"Since the prototype is no good, then there's no problem with us not procuring this light source!" The representative from Trumpf, seeing that the situation was unfavorable, put forward their second demand: to get AMS to refuse the procurement of light sources from Modu Light Machine.
This representative believed that their request was reasonable and absolutely impossible to refuse. Their invested company would only purchase equipment manufactured by themselves, which was also the fundamental reason AMS invited these companies to invest back then. There was no reason for AMS to refuse this request from them, right?
However, what the representative of the society never expected was that facing such a reasonable request, the CEO of AMS once again fell into hesitation.
This made the representative a little flustered. He said loudly, "Mr. President, what is there to hesitate about? Isn't it natural to purchase products from shareholders? Is this Modu Light Machine also your shareholder?"
"Ahem, sir, please calm down. We will naturally prioritize the procurement of Trumpf's products, but Trumpf can only provide no more than 20 light sources this year, which is your maximum output. However, the Chinese light sources can provide us with an additional 10 units of output, which can help the company earn more profits. This is a good thing that benefits all shareholders and also does not harm Trumpf's interests. You will sell 20 units regardless, so there's no reason to demand that we refuse to purchase more light source equipment!" the AMS CEO explained.
"But... but..." The Trumpf representative was so choked up that he couldn't speak. That's right, looking at it this way, it didn't seem to cause any harm to their company. However, for the company's long-term interests, this was an incredibly huge hidden danger, because it would cultivate a brand-new competitor for their company.
Take the high-precision deep ultraviolet light source, for example. This thing has high technical requirements, but the occasions where it is used are very few, and the market is limited. As long as Trumpf firmly grasps this last bit of market, they can arbitrarily raise prices and heavily capitalize on technological dividends.
For instance, a deep ultraviolet light source like this has an external quote of $4.8 million per unit. This price accounts for about 1/10 of the total cost of a lithography machine, making it one of the most expensive components of the entire lithography machine.
So, what is the production cost of such a deep ultraviolet light source?
In terms of material costs alone, it's actually less than $20,000. If research and development costs and production costs are included, it might be around $200,000. Yet, such a thing is sold for $4.8 million, a 24-fold increase. This is a terrifying profit, and Trumpf is feasting on it.
But now, someone is trying to snatch food from their plate. A Chinese company has also developed a high-precision deep ultraviolet light source. With China's labor and material costs, the representative knew with his backside that once the other party began mass production, they would definitely engage in a price war with them, and the prices would be pushed extremely low.
It's possible that the price would be lowered from $4.8 million to within $1 million. If the other party were even more aggressive, they might directly lower the price to $200,000. This is Trumpf's production cost, but not the cost for the Chinese. The Chinese production cost might be less than $100,000.
At a price of $200,000, the Chinese would still be able to earn a hundred percent profit, but Trumpf would only be able to operate at a loss and would be directly defeated in the competition, completely losing this market.
This was not the representative's groundless fear, but what had been happening in the global market over the past decade.
Over the past decade, Europe and the United States have successively seen more than ten industries suffer a "dimensional reduction attack" from China.
Take the gantry crane industry, for example. It was originally a British patent. A gantry crane prepared for aircraft carrier production could sell for around $400 million. Even if the British company produced only two such gantry cranes per year, it could support thousands of employees and increase the owner's assets by hundreds of millions of dollars.
However, after Chinese heavy industry enterprises entered the market, the price of such a gantry crane was directly reduced to $60 million, only 1/7 of the original price.
Now, this originally world-leading British gantry crane company has declared bankruptcy. It is said that all the docks and ports worldwide are equipped with gantry cranes produced by Chinese manufacturers, and they have occupied more than 70% of the global market.
However, since the gantry crane industry is a relatively small market, apart from those in the industry and those who understand it, others simply don't know what happened.
The same thing has happened in more than a dozen other industries. These industries are relatively niche, with low public attention, and have not harmed the interests of most capital, so no major confrontations have erupted.
But the laser light source industry, which Trumpf is in, happens to be such a niche industry with insufficient public attention. Even the name of Trumpf, a giant in the industry, has not been heard by 99% of people worldwide. If such an industry were to be taken by the Chinese, it would also be completely silent and unnoticed.
