Free Web NovelThe iPhone’s success continued.
Despite the high price, every batch shipped sold out immediately.
Because production remained insufficient, they eventually had no choice but to acquire several more factories.
At an OEM electronics plant in Changwon, urgent work was underway to replace the production lines for contract iPhone manufacturing.
But it would still take several months before the factory became operational, and supply remained far below demand.
Korea Telecom repeatedly requested additional handset allocations from Apple, but every request was rejected.
Sales in the United States were also continuing to rise.
They had already surpassed one million units and were approaching the prepared two-million-unit target.
The upward curve was even steeper than in my previous life.
As expected, the iPhone’s explosive popularity was all because of the App Store.
The fact that anyone could create and sell the app they wanted was enough to capture developers’ attention.
The number of apps uploaded to the App Store increased by the hour, which in turn made even more people want the iPhone—a perfect virtuous cycle.
The success in America and Korea caused a major stir in Japan as well.
“Welcome, President Kim.”
Masayoshi Son personally came to the airport to greet me.
“I didn’t expect you to come out in person.”
“Haha. Of course I had to.”
His posture was even humbler than in Korea, and I returned it with a deep smile.
After a brief exchange of greetings, I turned my gaze to the foreigner standing beside him.
“Hello. I’m John.”
“Ah, nice to meet you. You’re the CEO of Long Capital, correct?”
“Yes. It’s my first time meeting you, Boss.”
John was the head of Long Capital, the firm we had revived for this investment.
James Han had apparently picked someone trustworthy and appointed him CEO.
He had been working with Masayoshi Son in Japan on the acquisition of Vodafone Japan.
I had heard only his name until now—this was the first time seeing his face. I extended my hand and smiled.
“Nice to meet you. This deal hinges on you, Mr. John. If it succeeds, the reward will be more than certain.”
“Yes, I know. That’s why I took this assignment.”
At John’s blunt honesty, I nodded.
“Let’s head to SoftBank headquarters first.”
Once the greeting ended, Masayoshi Son stepped in.
I moved with him to SoftBank’s headquarters.
The moment we arrived, we headed straight into the conference room.
“Let’s begin right away. How far have the acquisition talks progressed?”
“A competitor jumped in suddenly, so Vodafone raised the asking price.”
“The Americans?”
“Yes. Two American private equity firms entered the bidding as a consortium.”
I had expected something like this, but they had moved even faster than I thought.
“Who are they?” ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com
“Cerberus Partners and Providence Equity Partners.”
“And their offer?”
“It’s not confirmed, but we heard they bid 1.8 trillion yen.”
“That’s higher than expected. Chairman Son, your offer to Vodafone was 1.5 trillion yen, correct?”
Masayoshi Son let out a small sigh and nodded.
“Yes. We were almost at the signing stage, but negotiations hit trouble the moment competitors appeared.”
“But buyout funds have no reason to acquire Vodafone Japan, do they?”
“Our analysis is that KDDI is behind them.”
For KDDI, Japan’s second-largest telecom company, that was entirely plausible.
“Have you met with them? There’s no benefit in raising the price pointlessly.”
“They’ve refused to meet us altogether.”
“That makes no sense. Even if they acquired Vodafone Japan, it would require massive additional investment.”
I tapped the table lightly, sorting through my thoughts.
KDDI? ...Or Vodafone?
The telecom business required enormous capital investment.
It wasn’t the kind of company buyout funds preferred—those firms liked restructuring, increasing enterprise value, and then reselling.
There was no reason for them to invest such a massive amount otherwise.
Which meant someone had to be standing behind them.
Once I had arranged my thoughts, I turned to Masayoshi Son.
“Let me make a quick call. I need to ask Dream High headquarters.”
“Ah, then use this. Put it on speaker so we can all listen.”
Masayoshi Son slid the wired desk phone toward me.
I nodded and dialed a familiar number.
— Yes, James Han speaking.
