"This kind of phenomenal program has its own life cycle," Takuya Nakayama suggested, seizing the opportunity. "While the buzz is high, we should break down the advertising slots into different tiers: exclusive title sponsorship, special sponsorship, and product placement. Since TOTO wants to buy out the lead sponsorship, the price shouldn't follow standard market rates; we need to make them participate in a bidding war."
Nakagawa Jun laughed heartily on the other end of the line. "You brat are even more ruthless at stripping them bare than I am. The legal department is already drafting the new contract."
After the laughter subsided, Nakagawa Jun's tone shifted from that of a professional president to that of an elder. "Before I left this morning, your mother-in-law was still talking about it. She said that in all my years of struggling in the business world, the smartest investment I ever made wasn't buying those cheap animation broadcast rights in the early days, but agreeing to let Eri marry you. In getting such a good son-in-law, our family has really struck gold."
Takuya Nakayama chuckled and placed his fountain pen back into the holder. "Mother-in-law is too kind. Eri's spirits have been especially good recently. After she gives birth, I'll take her and the child back to her parents' home for a few days. Kazuki was asking to go see his grandfather just two days ago."
Hearing his grandson's name, Nakagawa Jun's voice softened. "Good, good, good. I've already had everything at home tidied up. You're managing all that business at Sega now, and the pressure is intense, but you must make sure to take care of your family too."
Upon hearing the name of his grandson, Nakagawa Jun's voice softened. "Alright, alright, the house has already been tidied up for a while now. You're managing things over at Sega, and the pressure is high, but you still need to look after your family." His father-in-law shifted his sitting position, bringing the conversation back to the main topic. "The project fee this time will be processed through official channels by the station and deposited into your personal account. The amount can't compare to Sega's profits, but consider it a big red envelope from me, your grandfather-in-law, to the little one who has yet to be born, to buy a few cans of good formula."
"Then I'll accept this 'milk powder money' on the child's behalf," Takuya Nakayama replied.
After a few moments of casual conversation, they ended the call.
The office returned to silence.
The audit materials on the desk were piled high. Takuya Nakayama picked up his cold coffee, took a sip, and continued to sift through the complex financial data.
November arrived.
The cold air of winter hitting the North American continent failed to cool the heat of Hollywood's promotional machinery.
Giant billboards for Toy Story were successively erected on the exterior walls of buildings along both sides of Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles.
Sega of North America, coordinating with Disney's promotional rhythm, fully launched its marketing plan.
In Tijuana, Mexico.
Inside the Sega factory in the Maquiladora Industrial Zone, the sound of machinery friction from the assembly lines filled the entire plant.
Mexico, Tijuana.
Inside the Sega factory in the Maquiladora Industrial Park, the mechanical friction of operating assembly lines filled the entire plant.
Tom Kalinske, President of Sega of America, walked along the production line wearing an anti-static suit.
On the conveyor belts, game discs and cartridges featuring Woody and Buzz Lightyear on the covers were being rapidly packaged and sealed.
"Give me the number for this week's pressing," Kalinske said, stopping in his tracks and turning to ask the factory manager accompanying him.
The manager flipped through the production report in his hand. "We've completed a cumulative total of 700,000 units this week. Discs for the Jupiter platform account for 60%, and cartridges for the MD platform account for 40%. The yield rate is controlled at over 99.5%."
Kalinske patted a carton at the end of the assembly line, his tone showing dissatisfaction. "The numbers are too low. Once the Thanksgiving holiday hits, this inventory won't even last a week. Tell scheduling to start three-shift rotations from today; the production line must not stop for 24 hours. Pay overtime at the top-tier rate."
The manager quickly noted it down in his notebook and agreed.
Kalinske had an outgoing and unrestrained personality, and he always valued execution.
Takuya Nakayama had laid out a strategic plan in Japan to clear the December release schedule. Whether this card could be played effectively depended entirely on how strong the sales momentum of Toy Story would be in the North American market.
The supply chain must not fall through.
At the same time, in San Francisco, California.
Bernard, who was usually responsible for communication and coordination with Hollywood, was sitting in his office reviewing a new batch of promotional materials.
The supply chain must not fail.
At the same time, in San Francisco, California.
Bernard, who was typically responsible for coordinating with Hollywood, was sitting in his office reviewing a new batch of promotional materials.
On his desk were several faxes from Pixar.
Disney had deep pockets and an incredibly wide range of promotional channels.
Pixar, on the other hand, was extremely fastidious about the details.
Bernard had just finished a phone call with his contact at Pixar, who had even suggested revisions to the font spacing on the back of the game's packaging box.
This obsession stemmed from Pixar's largest shareholder, Steve Jobs.
At this time, Jobs was facing a critical juncture in his career.
The traditional 2D animation market was being challenged, and high hopes were pinned on Pixar's 3D computer animation.
In 1991, Pixar signed a harsh cooperation agreement with Disney.
During the project's development, Disney executives had forcibly halted production due to conflicts in creative vision.
Jobs did not compromise.
He paid out of his own pocket to keep the team running. In subsequent negotiations, he successfully persuaded Disney to increase the film's production budget from $17 million to $30 million, ensuring that artistic quality would not be constrained by a lack of funds.
In a meeting room at Pixar headquarters, Jobs was reviewing the latest version of the game's promotional poster.
He didn't just manage the films; he personally oversaw the marketing for Sega's game as well.
He scrutinized every piece of material and every catchphrase, word by word.
The media described his approach to reviewing project proposals as being as meticulous as a lawyer studying a legal code.
Jobs put down the poster and turned to look at the director, John Lasseter, who was sitting across from him.
"John," Jobs began, posing a question, "at Apple, the market lifespan of a computer is, at most, three years. Technology iterates too quickly. Evaluate this for me: how long will the work you're doing now last?"
Lasseter met Jobs' gaze and replied, "As long as the story is compelling enough, it will endure forever."
Jobs was satisfied with this answer.
He reached out and tapped the Jupiter console on the table, which was running a test version of Toy Story.
"The work Sega has delivered has exceeded my expectations," Jobs remarked.
Initially, when licensing the game adaptation, he had been extremely wary.
Previous Hollywood game adaptations based on movies were notorious for being shoddy, reskinned products that easily backfired, damaging the reputation of the films themselves.
The most typical example of this was Atari's shoddy work on "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial," which completely ignited the players' fury, thereby triggering the Atari shock and a multi-year depression for the American gaming industry.
Although Jobs had long since left Atari by then and had already founded Apple, he was still able to get hold of some inside information from Atari, which was one of the factors why Jobs never entered the gaming industry.
And Sega did not take that shortcut to make quick money.
"They've truly grasped the core of the film," Jobs said, watching Woody's fluid movements and the fully 3D-rendered scenes on the screen. "It's not just about meeting technical standards. Their artistic style is highly consistent with our film. This provides the audience with an entirely new dimension of experience."
He stood up, walked to the whiteboard, and picked up a marker to write down the core promotional strategy.
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