Feasibility analysis of Xiaomi-LeTV merger

Xiaomi and LeEco merge, how is it possible?! When you see this title, is this your first reaction? In fact, I have never thought about it from this angle before, but on April 14, after returning from the LeEco mobile phone conference and being stimulated by the merger of Ganji and 58, this idea suddenly popped up in my mind.

Speaking of LeEco's mobile phone launch, besides remembering that buying content would give away a mobile phone and free data, the most touching thing was the price, which I forgot as soon as I looked at it. Comrade Lei Jun, who is working hard to increase the unit price of mobile phones, must have been hit in the back by Comrade Jia Yueting, whom he hadn't seen for a year - it's still a naked price war.

  Thinking of the somewhat similar scenes of the mobile phone launches by Steve Jobs and Steve Lei, I can't help but think: the so-called general trend of the world is that things that come together for a long time will eventually separate, and things that separate for a long time will eventually come together. Everything is possible, isn't it? Let's make a bold assumption and carefully verify it, and open our minds a little.

Because the proposition of "Xiaomi and LeTV merger" itself is rather idealistic, we first make an assumption from an idealistic level and verify it.

  Idealism 1: Enemies always meet.

  Youku Tudou can merge, Kuaidi and Didi can merge, Ganji and 58 can merge. Fighting is love and scolding is love. There must be a very high degree of equality in order to love and hate each other. Xiaomi and LeTV, two Internet companies that are always mentioned together, naturally it is impossible for them not to be enemies.

I remember when Youku and Tudou merged, what I still remember vividly is a Weibo post I saw at the time, in which someone said that he had just switched from Youku to Tudou, and then they merged. This is the simplest and most profound reflection of the drama of the merger between the two companies.

  If we look at it from a God's perspective (or that of a big boss), the fact that Xiaomi and LeTV have been mentioned in the same breath for so many years is already the best reason for a merger.

  Idealism 2: Lei Jun and Jia Yueting are both sentimental people

  As for sentiment, everyone can have it. However, in the eyes of people who only judge heroes by their success, only the sentiments of successful people are admired. If they fail, the sentiments will become a target to be stepped on again. For example, Luo Yonghao’s sentiment when he released the Hammer phone: "To try and make this world a better place is our original intention of starting this company. We make profits by deliberately improving the quality of human life, rather than by deliberately making profits for the sake of making profits." "I'm not in this for winning or losing, I'm just serious." With the decline of the Hammer phone, no one cared about this sentiment anymore.

  However, everyone remembers what Jack Ma said, "You have to have dreams, what if they come true?"; remember Lei Jun and other old boys who worked 6*12 hours a day to start a business, just for Xiaomi style, just to stand at the top of the world with Made in China; remember Jia Yueting's ecological chain vision and Made in China plan.

  People with feelings are good at telling stories. If two people with feelings come together, can they create greater feelings and more beautiful stories?

  Idealism 3: Two companies with fans

  I have attended too many press conferences. It seems that only Xiaomi and LeTV can sell press conference tickets at a price and sell them out quickly, and even have scalpers reselling tickets before the conference. The power of fans is too terrifying.

  So, if the two merge, will many haters or passers-by be able to turn into fans directly?

Idealism 4. Common fashion route

  There is no need to talk about LeTV. The boss lady herself has one foot in the fashion circle. Entertainment and fashion always go hand in hand. When launching the super TV, celebrities were also invited to experience it.

  Xiaomi is walking with Su Mang, president of the fashion group and editor-in-chief of Harper's Bazaar. If Su Mang was only low-key when Mi 4 was released, she is now at the forefront. Xiaomi NOTE has launched a goddess version, and it is said that there will be a TV as well. In addition, Lei Boss also "filmed a blockbuster" with Huang Xiaoming and dated Zhang Jie.

It seems that both sides still have a deep consensus on this level!

Idealism 5: Complementarity between liberal arts and science students

  Xiaomi and LeTV are two companies with completely different temperaments. Xiaomi started out as a hardware company and is a product manager base, with everyone including Lei Jun being a product manager. LeTV started out as a content company and is an art company. To use an inappropriate analogy, Xiaomi is a science student and LeTV is a liberal arts student. In terms of hands-on ability, liberal arts students are far inferior to science students.