But for the representative present, it was a disaster.
Therefore, he absolutely could not tolerate the Chinese establishing a foothold in this industry. Fortunately, controlling this industry is relatively simple. After all, AMS is currently the only company that needs high-precision deep ultraviolet light sources, and AMS also happens to be an invested company.
As long as AMS's market is choked off, preventing the competitor from having the opportunity to sell its products, and there is no profit to be made, the other party will naturally abandon related research and development.
After all, the high-precision deep ultraviolet light source is also an industry with extremely high research and development costs, with annual investments of no less than $50 million. The other party cannot continue research and development under such losses.
As long as these Chinese are unable to obtain the market, they are bound to perish.
Therefore, no matter what, this representative must seize the opportunity for the Chinese to enter the market. Otherwise, not to mention endless future troubles, it would be tantamount to a historical betrayal.
But what made the representative helpless was that despite the firm attitude of the other party, most of the shareholders in the meeting room appeared indifferent. Some shareholders even directly advised him not to harm everyone's interests for his own company's benefit.
They also said that after AMS's additional 10 units were sold, the huge profits of over $1 billion would allow them to receive tens of millions of dollars in dividends. This was a mutually beneficial good thing, so there was no need to cause trouble for everyone!
"Causing you trouble?" The representative's face changed completely. "This isn't about causing trouble; it's about us watching the Chinese snatch all our markets in the future!"
"So, the representative explained the worries he had, using the gantry crane industry, the memory chip industry, and several other industries occupied by the Chinese as examples!"
Finally, he beat his chest and stamped his feet, clutching his chest and saying, "Gentlemen, if we don't find a way to suppress the development of China in the high-tech industry today, then in the future, China's high-tech products will be all over the world, appearing in the markets of all countries, and in everyone's homes. And we will all end up working for the Chinese. Is this the future you want to see?"
What he said was heartbreaking and distressing, and a few people did listen. But most people sneered.
"Worrying about nothing!"
"If you can't maintain your technological advantage and let a poor country like China catch up, and you still blame us, do you think we're as foolish as you?"
"China has a large population and likes to concentrate its efforts on major tasks. It's normal for them to occasionally break through the technology in one or two industries, but if they have the ability, let them enter the lithography machine industry!"
"What? China also wants to produce lithography machines? Give them another 100 years, and they still won't be able to!"
Such remarks were made privately, and the representative's expression became increasingly grim. However, they were all smart people and knew each other's temperaments well. He knew that with his own two lips, he couldn't convince these greedy capitalists. In the final analysis, it still depended on tangible interests.
At the same time, the Trumpf representative said, "Gentlemen, all you want is an additional 10 units of lithography machines. How about this: Trumpf guarantees to deliver 30 high-precision deep ultraviolet light sources to the company this year. Even if we don't use Chinese products, we will still be able to sell 30 units this year. What do you think?"
"Is that so!" Upon hearing this, the directors present showed smiles on their faces. If that were the case, it would not be unacceptable.
After all, the Chinese were outsiders, while Trumpf was one of their own!
Seeing that the attitude of everyone had softened, the Trumpf representative breathed a sigh of relief. Just as he was lamenting that he had successfully protected the company's market and would definitely get a promotion and raise this year, he heard the AMS CEO say, "This is naturally excellent. However, I wonder what the pricing will be for the bulk sale to us this year, in US dollars?"
"Didn't we already agree on this? $4.8 million per unit!" the Trumpf representative replied with a frown.
"Heh heh, sir, that was the quotation during the pilot production. When procuring only a few units, the purchase price naturally has to be higher. But we will be purchasing 30 units this year, and the annual procurement volume may exceed triple digits in the future. If we still have to pay $4.8 million at this price, it's really too high and not very appropriate!"
"More than one-tenth of the cost of each piece of equipment is used to purchase light sources. All the money is earned by your company. For other shareholders of the company, wouldn't it be too much of a loss?" the CEO asked leisurely.
"What's inappropriate about that? Wasn't it like this before?" the Trumpf representative said subconsciously. "Didn't you accept this price before?"
"That was before, when we could only purchase your company's products. But now, the Chinese are only asking for $1 million per light source. We have a choice now!" the AMS CEO said happily.