@Trend The entrepreneurial legend of the world's first internet anti-virus company

Author: Zhang Mingzheng / Chen Yizhen
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-03-01
Features: PC-cillin, InterScan, ScanMail—these world-renowned antivirus software all come from a multinational company founded only 12 years ago—Trend Micro. This small company, initially started by a couple with just $5,000 in Los Angeles, grew into the world's largest single-software company within 12 years, with a market value of $10 billion, and was ranked among the top 100 most popular listed companies globally by authoritative magazines. During the Melissa virus outbreak, it was the first to recognize the threat and quickly provided a solution, offering free services to the public and gaining widespread acclaim. What is the secret of its success? "Enjoying work" and "finding some fun" are our driving forces—so say the Trend people. In this book, the founders of Trend Micro, Zhang Mingzheng and Chen Yizhen, share their firsthand account of a success story in the internet era. Strategies, business model transformations, international marketing tactics, the future of software companies, and the unique culture of Trend Micro summarized by 3C, along with the philosophy of "finding fun" and the wisdom accumulated over 12 years of, are all shared with aspiring entrepreneurs.
Author's Preface:
Reflections on the Chinese Edition of "@Trend" / Chen Yizhen
Chinese people say time flies like an arrow, but in the internet era, perhaps it's more accurate to say time flies like "keys." With the click, click of keystrokes, time seems to pass at a tenfold speed. On August 18, 1998, Trend Micro went public on the Japanese stock exchange, and less than a year later, it listed on the NASDAQ in the U.S. by way of trust certificates. By August 10, 2000, Trend Micro's market value had reached $10 billion, ranking 38th among the 2,000 listed companies in Tokyo Securities Exchange. Looking back at the 12 years of entrepreneurship, it's hard to believe that the antivirus software company founded by a couple in Los Angeles, with a research team based in Taiwan, could compete with major software companies on the global stage and carve out a niche for itself. Perhaps it was a combination of timing, circumstances, luck, and the trend of the times! I wrote this book, "@Trend," to share my 12 years of entrepreneurial experience. Last year, our dear friend, the renowned Chinese director Juan, and the internet pioneer investor Xue Manzi came to Tokyo with us for Christmas. Bored one day, they flipped through this book and gave us much encouragement, actively promoting its publication in mainland China. This February, when the weather was freezing, Mingzheng and I traveled to Beijing to attend the premiere of Juan's film "." Besides enjoying the moving and humorous movie, we also met many local internet elites. With the encouragement of our friends, the simplified Chinese edition of "@Trend" was indeed published in November 2000. To this day, I still feel like I'm in a dream, unable to believe that there would be readers of "@Trend" in mainland China. Whether it sells well or not doesn't matter to us, but I am very happy to finally be able to account to the 50+ colleagues at Trend Micro in Nanjing, the distributors in Beijing, and the 10+ new colleagues in Shanghai.
Trend Micro leads the world in antivirus technology, and the research elites in Nanjing deserve much of the credit. In 1995, our global technology director, Chen Qafen, met Ji Shuang, a computer master's graduate from Nanjing's gifted youth program, in Silicon Valley. At the time, he was the R&D manager at Sun Microsystems. The young and talented Ji Shuang, with his sharp intellect and promising potential, was deeply impressed by Qafen and willingly gave up his high salary to join Trend. With his network knowledge and experience, he developed Trend's first internet portal antivirus software, InterScan, which won countless international awards in the following four years. Ji Shuang told Qafen, "I have many talented classmates from the gifted youth program in Nanjing!" Mingzheng, a CEO who couldn't help but gather the world's best talents, immediately decided to establish a R&D center in Nanjing, with Ji Shuang leading it and another colleague handling human resources. In 1997, Trend Micro's Nanjing R&D Center was officially established, and program experts like Lu Jianfeng, Qian Haichuan, Gao Hanzhao, and Wang Hong joined soon after. With them, Trend's R&D team became even stronger, pioneering antivirus software based on Java. In 2000, we also established the China Technical Support Center in Shanghai, led by Wang Qiong and Li Jing, to provide broader support and services to clients in mainland China. I want to especially thank them for fighting alongside us and conquering the global antivirus market. With the same language and culture, our cooperation was seamless, and the unity of both sides doubled our strength. Of course, we also owe our gratitude to countless mainland friends for their support and encouragement, especially Juan, Xue Manzi, Dong Xiuyu, Hu Yong, and Dr. Tian Suning. All these thanks are hopefully repaid through the publication of this book.
