Chapter 762 New TV Station License

Chapter 762 New TV Station License

Chapter 762 New TV Station License
"Gang? They use filming to launder money?" Yang Wendong immediately asked back;
Yang Wendong, who was born in the 80s, has some knowledge of Hong Kong movies. One of them is that some gangs in the 80s entered the film industry on a large scale in order to launder money for themselves.

Box office figures can be faked. Not to mention gang control, even if there is no gang control, some commercial needs will cause some regular companies to fake.
Today, because of its own butterfly effect, Hong Kong films have become popular about 5-10 years earlier. Even because of its own overseas channel resources, the overall income of the Hong Kong film industry is higher. This has brought huge profits to Hong Kong film practitioners. At the same time, the high box office has also provided some gangs with a way to launder funds.

Zou Wenhuai nodded and said, "Yes, some movies are of average quality, but the box office is very high, which is very abnormal. Moreover, these movies are not shown overseas for our business. It is obvious that there is a problem at first glance."

Even Zou Wenhuai, who has worked in the film industry for many years, does not dare to guarantee that the box office of the movies he is optimistic about or pessimistic about will be good or bad. There are dark horses every year, so it is not surprising to be wrong.
But since the performance in Hong Kong is very good, it is possible to make more money overseas. You know, although the share of overseas releases is lower, there are more overseas markets. Generally speaking, a movie can make much more money overseas than in Hong Kong.

This is also the reason why Hong Kong movies have continued to be popular over the years.

Yang Wendong thought for a moment and asked again: "If it's money laundering, I can understand it, but this also requires the cooperation of the cinema, right? Otherwise, half of the box office will be taken away by the cinema chain, how can it be laundered?"

According to the rules of the film industry, the cinema basically takes about half of the commission. This is volatile. It varies depending on whether the film has just been released or has been released for a while, and whether it is an ordinary film or a blockbuster film. But on average, it is about half.
The gangs are not stupid when it comes to money laundering, if half of it is taken away, then what’s the point of playing?

Wrinkle said: "They didn't use our cinemas, but built some of their own, in small places, specifically for money laundering."

"It's so obvious, but the Hong Kong police don't care?" Yang Wendong asked with a smile;

Zou Wenhuai shook his head and said, "The Hong Kong police should know about this, but they didn't ask about it. There may be some connection between them. Also, the ICAC and the Hong Kong police are fighting fiercely now. So as long as it's not a serious case, the Hong Kong police won't pay much attention to it."

The initial purpose of the establishment of the ICAC was to combat corruption within the JC. Now that the big tigers have been taken down, the flies still need to be dealt with;
It's just that there are too many flies, and they are linked to each other, so they are in a standoff, and even the police have taken to the streets to protest.
Yang Wendong also knew the seriousness of the situation, so he said, "If they all manage their own internal circulation, we won't care about it. It won't affect us anyway."

He is not an official, and he is too lazy to meddle in other people's business as long as these people don't offend him.

Zou Wenhuai said, "Mr. Yang, it's not that simple. Film review is still the work of the government. How much investment is needed for each film will eventually be used for tax exemption. However, the numbers filled in by these gangs are very high. A film with an investment of more than one million yuan will not pass the review at all.
So, they set their sights on first-tier movie stars, including those under our banner. As long as there are top stars involved, the pay is high enough, and the film looks decent, the government will have nothing to say.
The first-tier stars were originally unwilling to get involved with these gangs, but they could not stand the guns they had and forced them to do so. Recently, there was a kidnapping incident, and although the suspects were eventually released, it caused panic among many first-tier stars.

"It seems these gangs don't want to live anymore." Yang Wendong didn't expect that this would progress so quickly;
If these gangs only made movies, he would not bother to interfere even if it was for money laundering. But if they threatened or coerced his actors, and even their actions affected the entire Hong Kong film industry, then he could not ignore it.

Seeing his boss getting angry, Zou Wenhuai continued, "I also asked Wei Sheng to warn some gangs about this matter, but there are too many gangs in Hong Kong, and there are always those who are not afraid of death. And because it only affects a few celebrities, it is not easy to mobilize the resources of the entire group to deal with them."

"Okay, I know about this." Yang Wendong nodded;
He also understood that Zou Wenhuai had specifically informed him of this matter, and estimated that with his ability, he could not influence the top gangs in Hong Kong;
Zou Wenhuai smiled and said, "Then I will thank Mr. Yang on behalf of some Hong Kong stars."