  I will explain this from a small detail - LeTV's control over the entire press conference was far inferior to Xiaomi's. Although both had to go through several checkpoints to enter the venue, Xiaomi's entire process was much smoother, and the number of people in the product experience area was controlled, which made the experience more secure. On April 14, at the west gate of the MasterCard Center, many media teachers and music fans were very angry because the entrance time was almost an hour long. Not to mention the product experience area, which was usually crowded.

Idealism 6: Unanimous Ecological Chain Plan

  When it comes to the ecosystem, LeEco really mentioned it before Xiaomi. This is the difference between liberal arts students and science students. Science students do things first and talk about them, while liberal arts students talk about them first and do them. But no matter what, both companies are working on the ecosystem chain, although the directions are different.

  This is another place where the concepts are consistent.

Idealism 7: Everything is possible

The business world is like a battlefield, where anything can happen. Just like two magnets, when the same poles touch each other, they repel each other, but when they turn around a little, the opposite poles will attract each other.

After talking about idealism, let's talk about materialism. Speaking of materialism, the biggest reason for the merger of the two is complementarity. Xiaomi started with mobile phones, extended to TVs, and then to the smart home ecosystem, and is now filling up content; LeTV started with content, extended to TVs, and then to the smart home ecosystem, and is now launching mobile phones. After the perfect fusion of the two parabolas, it is completely possible to draw a more beautiful picture.

  Complementary Materialism 1: LeTV content supplements Xiaomi

  According to the wooden barrel theory, content may be the shortest board of Xiaomi at present. Although Xiaomi has invested heavily in iQiyi, Youku, etc. since 2014, and poached Chen Tong, the former editor-in-chief of Sina, to increase its content. But content is not a one- or two-year effort. Not to mention that LeTV accumulated a large number of copyrights at a low cost when Youku and Tudou were still struggling to grab users, LeTV Pictures alone is also a presence that cannot be ignored. It has both the old generation of Zhang Yimou and Lu Chuan, and the new generation of "Tiny Times", which is quite strong.

  Because of this, although LeEco phones also had a lot of data when they were released, they are different because they are equipped with LeEco content. Buying content, you get a phone and data for free, and the content can be shared on multiple screens. It is hard for users not to be tempted.

LeTV content is a great supplement to Xiaomi!

  Complementary Materialism 2: Xiaomi’s Hardware and UI Supplement LeTV

  LeEco released EUI yesterday morning, but many media outlets were clearly focused on mobile phones. So, not only were they not excited to see Yu Quan, Deng Ziqi, and Huang Xiaoming perform for free this morning, but they also basically ignored EUI. MIUI is different. MIUI came first, and then Xiaomi mobile phones and Xiaomi TVs. MIUI has made great contributions to Xiaomi's hardware development.

Let's talk about hardware. In terms of TV and TV box, the two companies are evenly matched. However, although they are also cooperating with Future TV, due to a combination of factors, LeTV's turnaround is not as easy as Xiaomi's. In terms of mobile phones, Xiaomi is far ahead. It can be said that LeTV now needs to spend several times more effort to enter the mobile phone market, and it is still unknown whether it can do well.

Xiaomi phones are also a great boost to LeTV.

Complementary Materialism 3: LeEco’s vertical channels provide Xiaomi with

  Apart from their respective influence in the public market, LeTV is far superior to Xiaomi in terms of operator channels. Back then, LeTV boxes could be found in telecom business halls in remote towns, which fully demonstrates its penetration capability.

  Xiaomi, on the other hand, has made little progress in the vertical market, and its attempt with Jiangxi Radio and Television to develop a high-definition small box also ended in failure. If there were vertical channels, things would be completely different.

  Complementary Materialism 4: Xiaomi’s e-commerce platform provides LeTV with

  LeTV also has an e-commerce platform, which is also open for purchase every Tuesday, and even sells red wine. However, it is still no match for Xiaomi, which claims to be the third largest e-commerce platform, which sold 2.11 million mobile phones in one day during the Mi Fan Festival and achieved sales of more than 2 billion yuan.

  Since Lei Jun clearly said that an e-commerce platform should have about a hundred kinds of goods, then wine and even cars can also be sold.

  Complementary Materialism 5. 1+1>2

  Lei Jun + Jia Yueting, LeEco team + Xiaomi team, science students + liberal arts students, the softness of content + the hardness of hardware, 1+1 must be greater than 2, right?

  Whether it is Lei Jun or Jia Yueting, they no longer need to tell stories to all kinds of people, especially investors, because "being together" itself is the biggest story!

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.