“CEO James. This is Kim Muhyuk. I’m calling from SoftBank headquarters.”
Because this was an official setting, I decided it was better to give the moment weight than flaunt personal familiarity, and James Han quickly matched the tone.
— I’ve been waiting, Boss.
“Long Capital’s John and Chairman Son are both here as well. Let’s start with greetings.”
— Chairman Son, a pleasure. This is Han Kyungyoung.
“Likewise, CEO Han.”
— John! How is it? Think you can handle it?
“Yes, sir. I can.”
— Work hard. If you wrap this up well, I’ll keep entrusting you with deals like this.
“Yes. Thank you, sir.”
Once the greetings ended, I moved straight to the point.
“Do you know anything about Cerberus and Providence’s movements?”
— Cerberus and Providence? One moment. I’ll call in the relevant staff member.
A moment later, a different voice replaced Han’s.
— Are you referring to the Cerberus and Providence funds?
— Peter, know anything?
— I understand they formed a consortium to acquire Vodafone Japan.
— Good. Explain everything you know.
Apparently the handset had changed hands, because the unfamiliar voice greeted us directly.
— Hello. This is Peter.
“Hello, Peter. Do you know anything about which companies or individuals invested in those two funds?”
— Due to the nature of private equity, not all investors are publicly known.
“Even roughly.”
After a brief pause, as if gathering his thoughts, Peter finally spoke.
— I understand most of the investors are from Europe and Asia rather than the United States.
“Really? Any idea why they suddenly want Vodafone Japan?”
— That part puzzles us too. We heard Vodafone UK was preparing to sell Vodafone Japan. We assumed SoftBank would acquire it. So we were surprised when those two funds suddenly joined forces and entered the bidding.
At that moment, Masayoshi Son cut into the call.
“Hello. This is Masayoshi. Are there any rumors circulating on Wall Street?”
— Chairman Masayoshi, hello.
“We can exchange pleasantries later. Right—are there any rumors? About what those two funds are really after.”
— Hmm...
After a brief hesitation, Peter answered.
— No specific rumors are circulating.
“Ah... I see.”
— I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help.
“Not at all.”
Masayoshi Son leaned back, frowning.
“Good work, Peter. Please put James back on.”
— Good work, Peter. You can go now.
Once the employee had left, James spoke again.
— We’re also closely watching the Vodafone Japan negotiations. I’ll try meeting with the heads of those two funds and feel them out.
“Please do. Until we know their exact intentions, we can’t decide whether to raise the bid or maintain Chairman Son’s current offer.”
— Yes, Boss. I’ll contact you right after meeting them.
After ending the call with James Han, I turned to Masayoshi Son.
“The fact that no rumors are circulating on Wall Street means this was decided suddenly. I’m more suspicious of Vodafone than KDDI.”
“You mean Vodafone itself is backing this?”
“Yes. If KDDI were moving, there’s no way you wouldn’t know, Chairman Son. They would inevitably leave traces.”
“Hmm.”
“I think they’re trying to drive up the sale price.”
A trick to inflate the acquisition price before selling. That was my conclusion.
“If we walk away, Vodafone would be in an even more difficult position.”
“But they also know you’re the one in a hurry, Chairman Son. There isn’t another telecom company worth acquiring.”
Even aside from the iPhone, Masayoshi Son absolutely needed a telecom carrier.
They were likely assuming that even if they inflated the valuation, he would still buy.
“That’s true, but Vodafone headquarters wants to exit Japan quickly.”
“Didn’t they already fail a sale negotiation with the Ripplewood Fund in 2003? Another competitor appeared then too, and Ripplewood eventually declared it was withdrawing.”
Vodafone had been considering a Japan exit for quite a long time.
But even after years, it still hadn’t found a buyer.
“Hm. That may be true.”
“One time is coincidence. Two times is not.”
Something similar must have happened back then as well. Masayoshi Son seemed to agree, nodding slowly.
At that moment, John offered his opinion.
“Then what about withdrawing our acquisition plan?”
