Top Star By Luck [EN]: Chapter 160

OTT.

An abbreviation for Over-The-Top.

Here, ‘Top’ refers to set-top boxes, and OTT literally means services that go beyond the limitations of conventional set-top boxes.

Among these, it mainly refers to services that recommend and display various videos.

Netplay is the most representative example.

By what criteria do these OTT platforms usually rank their content?

The criteria are extremely simple.

[Total Viewing Time in X Minutes]

Time was the key.

Absolute viewing time.

If 100 viewers watched a show called A for 30 minutes each, the show’s viewing time would be 3,000 minutes.

Similarly, if 10,000 people watched B for 5 minutes each, it would be 50,000 minutes.

In this case, B would easily outrank A. This is the typical ranking criterion for most OTT platforms.

Netplay tended to calculate this in real-time every 10 minutes.

This is where the criteria for a hit show diverged.

[Becoming #1 within 2 hours makes it a mega-hit]

[Becoming #1 within 12 hours makes it a blockbuster]

[Becoming #1 within a day makes it a hit]

In any case, any work that anyone has heard of will be number one at least once.

And then.

[ManManTo, Takes First Place on Netplay in Just 10 Minutes After Release]

A new legend was born.

ManManTo.

Its name stood tall in the history of the Netplay platform.

[Netplay, Amazed by Record-Breaking Performance]

[What is the significance of ManManTo in the OTT industry?]

[Despite OTT Release, Theater Attendance Doesn’t Decrease]

[Petitions Flood in for People Wanting to Watch it on TV and Then See it Again on a Bigger Screen]

[ManManTo].

How could a work created by a rookie director who used to be an actor, an unknown director, and a studio on the verge of collapse in Korea achieve this?

[Netplay, Thought it Was a Low-Risk Venture, But Hit the Jackpot]

With a low budget.

[Asia, Beyond Hollywood, Acclaimed in the Global Market.]

It was rewriting the history of OTT by transcending racial boundaries.

When?

[Work of the Year, ManManTo]

Currently.

Lee Min-ki, standing before these record-breaking numbers that deserved to be called a phenomenon, let out a hollow laugh.

‘The snowballing is insane.’

It was always going to be a hit.

But this… it originally started in the lower ranks and then made a comeback.

What was it?

‘The number of viewers was small, so the ranking was low, but the viewing time per viewer was overwhelmingly number one, or so they said?’

The movie itself had a running time of 110 minutes.

For a typical movie, the viewing time per person is less than 30 minutes, but ManManTo was said to be 70 minutes.

It was as if once you got them to click, they would watch until the end.

There was a reason why Netplay was pushing it so hard.

The only difference between my past life and this life is one thing.

That what was coming came a little earlier.

“The actor has done it.”

Director Shim Sung-bo, who was happier than Lee Min-ki at those numbers, opened his mouth.

“Thanks to you, I can rest easy. I should thank you.”

“…No, it’s not just me who did it.”

Lee Min-ki frowned and pondered for a moment before answering.

“We all did it together. Everyone did their best in their respective positions. It wouldn’t have been possible without any one of us.”

“Yes, but without you, the production itself would have been impossible.”

“…”

Why is this person so unable to give credit to others?

Shouldn’t a director be arrogant enough to take all the credit and ignore everyone else?

Lee Min-ki was about to laugh when someone agreed with him.

“Hey, Shim Sung-bo, the actor is right. You need to have some confidence.”

Director Jin Joo-yeon said so.

She spoke with a displeased expression.

“You’re the director, but if you give all the credit for the success to others, it makes others uncomfortable. You have to be modest in moderation.”

“That’s right…”

Lee Min-ki was about to agree.

“Of course, about 90% of ManManTo’s success is due to the actor.”

No.

A married couple acts the same.

In any case, [ManManTo]’s success made the atmosphere like that.

“Director Jin, I’m not that great of a person.”

“Hmm? Are you saying that everyone else besides the actor is insignificant?”

“Director!”

Someone shared both humility and cheers.

“CEO, shouldn’t we also prepare to be listed in the United States?”

“What? Who wants to be a CEO for their benefit.”

“Not a CEO, a listing.”

Someone properly enjoyed the feeling of having picked a good actor.

“Bro, you’re really going far.”

“Min-ki is going so far ahead on his own, I don’t know how to catch up.”

“Hmm? Why catch up? Let’s go together.”

Longtime colleagues were happy.

“I need to work harder too.”

“I’m so jealous I’m going crazy. Ugh.”

Everyone in the industry was filled with jealousy or envy.

Meanwhile, there was someone screaming.

“…You’re telling me to get lost?”

That was Emma Specter.

She shouted while holding her phone in her hand.

“I’ve done so much, and now you’re telling me to get lost because you’ve seen all you need to see?”

* * *

The office, usually filled with good news.

That office, where Emma Specter’s laughter overflowed uncontrollably, was now filled with anger.

“Are you kidding me?”

[I’m not saying it in that sense, I’m saying take a break.]

AST’s current CEO.

Christopher Singer was the target of her protest.

“How is that different from telling me to get lost? Huh? Explain it to me.”

Emma Specter shouted fiercely, as if venting her dissatisfaction.

Like that of a wounded beast.

Mixed with fear of an even bigger and stronger beast.

Emma Specter repeatedly shouted.

“Tell me honestly. How long have you been trying to get rid of me?”

[Calm down…]

“I’m always calm.”

Emma Specter, not at all calm, continued to spew profanities while holding the phone.

“Do you think I’m a joke?”

What made her so angry?

Recently, AST’s shareholders had requested something.

That was:

‘You once said she was the best person in charge and put forward a permanent vote of confidence, but now you’re changing your mind as easily as flipping your hand with just one or two works?’

