Chapter 111: Fan Forum
[Chapter 111: Fan Forum]
"Ryan, are you sure?" Scott's voice came through the microphone.
In a secluded spot by the backdoor of the nightclub, Ryan was on the phone with Scott. He had already gone through Big Machine's accounts from the past year with the finance team and Scott. Most of the questionable expenses were smoothed over by Scott, the old fox. The few which couldn't be explained clearly were brushed off with Scott claiming he'd been tricked by his staff, and he would help Ryan recover some of it as a sort of goodwill gesture.
As for earlier issues, Ryan simply turned a blind eye, especially since Taylor hadn't had any releases at that time, only some concert revenues.
Now, with the finance team firmly under Ryan's control and Taylor's father keeping an eye on things, Scott was less inclined to play games with money.
"Right, something like a necklace, similar to dog tags of military," Ryan described.
"We can definitely do it," Scott nodded. Merchandise was a big deal for stars, and Disney Channel had done a fantastic job with that. Other companies also collaborated with celebrities.
"But I have some special requests. Each tag needs a unique code on the front, starting from 1, and on the back, it must have an embossed key string..."
"I can agree to the first condition, but the second one is not only difficult but also costly; it involves mold issues." Scott didn't have the specifics, either.
"Then let's include the key string in a collector's edition album, which can only be sold online for a limited time. Is that doable?"
"Hmm... I can get in touch with an online sales platform for a joint sale, but they'll take a 30% commission."
"That's fine; it's still cheaper than physical retail channels, at least for consumers."
"Exactly."
"The selling rules also need a redesign. The tags should be assigned numbers based on purchase order, so the earlier someone buys, the lower their number."
"Does that even mean anything?"
"Don't worry about that; just do it as quickly as possible."
"Alright, I'll start preparing today. We'll be live in a week."
...
After hanging up, Ryan headed upstairs. This space was meant for the future record label but was still an empty shell waiting for renovations.
There were already twenty to thirty young people lined up, applicants for various positions, as well as Ryan's fans. Most of them were female.
Ryan began interviewing one by one.
...
"Are you a programmer from Blockbuster?" Ryan asked, looking over the resume.
"Yes, I manage Blockbuster's online website. I've done front-end development and am currently working on the back-end," the young woman replied seriously, her purse resting on her lap. Blockbuster was a DVD rental chain with locations nationwide, headquartered in Florida, but its business had been declining lately.
"How old are you?"
"Turning 28 soon."
"Are you married?"
"Divorced."
"Do you have any kids?"
"One, three years old."
That likely meant she wouldn't take maternity leave soon.
Ryan nodded. Although her resume listed many projects she had worked on and claimed fluency in a heap of programming languages, Ryan didn't understand any of it and went straight to the point: "If I asked you to create a forum, with a simple interface and functionality, but with an activation system, could you handle it on your own?"
"Depends on the time frame," she said.
"Within a week."
"Then it should be fine," she considered.
"That means we're good to go."
"Uh... yes, I suppose," she nodded.
"Expected salary..." Ryan saw her request on the resume, immediately stood up, and extended his hand.
"Welcome aboard! What should I call you?"
"Veronica."
"Great, Veronica! If possible, you can start working today."
"Today? That works, but..." She glanced around the empty space.
"You want me to work here?" she asked cautiously.
"I can grant you special privileges; for now, you can work from home. You have a computer, right?"
"I do."
That was good; it spared Ryan from having to pay for an office space right away.
"Oh, and keep the first hundred numbers for internal use. When you design, start from 101," Ryan reminded her.
...
"Two minutes left," a female college student in Florida sat in front of her computer, the mouse ready to click as soon as the button lit up.
"Is it really that important?" her boyfriend asked, seeing the price displayed on the page. Usually, an album cost around $12 to $16, often priced around $11.99 or $12.99, with EPs being cheaper, some as low as $5.99.
Ryan's EP was priced at $8.99 for the standard version and $39.99 for the collector's edition, which included just a pretty box and a booklet along with a unique number tag.
For an EP to sell a collector's edition was unprecedented.
This pricing attracted criticism online, with many people saying Ryan was being greedy.
"It's only for two days, right? Even if I don't use it, the tag can be sold on second-hand sites," the girl said.
Ryan hadn't even mentioned a "fan site" yet.
"That's pointless. Only you girls would buy this useless stuff," her boyfriend said, claiming he would only buy the standard version.
"Really? You bought the collector's edition of that video game, didn't you? The standard version would also work." She shot back.
Her boyfriend was left speechless.
Time flew by, and the clock struck midnight. The young college student quickly clicked the mouse, and a notification popped up seconds later.
The screen displayed a massive 167!
She tried to click again but was notified that a single IP could only purchase one copy.
...
Two days later, the same couple had a conversation after the young woman excitedly brought up the latest news.
"After the two-day limited sale of the collector's edition, Ryan's MySpace immediately announced he would create a fan-exclusive website where he would interact with fans. This site is currently in beta testing, and people who bought the collector's edition have beta activation codes, with their numbers displayed on the site. No wonder a single IP can only purchase once," she explained, dawning realization washing over her.
"That's awesome; now I can interact with Ryan in real-time!" she said dreamily.
That grin made her boyfriend feel conflicted. It was a romantic moment, yet here she was, thinking about another guy.
Seeing her boyfriend wasn't reacting, the girl stood up, opened her computer, and prepared to browse eBay, only to find that people were already flipping activation codes for some numbers.
Codes like 11111, 22222, and so on.
The number "3" was already being auctioned, and the price skyrocketed into the thousands -- enough to buy two used cars.
"There must be some wealthy fans out there," she mused.
Her boyfriend added, "So quickly, and there are already batch numbers for sale. They must have been reserved by insiders!"
"Why do you care? You're not buying anything," she responded, typing Ryan Rivers' name into a domain and found she could connect successfully.
Though the physical album hadn't arrived yet, the activation code could be viewed directly through its sales info; the girl registered with ease, finding it was just a forum that had several sections already designed and a few chat rooms operating in real-time.
The screen scrolled rapidly, and she only had time to catch a few messages.
...
[22222: I spent 2,000 dollars on eBay! Ryan, can I get a kiss?]
[10000: I'll always love you, baby.]
[8733: We took a picture together in Austin; do you remember me?]
[882: I work in Silicon Valley. Are you still hiring tech people? This website is poorly made.]
[412: Did you guys see the bidding on the site? That number 3 has almost hit twenty thousand!]
[112: There are still ten minutes to go before the auction ends; it might reach 30 grand.]
[13: It could even be forty grand.]
[5854: Ryan, I want to eat chicken!]
[13: Eat your M.]
[14: Haha, Taylor's mad.]
[9321: Where's Taylor? Who is Taylor?]
[167: No way that's worth that much. By the way, isn't Taylor Swift's lucky number 13?]
The young college girl typed back.
[22222: Makes sense, but here's the question: who is 14?]
What happened next surprised everyone. The only single-digit number on the internet soared in price during the last few minutes of the auction, ultimately being snatched up by a mysterious buyer from Arkansas for sixty thousand dollars.
[13: Ryan's fans are really wealthy. And I'm not Taylor.]
[5854: Ryan, I want to eat chicken.]
[13: ...]
*****
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