Yang Wendong said: "Well, it's okay. This is what I should do. They are working for me."

As the supreme figure in the Hong Kong film industry, while countless movie stars usually make money for themselves, most of the profits are taken away by Changxing Film Company. Although it is also because Changxing Film Company opened up the market a long time ago that it has become what it is today;
But no matter what, as the boss, he couldn't just ignore the threat to his subordinates' lives.
On the economic level, that’s fine, they can go through the legal channels themselves, but since they won’t abide by the law, then they have to go their own way;
In the afternoon, Yang Wendong called Wei Zetao;
As the person in charge of Changxing Industry, Wei Zetao also handed over a lot of business to some gangs in his early years so that they could make some legal money. Even the various gangs would not refuse such a thing;
After all, some things have high profits but cost you your head, while this kind of thing has low profits but is safe and can be done for a long time. This is why, 50 years later, Mexican smuggling changed from flour to eggs.

After listening to the boss's description, Wei Zetao nodded and said, "I have warned several major gangs about this matter, but they are not the ones involved in this matter. These people still know how to do things. They earn our money and dare not do anything to our people.

Those who did those things were all small gangs, or even small groups of more than a dozen people. It's not easy for me to directly control them.

Our friends on the street have expressed their willingness to help us deal with them, but I don’t dare to ask them to do it. If someone dies, our group will be involved and it will be very troublesome.”

Changxing Industry's cooperation with the gangs was also legal business. In other aspects, they occasionally made demands on the gangs, but never made any illegal demands.
In today's era of Sino-British confrontation, if one is involved in such a vicious criminal case, if the Hong Kong government takes the opportunity to expand it, it will be a troublesome matter for the consortium, and may even affect the consortium's overseas business. The officials of many countries are also very taboo about such things;
"You did the right thing. We can't give them such an order." Yang Wendong nodded, and then said, "We still have to do things the right way. Otherwise, in future competitions, if someone catches us with something, it will be very troublesome even if we didn't do it on purpose."

In fact, in Hong Kong, some things can still be suppressed with the power of the Changxing Group today, but as long as the things exist, they are stains, and they may be affected in future international competition;

For example, in the past, a top star from Hong Kong wanted to immigrate to Canada, but was found to be involved in organized crime by Canadian officials. This was just a slight contact.

Although there is a big gap between actors and business tycoons, the opponents are also stronger, and many problems can be magnified.

Zou Wenhuai said: "If we take the right path, it will probably be difficult. When these people make movies, they never think that many people will actually watch them. Competition in this area is simply impossible to achieve."

"Don't look at it from this perspective, look at it from the perspective of the safety of Hong Kong stars." Yang Wendong shook his head and said, "This matter has just begun and is not very serious. The public does not know about it yet, so the Hong Kong government can turn a deaf ear to it.
Once it is exposed, we will then encourage Hong Kong film practitioners to hold SWYX, putting pressure on the Hong Kong government and asking them to find a way to suppress this wave of situation;
We can ask the company to send some extra people to protect those popular stars. There are many people learning martial arts in Hong Kong now, and there are many students of Jeet Kune Do. We can just let them go, and it can also increase employment for martial arts classes, killing two birds with one stone. With their skills, as long as they don't come into contact with firearms, they will basically be fine."

Unlike the past, the martial arts culture is very strong in Hong Kong today. Li Xiaolong is still alive, his movies are still being shown, and there are many of his disciples in Hong Kong, as well as their disciples, who continue the tradition.
Another reason why there are so many people is that the United States needs a large number of Chinese Jeet Kune Do coaches, which is also a very lucrative market. With economic benefits, capable people can be stimulated to participate; however, only a few can go to the United States. Others have decent kung fu skills and some have entered the Hong Kong film industry, but only a few can become famous in this industry. Others have no jobs and can only be martial artists, supporting actors, etc. Nowadays, if you can be a bodyguard for a big star, it is also good. Those who earn hundreds of thousands from a movie are also willing to spend a few thousand dollars to hire a dozen people.

Zou Wenhuai nodded and said, "In that case, it is indeed possible. The bodyguards do not need to fight desperately. As long as there are enough people, they can play a favorable game. If the situation is not so good, there will be time for a few to escape and we can call the police.