To step down from the position of head of the Odin Universe [a fictional cinematic universe, similar to the Marvel Cinematic Universe].

Nominally, it was to focus on managing AST’s own OTT service, but who would fall for such empty words?

[I think you’re starting to lose your touch.]

It was no different from being told to get lost.

[Sphere’s box office performance was ambiguous. We expected 800 million, but it stopped at 500 million.]

[It’s not a bad number, but considering it was a work that the Odin Universe fully supported.]

Sphere was originally supposed to gross $800 million.

In particular, it should have been treated as a decent popcorn movie, attracting attention for its action direction.

However, as all the attention turned to the competing work [ManManTo], expectations plummeted along with the assessment that the work was relatively lacking in quality.

Having even lost all the buzz, it was pushed back to just over half of what was expected.

And then.

It wasn’t just pushed back in theaters.

[Was it necessary to go head-to-head with Netplay?]

Although they were in a competitive relationship, they had turned Netplay, which had been a partner in many ways, into a complete enemy after interfering with its management.

Also.

[I heard that Cinecastle is also planning to withdraw its investment.]

[Although there are companies to replace them, what kind of business reduces its own options? How blind have you become?]

Even Cinecastle, a longtime partner, turned into an enemy.

Emma Specter couldn’t stand the injustice and shouted into the phone as if protesting.

“It’s a one-off incident. It will all come back over time anyway.”

[Yes, it’s one-off.]

Christopher Singer said in a voice full of fatigue.

[But those one-off incidents are what move stock prices. No matter how one-off the incident is.]

“…!”

[You know what the articles that are pouring out these days are full of, don’t you?]

Emma Specter gritted her teeth at the extremely cold words.

But it was hard to deny.

Because the objective reality was all pointing a knife at her.

[Emma Specter, the head of the Odin Universe who led AST’s performance, made seven mistakes.]

[The result of one manager’s misjudgment.]

[The former genius businessman, senile!]

Such public opinion had arisen in just a few months.

[AST’s chronic disease, Emma Specter]

In fact, if you look at each one individually, there was nothing that would be a big problem.

But the important thing was karma.

Was Emma Specter the only person who had tried to abuse her power to them only in this case?

No.

She had been doing it on a daily basis, and this incident was just the trigger for a chain explosion.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that Emma Specter’s value and achievements have changed.

Her abilities are still the same.

She was objectively an excellent producer.

But.

[You know, the public is ignorant. They don’t know the details, and they don’t try to know.]

What remained deeply impressed on the public was something else.

[In their eyes, you are now just one of the old evils who offered a lot of toxic clauses to Lee Min-ki, the director of the hit movie ManManTo, missed a great opportunity, and even turned against partners, eating away at the company’s stock price.]

Emma Specter bit her lip, unable to even refute the words that poured out coldly from Christopher Singer’s mouth.

‘To say this to me. Does he even know who made the company so big?’

Isn’t that what she’s thinking about?

But from the perspective of Christopher Singer, the person in question, he was rather softening the words.

Because there was an even bigger problem than the movie’s performance itself.

‘AST’s OTT service roadmap has also been affected.’

The fact that AST was also preparing for OTT was the case.

Based on its financial resources, it was recruiting leading studios and planning to fight Netplay head-on, and the debut was coming soon.

You see, they were planning to make a splendid debut using a large number of famous IPs [Intellectual Properties] from the Odin Universe.

That’s what went wrong.

‘Netplay is too strong right now.’

A record-breaking hit was released.

‘There’s no point in fighting back in a situation where all the attention has been taken away like this.’

At least it had to be postponed for a few months.

Christopher Singer sighed inwardly and opened his mouth again.

[For now, I want you to focus on OTT.]

“…”

[Then I’ll contact you again. Calm down for a while. Especially in front of reporters.]

BEEP――

Emma Specter slumped down, holding the disconnected phone.

* * *

Lee Min-ki, who released the hit movie ManManTo.

Where did he feel the most that his value had risen?

“Wow…”

That was the number of followers on SNS [Social Networking Service].

[2.7]

What is that 2.7 number?

Does that mean that his current number of followers is 2.7 million?

Unfortunately, it’s a little different.

The unit of that number was different, and to be exact, it was ten million.

That’s right.

[27,951,211]

Lee Min-ki had reached 27.95 million followers.

Almost 20 million followers were added before and after filming just one work.

‘I’m going crazy.’

Lee Min-ki was slowly losing the meaning of even counting the numbers, as hundreds of thousands or more were being added every day.

What’s the point of looking at the numbers in the morning?

It’ll be different again in the evening.

‘I’ll hit 30 million tomorrow.’

But Lee Min-ki himself wasn’t someone who paid much attention to SNS.

He has been using SNS more often as he has gained popularity rapidly recently, but he still doesn’t feel comfortable with SNS.

‘I don’t enjoy revealing my private life to others. I’m not interested in seeing other people’s private lives either.’

He only considers it a work tool.

Instead, he found his roots elsewhere.

“Now, we will begin the 31st Baekryong Film Festival.”

That was the film festival.

‘The day I get invited to this place is finally coming.’

Lee Min-ki trembled as he sat down.

Today, he participated in the Baekryong Film Festival as a nominee for an award.

Was it [ManManTo]?

No.

There was a work that he filmed one work earlier than that.

[Fashion & Passion].

That was the work he filmed with Director Hwang Ui-seong.

[Best Actor Nominee – Lee Min-ki]

[Popular Star Award Nominee – Lee Min-ki]

The Baekryong Film Festival, a leading film festival representing Korea.

Lee Min-ki was nominated in two categories at the awards ceremony.