Chapter 153: Bullish News
Chapter 153: Bullish News
The news was overwhelmingly bullish.
[Hunminjeongeum, Free Download on Earth Channel]
[Earth Channel Introduces Korea's Word Processor to the World]
[Hunminjeongeum Goes Global]
[Kim Shin of Earth Resource Fires the Starting Gun for Korean Software Industry Investments?]
The impact of Hunminjeongeum's free release was massive in Korea.
Media outlets, from broadcasters to newspapers, covered it extensively.
[Domestic IT Stocks Surge on Kim Shin's Investments]
[Shocker! Only Ara Hangul Hits the Daily Limit Down on KOSDAQ]
[What Happens to Ara Hangul's 30 Billion Won Treasury Stock Buyback?]
[A Certain Securities Firm Fund Manager: "Ara Hangul's Treasury Stock Purchase? Meaningless. The Company's Market Cap Itself Will Lose All Meaning."]
[Investors Begin Dumping Ara Hangul Shares]
Stock forums were ablaze.
―Held the stock for a year, sold at breakeven after seeing Brother Kim Shin cancel the acquisition. Glad I did, patting my chest in relief.
―Went in for day trading, took a 20% loss. But feels like I made 80%;;
―Watching a stock that could've gone 10x crash into oblivion.
―A mantra for newbie investors: In Korea, never go against Brother Kim Shin.
―Should've sold my shares to Brother Kim Shin ㅠㅠ Why didn't I?
―Are you all sane? Kim Shin killed off a leading Korean software company, and you're defending it?
―Yep. From now on, Korea's word processor is Hunminjeongeum.
―Switched to it right away.
―Betrayal this entertaining?
The next day, as the stock market opened, both investors and media focused on Ara Hangul's stock price.
The daily limit down was certain. The only question was how much volume would flood out.
The extent of sellers would hint at the stock's future trajectory.
Then, at nine o’clock, the market opened.
As soon as the market opened, Ara Hangul plummeted to the daily limit down.
[Ara Hangul, 8.8 Million Shares Sold at Daily Limit Down]
[Institutions and Retail Investors Dump Ara Hangul En Masse]
[Ara Hangul Sees Record Sell-Off Volume, But Trading Volume Under 20,000 Shares. No Buyers in Sight]
[KH Research Center: "Attempting to Buy Ara Hangul at Low Prices Is Reckless."]
Excluding Ara Hangul's treasury shares and CEO Son Joo-seung's holdings, virtually all shares hit the daily limit down in a shocking turn.
Even a worm writhes when stepped on—CEO Son Joo-seung wasn't staying silent.
He called a press conference with domestic broadcasters and newspapers.
Reporters from terrestrial and cable news, plus major papers, filled the venue.
"Kim Shin isn't the good guy the world thinks he is. He tried to acquire Ara Hangul after seeing its excellence, but when things went south, he joined hands with Isung Group..."
The reporters put their notebooks back in their pockets.
"It's just repeating what he said before?"
"No new info?"
"If he'd cried about the company dying, we'd have had a usable clip for broadcast."
Then came the press conference's climax.
"That concludes my statement. No questions."
"...?"
While reporters sat stunned, Son Joo-seung hurriedly left the venue.
"What the hell?"
"He just called us to hear his side?"
That evening, Son Joo-seung hoped the news would stir sympathy for Ara Hangul.
As a homegrown software firm, it might sway the public and draw government or private support for a comeback.
The news began, and the anchor appeared.
"Earth Channel is launching Hunminjeongeum, and overseas reactions are hot?"
"Yes. U.S. Earth Channel subscribers are raving about it as a word processor rivaling MS."
"There's an article saying downloads have exceeded 10 million already—is that true?"
"That was the count around lunchtime. It's over 20 million now. It currently supports Korean, English, Japanese, Spanish, and French. Official Chinese support next week should boost users significantly."
Not the coverage Son Joo-seung wanted—instead, details on Hunminjeongeum thriving via Earth Channel.
"Next up: Korean wave content soaring via Earth Channel."
"Yes. Films and dramas delayed by COVID-19 are resuming production."
"Word is CEO Kim Shin has a special fondness for K-content."
"He's not just investing big—he watches it directly on Earth Channel."
TV news was covering Kim Shin as avidly as a former president's whereabouts.
In just one year, he'd stunned America with his business, nailed investments, and rocketed to the top of global billionaire lists.
No more tiptoeing around power—reporting on Kim Shin boosted ratings.
"Why no mention of me?"
Not a word on his carefully staged press conference.
Mobile searches yielded no favorable articles.
[Ara Hangul CEO Son Joo-seung Dodges Blame for Stock Plunge at Press Conference]
[CEO Son Joo-seung's Wrong Decisions Led Company's Downfall]
"...."
The world was turning its back on him.
* * *
Earth Channel's growth didn't stop at over 500 million subscribers.
[French Viewers: "Earth Channel—Did Americans Hog All This Fun?"]
