Seventy-two hours after the Dami 1 launch event ended, the mood in the public discourse began to shift in subtle ways.
On digital forums, message boards, and Weibo, the debate over “Which Is More Worth Buying, the Dami 1 or the Longyao S1?” had escalated from a minor squabble into an all-out war. Supporters on both sides were tearing into each other, while comparison charts, value-for-money analyses, and technical breakdowns flooded the internet.
“1,999 versus 2,999 yuan, with nearly identical specs. Dami wins hands down.”
“The Longyao S1 has a self-developed chip. What does Dami have to compete with that? Qualcomm Snapdragon chips are sourced from outside. What are you going to do if they stop selling to you one day?”
“Is ‘self-developed’ really worth a thousand yuan? Consumers aren’t idiots. People buy whichever one is cheaper.”
“You’re forgetting Longyao’s launch promotions, aren’t you? Trade in your old phone for a thousand yuan off, plus supermarket cards, internet café cards, milk tea vouchers, and more. You could cash out nearly two thousand yuan in benefits. By that calculation, the Longyao S1 is practically free.”
“That was just a launch promotion. It’s long expired.”
“Even if it has expired, it still counts. Apple copied their exterior design patents, and that alone is enough reason to buy Longyao. It’s about having face, you know?”
“......”
Just as supporters on both sides were locked in a furious battle, two Weibo posts published almost simultaneously brought everyone to a sudden silence.
Yu Xin, president of the Technology Business Group of Wanlonghui Group, posted:
“Congratulations, Mr. Lei, on the great success of the Dami 1 launch event. The price of 1,999 yuan is truly astonishing! I wish the Dami 1 huge sales. And as a little preview, Longyao and Dami will be holding a joint press conference at two tomorrow afternoon in the capital, where we’ll announce some important news. Please stay tuned.”
Dami Technology’s founder, Lei Jobs, soon followed with a post of his own:
“Thank you for your kind wishes, Mr. Yu. Tomorrow afternoon, Mr. Yu and I have a date in the capital. See you there. And let me just say this: it’s good news.”
The moment the two posts went live, the comment sections exploded.
“A joint press conference? What are these two companies up to?”
“Mr. Yu and Mr. Lei have a date? What kind of dream pairing is this? I’m shipping them already.”
“They aren’t planning to merge, are they? Please don’t. I’m still waiting to see the two companies wage a price war.”
“A merger is impossible, but some kind of cooperation is definitely on the table. The question is how deep it goes.”
“I have a feeling something big is coming.”
“Same here.”
“.......”
Two days later, in the afternoon, at a conference center in the capital.
The front rows were once again filled with prominent figures. Major players from the internet, investment, and supply-chain industries had gathered yet again.
Unlike the previous event, this press conference was much smaller in scale, with no opening performance.
But the number of media outlets in attendance had not decreased at all. Everyone wanted firsthand information. After all, the sudden decision by Longyao and Dami to hold a joint press conference clearly suggested that something major was about to happen.
Time passed little by little before Yu Xin and Lei Jobs walked onto the stage side by side.
Yu Xin was once again dressed in a black suit, with a dragon-shaped badge pinned to her chest. She exuded a sharp, commanding presence. Compared with three years earlier, she seemed like an entirely different person.
Lei Jobs was still wearing a dark-blue polo shirt with jeans.
Standing together, they made a strikingly mismatched pair: one a tech queen radiating confidence and edge, the other a low-key, pragmatic geeky uncle. Their styles could hardly have been more different.
“Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to attend this press conference,” Yu Xin began.
“We’ve invited you here today to announce two things.”
“First, Longyao and Dami Technology have officially signed a strategic cooperation agreement. The two sides will launch comprehensive cooperation in three major areas: supply chains, patented technology, and after-sales service.”
“To put it simply, starting today, Longyao and Dami will officially open up their supply-chain systems to each other. We will share selected core patents, jointly build an after-sales service network, and work together to upgrade the domestic smart-phone industry chain.”
The entire room fell silent for a moment. Everyone had been stunned by the announcement.
Opening up their supply chains, sharing patents, and jointly building after-sales services—this was no ordinary cooperation agreement. It was clearly a declaration of alliance among domestic smartphone manufacturers.
Lei Jobs took over:
“I know many people will be asking why Dami and Longyao, despite being competitors, have chosen to work together.”
“The answer is simple: our true competitors have never been each other.”
“Mr. Yu and I both believe that the domestic smartphone market is large enough to accommodate both Longyao and Dami. Our real competitors are the foreign giants that monopolize core technologies and control the supply chain. They hold the chips, the screens, and the operating systems in their hands... and they can choke our industry at any time.”
“If we fight among ourselves, if we undermine each other over tiny price differences, then when they truly make their move, none of us will be able to escape.”
“So Mr. Yu and I talked for several days and ultimately reached a consensus. Instead of fighting separately, we would be better off standing shoulder to shoulder. Longyao has independently developed chips, while Dami has strong supply-chain management capabilities......... By joining forces, we can’t claim that we’ll immediately surpass the international giants, but at the very least, we can let them know that the smartphone industry of Longguo is not something they can squeeze whenever they please.”
