"Actually, the film and entertainment industry is very simple. Every problem can be solved with money, so whether you understand the industry or not doesn't really matter," Zhao Liying said with a smile. "As long as you have the money to invest, you can find any director you want, and there's no problem finding any star you want. If you want to make an actor famous, it's just a matter of saying the word.

"Do you know why directors are so in demand? It's because they decide who gets to be the lead. Whoever becomes the lead gets famous easily, and once they're famous, their asking price for future projects goes up. But investors are even more powerful than directors, because investors can directly decide who gets to be the director."

Yi Anguo nodded. "Since you're so smart, you can manage the film and media company yourself. Any problem with that?"

"Are you serious? You really want me to manage the film company?" Zhao Liying asked, stunned.

"Of course. Do I look like I'm joking?" Yi Anguo countered.

"I've never managed a film company before! You're investing so much money to establish it; aren't you afraid I'll manage it into the ground?" Zhao Liying was both shocked and delighted, still finding it hard to believe.

"If it loses money, then it loses money," Yi Anguo said nonchalantly, though he couldn't resist adding a condition to put a little pressure on her. "But this is your only chance; if you fail, there won't be another. And if it fails, you'll just have to obediently be my woman. How does that sound?"

"Fine! I'm willing to give it a try," Zhao Liying said defiantly. "If I fail, I'll accept my fate and be your woman. But for this film company, how much do you plan to invest?"

"I don't know either! How much do you think is necessary?" Yi Anguo said helplessly.

"I can't say for sure right now. It mainly depends on the first project after the company is established. If we're making a movie, what's the investment scale? If it's a TV series, what's its budget?" she explained. "Just setting up the company itself doesn't cost much; the main expense is the investment in specific film and television projects. Once a project is chosen, you can either fund it entirely yourself or go out and find other investors."

"Alright, let's start with an investment of thirty million yuan to get the company established. We can decide on any additional investments later as needed," Yi Anguo said generously.

"Thirty million? That's so much! That's already enough to produce a movie," Zhao Liying said, both startled and overjoyed.

"Mhm. You can start by trying to produce a film or series," Yi Anguo nodded, revealing his further investment plans. "Besides the production company, I also plan to create an internet video streaming website and a theater chain. That way, we won't have to worry about distribution for the movies and shows we produce."

"But if you stream it online, wouldn't that mean you won't make any money? Isn't watching movies and TV online free?" Zhao Liying asked, puzzled. She could understand a theater chain, but putting content online… Doesn't that just invite piracy? She was baffled.

At this time, although China had numerous video websites, almost none of them charged users, save for a few that were just testing the waters. They were all essentially supported by advertising revenue. Since it was impossible to turn a profit on ad revenue alone, many of these websites were simply struggling to stay afloat. To put it plainly, they were just burning through investors' money.

After 2010, however, major video streaming sites began to enter the paid subscription era, with monthly memberships costing fifteen to twenty yuan. But this period was plagued by rampant piracy and a public that had yet to develop an awareness for paying for copyrighted content. The video sites themselves had sparse content libraries, relying mainly on movies for their paid offerings. Member benefits were limited, usually just on-demand access to paid films and the ability to skip pre-roll ads, which led to very slow membership growth.

By 2013, the total number of paying users across all major video platforms was merely 800,000. The market was shrouded in a dense fog, and the path forward was unclear.

With the paid market struggling, the cash-burning video industry began to see a wave of mergers and acquisitions. Youku bought Tudou, SMG BesTV invested in Funshion, Renren acquired 56.com, and Shanda bought Ku6. By 2013, Baidu's iQiyi had merged with PPS, and Suning acquired PPTV.

Fortunately, crisis also breeds change. During these two years, video websites began to join forces against piracy. Content copyright started gaining attention, and the introduction of relevant policies created a healthier environment for the industry's development, carving out an opening for the paid market to grow.

Still, the logic for profitability remained centered on advertising revenue. Platforms would purchase expensive copyrighted content to attract user traffic, then convert that traffic into ad income, all while exploring the potential of paid memberships on the side. This model created a desperate thirst for exclusive rights, which in turn drove copyright costs higher and higher, trapping platforms in a vicious cycle of burning money. In a prime example, at the end of 2013, iQiyi paid a hefty price of 200 million yuan for the exclusive online broadcast rights to five popular variety shows from Hunan Satellite TV for 2014.

Simultaneously, the continuous shortening of the "window period"—the time between a movie's theatrical release and its online availability—also helped boost paid memberships. A large number of films were launched on video platforms with a "zero window period," compelling users to pay for instant access and accelerating the growth of the paid video market.

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