Then I will prepare to let the Oriental Daily News make this matter public, and I will start to organize the celebrities."

"Wait, we are not directly involved in this matter." Yang Wendong suddenly said: "I have a good relationship with MacLehose, so don't cause trouble for him directly, even if it's behind the scenes, don't go to the front directly;

In the newspaper media sector, let Ming Pao or Sing Tao Daily expose the news. These two newspapers are bold and dare to report anything.

As for Hong Kong celebrities, we can wait until the media and newspapers ferment the news, then let the union organize it, and then TVB will focus on reporting and describing how gangs are causing chaos in Hong Kong. Once the matter becomes a big deal, the Hong Kong government will definitely not ignore it. "

MacLehose's most important task now is to turn Hong Kong into the Pearl of the Orient of the British Empire and the star of Asia in terms of economy during his term of office. It is difficult to achieve this as all factors are essential. But it is too easy to destroy it. As long as it is not safe, nothing can be done.

This is also the advantage of controlling the media. Otherwise, in the pre-Internet era, it would be difficult to get exposure, but you control the TV stations.

Zou Wenhuai smiled and said, "Okay, Mr. Yang."

On the third day, the front page headlines of Sing Tao Daily and several tabloids were:

"Gangsters don't spend money on making movies? XXX was kidnapped and the set turned into a prison!"

"I'm 'forced to star' in a new gangster movie! XXX: I really don't want to act in this movie!"

"If you don't act, you will die! XXX was held hostage by the gang and forced to be the leading actor!"

The explosive headline immediately attracted the attention of many Hong Kong citizens. The recent popularity of "Jaws" was also about the movie. Unexpectedly, such a thing would happen again now.

Similarly, Hong Kong entertainment media reporters immediately began to interview some well-known Hong Kong stars, including the male star who was suspected of being kidnapped. These stars also received the news in advance. In response to the reporters, they thought Hong Kong was very unsafe. They felt uneasy and had no sense of security in Hong Kong. They also accused JF of incompetence.
Likewise, a group of reporters went to the police station to interview some high-ranking officials and public departments, asking why the stars were held hostage and they did nothing, whether they had received benefits from the gangs or were afraid of the gangs.
Some tricky questions made many police officers very angry, but there was nothing they could do. It was too sudden and they were not prepared at all.
TVB also immediately highlighted this story that evening, and the focus was also on pointing out the problems of chaos in some parts of Hong Kong and the incompetence of the JF.

So, the next day, many entertainment professionals came to the police station to protest the JF's inaction, which threatened the safety of innocent Hong Kong citizens. Some of these people really volunteered, because it was not just the stars who were threatened, but also many lighting technicians and directors, because the gangs really needed to make a complete movie to launder money, even if it was bad, they still had to have a movie;

A group of British foreigners were beaten dizzy by a series of combined punches. The Governor's Office also called the JC Office, demanding that the public anger must be suppressed as soon as possible and that the events of 67 must not be repeated.

Under pressure from many parties, the Hong Kong JC public sector finally made a commitment to focus on combating illegal money laundering and forced filming in the film industry, and to restore a stable Hong Kong society.

Time soon came to the end of August. While Yang Wendong was sitting on the Diaoyutai, he also learned about the actions of the JC government. Many organizations that were once suspected of money laundering were successively shut down, and even a hot war broke out, but in the end, the JC naturally won;

Governor's House:
MacLehose looked at the report below and said with a smile: "It seems that this incident was caused by the Changxing Group."

The governor Luo Bishi said: "Everyone knows this, but Changxing Group was not directly involved in this matter, and even if it was involved, we can't say anything."

"It's really inconvenient for Chinese companies to control everything now that they've become big." MacLehose sighed, "It's a pity that British companies are really not good enough. It is said that when TVB was bidding, only Yang Wendong was willing to bid the most. The other companies, including Jardine Matheson, felt that it was not economical and gave up. They were simply idiots."

"So Jardine Matheson has now lost Wharf Holdings. When Wharf Holdings was acquired, Yang Wendong obviously took advantage of his media advantages." Roberts shook his head and said, "The Keswick family is also short-sighted."

MacLehose suddenly said, "Rediffusion Television is no match for TVB. I am going to issue another television station license. What do you think?"

"Issuing another license? Are you planning to target TVB? But I'm afraid that it will be taken over by Chinese capital in the end." asked Robert Bishi.

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(End of this chapter)