[Hunminjeongeum Hits 50 Million Downloads. Global Users Rave]
[Earth Channel Subscriber Growth Unstoppable. Daily Sign-Ups Estimated Over 6.5 Million]
The media kept advertising and hyping the company nonstop.
It felt like cruising down the road to success.
"Yesterday's sign-ups were over 7 million too."
"Isn't it due to slow down?"
"Dunno. Keeps climbing. Content and press buzz are paying off big."
The world was teeming with people.
Europe jumped in late but hot, plus Indonesia, Brazil, Mexico, Russia, Vietnam, Thailand, Argentina—popularity everywhere.
Streamers' earnings couldn't be ignored.
In low-income, high-population countries, streaming had boomed post-YouTube.
Active streamers spread the word in their nations.
Neither Oh Myeong-woo nor I were blindly optimistic.
"We're succeeding now, but failure will come someday. No getting cocky. Always prepare for crises."
"Sounds good. Let's ponder Earth Channel's future over pizza."
"Yeah."
The next day, bad news hit the company.
[Google to Remove Earth Channel for In-App Purchase Violations]
[Google App Market Official: "Earth Channel Hasn't Paid Its Legitimate 30% Fee."]
[Earth Channel Faces Removal from Google]
The breaking news sent the whole company into uproar.
Secretary Rosina approached with a worried face.
"CEO, did you see the article? Google says they can't support our app anymore. I asked the contact, and they said Earth Channel didn't pay fees, so they're deleting it."
"I see."
"You're not shocked?"
"Should I be?"
"Wow, CEO. Your composure is so cool."
I'd seen this coming.
Our business overlapped way too much with Google's.
We started as OTT, so no Netflix-style 30% fees.
Later, Channel 7 launched with video expansion, gaming platforms, donations—all handled internally.
All payments were processed inside Earth Channel without separate app-store fees.
Google typically delists such apps or stops updates.
Oh Myeong-woo said,
"Google's forgotten its tadpole days."
Rosina's blue eyes sparkled.
"Meaning they've forgotten their humble beginnings as frogs and now bully the weak?"
True to her elite university background, she nailed the Korean proverb.
But that wasn't what Oh Myeong-woo meant.
"No. They've grown arrogant, forgetting tadpole struggles."
"Huh?"
I met Oh Myeong-woo's eyes.
"Google got arrogant, yeah."
"Damn right. Moving now? They're a sluggish dinosaur."
Lately, meeting folks in San Francisco, they overhyped me and Oh Myeong-woo.
They assumed that we had always been geniuses who had simply bided our time through the difficult years.
'Why wait? With superior skills, we'd have succeeded early and lived easy.'
People judged us only by our current success.
Oh Myeong-woo and I shared similar pasts.
Teens burdened by poverty at school, hunched shoulders. Twenties as basement-dwelling outcasts.
Seasoned cowards—we'd worried about Google pre-launch.
"What if Google demands fees?"
"Dunno. As OTT, we'll fight not to pay. Hold out as long as we can."
"We'll do mobile. Gotta get on app stores."
"Join first, deal with fees if they ask."
Even as Earth Channel exploded past 100 million subs, Oh Myeong-woo noted,
"Paying Google fees would cost a fortune."
"Can't just hand it over. Most watch via web or TV—forking 30% of mobile revenue kills profits."
I acknowledged Google's app market feat. But demanding 30% of revenue—not profit—was huge.
That cash could fund tons of films, dramas, games.
Time passed.
"Channel 7 overlaps YouTube too much—they'll demand fees."
"Probably."
"Gaming ramps up, it's app distribution."
"Google won't stand for that."
We fretted till subs topped 500 million.
Their delayed move screamed indulgence and arrogance.
I told the anxious Rosina,
"Rosina, know what 'hojae' means?"
"Hojae?"
"Korean stock forum term for taking bad news as positive."
As Earth Resource CEO, I had work to do.
Good chance to show staff I was on it.
Ding!
Ding!
Ding!
Phone buzzed—Jo Soo-ah and Isung Group's Vice Chairman Seon Jae-yong.
Important as he was, I checked Jo Soo-ah's first.
―Jo Soo-ah: You okay? Saw the news.
―Jo Soo-ah: Oppa. Don't worry too much. You're handling it great.
Her warmth shone through.
Long-distance meant lots of KakaoTalk and calls.
Movies, dramas, novels, work—chatting idly with her was fun.
―Kim Shin: Yeah. No worries. All prepared.
―Jo Soo-ah: Total relief.
Then a message arrived from Vice Chairman Seon Jae-yong.
―Vice Chairman Seon Jae-yong: Heard Google is removing Earth Channel.
―Kim Shin: So it seems.
―Vice Chairman Seon Jae-yong: You saw it coming.
―Kim Shin: Yes. Google's a competitor.
Isung Electronics was a key Google partner.
There was no backing out of the Earth Phone partnership now.
―Vice Chairman Seon Jae-yong: After you took Hunminjeongeum and Bada last time, I did a lot of thinking.
―Vice Chairman Seon Jae-yong: About the future you're preparing, CEO Kim Shin.