As soon as he finished speaking, someone in the audience began to applaud.
In an instant, the entire room joined in.
When the applause finally subsided, Yu Xin spoke again.
“This brings us to the second announcement.”
She pressed a button on the remote in her hand, and the large screen behind them lit up.
“Starting today, Longyao and Dami will jointly establish the Light of Domestic Brands Alliance. The alliance will be open to all domestic smartphone brands. Any company willing to abide by the alliance’s supply-chain standards and patent-sharing agreement may join.”
“The alliance has only eight words as its guiding principle: openness, mutual benefit, growth, and strength!”
As soon as she finished, a line of large, bold characters appeared on the screen behind her:
“Light of Domestic Brands Alliance”
Below the title was a list of the alliance’s specific terms.
For example, alliance members would receive priority access to the Longxin LX series of chips, with prices uniformly reduced by 15 percent.
Alliance members would share a core patent pool covering three major categories—exterior design, system UI interaction, and hardware structure—with a total of XXX patents. No patent licensing fees would be charged among alliance members, while reasonable fees would be collected for external licensing.
The alliance would jointly establish a nationwide after-sales service network. Users of member brands could receive standardized services—including repairs, replacements, returns, and refunds—at any authorized after-sales outlet belonging to an alliance brand.
The alliance would unify supply-chain procurement standards, conduct joint negotiations with upstream suppliers, and eliminate malicious price hikes and hoarding.
Alliance members would jointly fund the establishment of a domestic smartphone industry innovation fund, with an initial size of 5 billion yuan, to support technological research and development by local supply-chain companies.
Alliance members would also jointly publish an annual industry white paper and promote the creation of unified standards for interoperability among smart devices, among other initiatives.
Every clause was packed with substance.
The prominent figures in the audience could no longer sit still. They began whispering among themselves.
“The very first provision grants priority access to Longxin chips. She’s opening up Longxin’s production capacity to the entire industry. Mr. Yu’s commitment is enormous.”
“Not only that, but there’s also free licensing for patents. Take Longyao’s design patent, for example. They could collect tens of billions in patent fees from Apple alone, yet they’re now allowing every alliance member to use it for free. Maybe we should take a page from their book.”
“They’ve even opened up their after-sales service network. That means no matter what brand of domestic phone you buy, you’ll be able to find an authorized service center wherever you go. That kind of experience absolutely blows Apple’s out of the water.”
“Did you see the last item? Jointly establishing standards for interoperability. They’re going head-to-head with Apple’s closed ecosystem and building an open ecosystem for domestic brands.”
“You know, with Mr. Yu and Mr. Lei working together, they might actually pull this off.”
“.........”
Down below, Ma Yunyun turned his head and whispered teasingly to Pony Ma:
“President Ma, look at their vision. Now look at Tencent. When are you going to form an alliance with WeChat?”
He had asked the question deliberately. Everyone in the industry knew that Pony Ma and WeChat were locked in a fierce battle, practically on the verge of coming to blows.
After all, WeChat had targeted Tencent’s core social business. How could Pony Ma possibly sit back and do nothing? He had even stopped messaging Liu Yutong as much and withdrawn his investment in Loongson.
To put it bluntly, he was starting to panic.
Hearing Old Ma’s remark, Pony Ma replied coldly, “I can consider forming an anti-monopoly alliance with WeChat—one dedicated to reporting Alibaba for secretly engaging in monopolistic practices.”
Ma Yunyun: “......”
Meanwhile, on the other side.
Li Yanhong stared at the terms displayed on the giant screen for a long time. After thinking it over carefully, he suddenly lowered his voice and said to his assistant, “After the press conference, go ask whether Baidu can join the alliance.”
The assistant froze, then instinctively asked, “Manager Li, we don’t even make smartphones.”
Li Yanhong shook his head. “Not making them now doesn’t mean we won’t make them in the future. Chips, patents, supply chains… these things are the infrastructure of the smartphone industry. Whoever secures them first will become the one setting the standards. Longyao is making a very big move here. Once they get this system up and running, anyone who wants to enter the game later will have to play by their rules.”
“If Baidu doesn’t act now, then once the tickets for the mobile internet ship are handed out, we won’t even be able to grab standing-room tickets.”
The assistant nodded after hearing this, indicating that he had taken note.
Onstage, Lei Jobs and Yu Xin stood side by side, looking at the industry bigwigs whispering among themselves below. The two exchanged a smile at almost exactly the same moment.
“Mr. Yu, who do you think will be the first to apply for membership?” Lei Jobs asked in a lowered voice.
Yu Xin thought for a moment before replying, “It’ll probably be someone nobody expects.”
Lei Jobs paused, just as he was about to ask what he meant, when someone suddenly stood up from the audience.
Every eye in the room turned toward him. Quite a few people recognized him: Yang Yuan, head of Lianxiang’s mobile division.
Lianxiang Mobile was a long-established domestic brand that had once enjoyed great success, but had not released a genuinely impressive product in several years. Many people had assumed the company had already abandoned its smartphone business.
No one had expected one of its representatives to be there.
“Mr. Yu, Mr. Lei, on behalf of Lianxiang Mobile, I hereby formally apply to join the alliance.”