Masayoshi Son immediately pushed back.
“That’s impossible. If Vodafone Japan falls into someone else’s hands, the damage to us will be immense. Our company’s survival is on the line.”
“I’m just saying we should play hardball.”
“Do you know how much effort we put into getting to this table? All that work could evaporate in an instant. We barely fought through the interference of other carriers to sit down at these negotiations. Walking away is absolutely not an option.”
Despite the continued opposition, John remained firm.
“Then are you suggesting we raise the offer? If the rumor that they bid 1.8 trillion yen is true, then we need to bid 2 trillion to secure it safely. I’m not sure it’s worth that.”
“Vodafone Japan’s asset value alone exceeds 1 trillion.”
“That’s just an estimate. And after the acquisition, the investment burden will be enormous. Two trillion is too °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° much.”
“Didn’t you see the iPhone’s success in Korea and the U.S.? We can’t gamble over shaving a little off the acquisition price when success is already guaranteed.”
The two of them continued in perfect parallel lines.
Honestly, both of them were far too stubborn.
I let out a bitter smile inwardly.
“It’s not like he’s saying we should give up entirely.”
“But what if we declare withdrawal and the other side takes advantage of it?”
“Alright, alright, both of you stop.”
The atmosphere was becoming sharper by the second, so I stepped into the conversation.
“John. How much capital is sitting in Long Capital’s account?”
“Ten billion dollars. In yen, that’s 1.2 trillion at today’s exchange rate.”
“If we put in 1 trillion as the acquisition amount, that leaves 200 billion.”
“You’re thinking of 2 trillion?”
“If Chairman Son wants it that badly, we should give it to him. There’s nothing stupider than losing it because you were short on money.”
“But...”
John trailed off.
Of course, rationally, John was right.
Still, I nodded with a soft smile to reassure the person who would be working with us going forward.
“It’s alright, John.”
“Vodafone Japan’s fair value is 1 trillion. Even with a premium, double is too much.”
“There’s no replacement asset. At double, it’s still cheap.”
“That’s right, President Kim. Not 2 trillion—even if it took 3 trillion, if I can secure it, I’m confident I can make it Japan’s top telecom company.”
Seizing the opening, Masayoshi Son urgently pressed his case.
“If we don’t acquire Vodafone Japan and instead continue leasing network infrastructure, we’ll remain permanently at NTT’s mercy. Building our own network isn’t something that can be done in one or two years. We don’t have time to hesitate when we hold a weapon as powerful as the iPhone. This has only made me more certain: in the near future, every mobile phone will be replaced by smartphones.”
As expected, Masayoshi Son’s eye for the future was precise.
The smartphone market would continue climbing dramatically every year.
“Very well. Bid up to 2 trillion yen.”
Masayoshi Son’s hardened expression relaxed, and he couldn’t hide his delight.
“Thank you, President Kim. You have no idea how exacting CEO John is.”
“Please understand. That’s exactly why I sent him. John, proceed with that in mind.”
“Yes, Boss.”
“But can you really prepare the 1 trillion yen you need, Chairman Son?”
“Even if I need additional contributions from affiliates, I’ll make it happen. Don’t worry.”
“You are not borrowing from banks.”
I said it firmly, but Masayoshi Son only looked even more confident.
“Yes. Of course. Please don’t worry.”
“Good. Then proceed. But 2 trillion is the absolute ceiling. Under no circumstances do we go above that.”
“Yes! I will secure it.”
Once the discussion wrapped up, I checked the time.
“It should be about time for our appointment, right?”
Masayoshi Son checked as well and nodded.
“That’s right. Let’s go.”
The place we arrived at with Masayoshi Son was a small house on the outskirts of Tokyo.
“Are you sure this is the right place?”
“Yes. Small, isn’t it? The elder lives very frugally.”
No matter how frugal someone was, this still felt excessive.
For the home of a person said to be capable of moving several trillion yen in cash, it was far too modest.
