Chapter 680: Let's Meet and Talk Later

New York, Downtown Manhattan, Universal Tower.

"There's an internal subscription. You both can buy 1 million shares each at $20 per share!" Charles Capet told his two assistants, Dona Williams and Phyllis Jones, as he sat in his chair.

"That's $20 million, right?" Phyllis Jones asked as she leaned closer to Charles. "Boss, what will the issue price be later?"

"Relax, you'll make money, and it'll be just fine!" Charles reassured them with a smile.

Dona Williams nodded, guessing that Capet's issue price would certainly be over $60 per share.

"By the way, I heard Lily Ying is listing Prada in Hong Kong next month, right?" Charles turned to Dona Williams.

Dona nodded again, "Ms. Ying is attending the Capet listing in New York at the beginning of the month and then heading back to handle Prada's listing."

"Ha, after Prada's listing, give me some support," Charles laughed, not caring much about this small profit.

For Capet Universal's listing, Charles put up 20-30 million shares for internal subscription, providing benefits for company employees and his own ladies; these shares ranged from a few thousand to 1 million shares. In total, they were set to issue more than 100 million shares at an issue price not lower than $70 per share, with a total stock capital of 7 billion!

...

In the afternoon, at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, during the 2011 NBA Draft, the New York Dreamers selected Kawhi Leonard, a small forward from San Diego State University, with the 14th overall pick.

The Spurs wanted to trade George Hill from the 2008 draft class for Kawhi Leonard, but of course, they were rejected, as the Dreamers were brewing a deal with the Warriors.

In the Barclays Center office, Charles was in an embrace with Ivanka Trump, giving her a kiss. "The NBA's almost at a standstill now; aren't you worried?"

Facing Ivanka's question, Charles shook his head, "What can I do? The players' union and the league can't reach an agreement."

"Bosses who want to compromise with the players, like Jerry Buss of the Lakers and James Dolan of the Knicks, can't persuade the owners of small-market teams?"

"The staunch opposition includes owners like Robert Sarver of the Suns, Dan Gilbert of the Cavaliers, and, of course, the notable Michael Jordan. And actually, Jordan wants to drastically cut players' revenue share, and over half of the team owners have entrusted him to represent them!"

"How can they negotiate like this? They'll never reach an agreement. Last year, over 22 clubs reported losses, and the New Orleans Hornets are still under league ownership." Ivanka held Charles's neck, "Won't there be another lockout this year? It's almost July."

"It's basically decided," Charles had long been prepared for the lockout.

Suddenly, Charles's phone rang.

"Hey, it's Rupert Murdoch!" Finally, he called.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Murdoch!" Charles greeted.

"Charles, congratulations on Capet's impending listing, that's great!" Rupert Murdoch's voice on the phone sounded tired.

"Ah, thank you!"

"Transformers 3 is about to release, right?"

"This Friday, really soon." Charles chuckled.

"Fast & Furious 5 grossed over 200 million dollars in North America, 600 millions worldwide. The Hangover Part II also grossed 250 million in North America and nearly 600 million worldwide. Charles, Universal is killing it this year! Next up are Transformers 3 and The Avengers!"

Charles was somewhat puzzled. Why call just to say these things?

"Mr. Murdoch, it's the result of the hard work of the company's employees!"

"By the way, you're in New York, right?"

"Oh, I am in New York!"

Rupert Murdoch thought for a moment on the phone, "How about we meet at the Manhattan Club the night after tomorrow when I get back from Washington D.C.?"

"The night after tomorrow, the Manhattan Club," Charles couldn't help but smile, "Of course, I can!"

"Good, see you then..." After hanging up, Charles kissed Ivanka on the cheek.

"Let's go, dear, let's get something to eat!"

...

At night, in the high-level villa in Capet Tower in Midtown Manhattan:

Ivanka lay on Charles's back, "$20 million for 1 million shares, how many times will it go up after six months of listing?"

"Ha, with internal subscriptions at $20 per share, quadrupling shouldn't be a problem. You know how strong Capet Universal is now, it's bound to rise!"

Charles said, turning over to let Ivanka lie on his chest.

"What's the situation with News Corporation lately?" Although Charles always intended to get some benefits from News Corp, he hadn't had the time to keep an eye on it all the time.

Rupert Murdoch specially called in the afternoon from Washington D.C.!

Ivanka shook her head, "Nothing special, just that things aren't looking great. For a public company, negative news is always tough to handle. As for what happened in the UK, that's surely not possible here. News Corp's control in the US can't compare to the UK. Who would dare to wiretap 9/11?"

Fox News Channel was formed in 1996, and they only acquired the Wall Street Journal in 2007. Before that, News Corp just sold tabloids like the New York Post and the Chicago Sun-Times in the US, which weren't that significant!

Charles laughed, but faced with the decline in News Corp's stock price, the first ones to suffer would be the shareholders.

Rupert Murdoch went to Washington, definitely looking for solutions, but stock prices wait for no one!

"You never know, you know News Corp made its name by dealing with edgy news," Charles said as he traced his hand over the girl's curves.

"Don't forget, Fox News Channel started to overshadow CNN because of their coverage of the 9/11 events!"

What made CNN famous? The Gulf War in the 90s. International conflicts and terrorism news surely boost ratings more than celebrity gossip.

Ivanka laughed, "Don't underestimate the shareholders behind News Corp; there are some big names. And Fox Broadcasting is a national network; who knows how many senators they have connections with?"

"True," Charles's NBC was also a national network with widespread signal coverage across America, really useful!

"And next year's an election year. How could the Republicans let Fox cause any more trouble?" Ivanka, now spending every day with Arianna Huffington, was becoming more politically savvy.

"We'll see how the meeting goes the day after tomorrow," anyway, News Corp's reputation in the UK was already shot.

*****

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