever...
Three months of exclusivity should be enough.
That would be a shame from Seongsam’s perspective, but if they could monopolize the immediate buzz after the Galleon launch, it would be a reasonable enough justification.
I should also sell in-game paid items... and if my game comes preinstalled on Seongsam’s smartphones, I ought to take a per-unit royalty based on smartphone sales, too.
Seongsam Electronics would think they were selling smartphones.
But in truth, they would be selling the most expensive "game console" in history, one that happened to come with my game built in.
And they’d be doing it with all of Seongsam Electronics’ marketing muscle behind it.
That’s a great deal—using Seongsam’s marketing power for free.
Watching myself think like that...
I guess I really was a businessman now, whether I liked it or not.