When the first computer virus, C-BRAIN, first appeared, Zhang Mingzheng happened to read an article about it in a professional magazine and immediately became curious. He went to great lengths to obtain this virus and, together with his colleagues, analyzed it. A 12-year battle against computer viruses thus began. While most industry insiders had yet to recognize the danger of computer viruses, Zhang Mingzheng and his group of like-minded individuals keenly saw the technological and commercial potential hidden within them. Not only did they create world-renowned antivirus software like PC-cillin, but they also pioneered an entirely new field in the information industry—the antivirus software industry. Today, Trend Micro has become a global multinational company, transforming from a software company into an internet antivirus service provider. This is a dream story of the internet era. It shows us the qualities of the dream-making heroes of the new era: sharp insight into business opportunities, the ability to respond swiftly to challenges, unwavering focus on a specific field, teamwork, and the passion and love of "enjoying work."
Excerpt:
When the last of our resources was exhausted, we were back to being penniless. The $125,000 from selling MacLock technology was spent in less than six months. Renting a bathroom-equipped office, hiring eight or nine employees with limited experience, and attending a few trade shows. Placing a few ads, and PC-cillin sold only a few copies—we were completely broke. Worse, our pursuers were fierce. Symantec, which had acquired the industry pioneer Norton, was preparing to enter the antivirus market, which it had previously dismissed as insignificant. Dr. Solomon in the UK was also stirring, expanding beyond the UK to North America. And the once-reputable "coffee seller," backed by venture capital, was pouring money into the market with reckless abandon. Little Trend, in North America, had no other support besides its superior product and technology. Mingzheng's insomnia grew worse. "Should we go back to Asia to fight?" Trend was gradually finding success in Taiwan, and the Southeast Asian market looked promising. Reluctant to see Mingzheng struggle like a cornered beast, I suggested he return to Asia. On Christmas Day in 1991, we took our son skiing in Colorado. The two boys, seeing snow for the first time in their lives, skied, fought snowball battles, and laughed heartily. Mingzheng and I forced smiles and joined them, but inside, we felt as cold as ice. Watching our competitors grow stronger, we had innovative technology but no marketing funds—how could we compete? Although we had the support of many advanced users, it was like a drop in the bucket and couldn't save us. Why not go back to our hometown and rely on Qafen? "No," Mingzheng said firmly, "software is global and can't be limited to one region. We must go global to have a chance." Despite the immense pressure, Mingzheng refused to retreat. "Trend can lead in Taiwan and achieve something because we've been tested in advanced markets, continuously improved, and learned the secrets of software marketing. If we retreat to the rear, Trend Micro will have no chance at all!" Mingzheng's words were so serious that I couldn't bring myself to mention returning to Taiwan again and had to endure it.
My parents and brother heard about our, though they knew Mingzheng was always stubborn and reluctant to accept help, still proposed investing in Trend. Mingzheng didn't hesitate because they were relatives and clearly explained Trend's current situation and future prospects, carefully planning the stock price and board of directors, and formally invited my in-laws and my brother-in-law to become shareholders of Trend. $300,000 for a 20% stake. They were perhaps Taiwan's most advanced software venture capitalists, with exceptionally sharp eyes. My father, a banker who had invested countless times in his life, never expected that investing in his daughter's husband would yield such a high return. My mother, who initially just wanted to support her daughter's kindness, was unexpectedly rewarded with an extraordinary return. They all demonstrated excellent shareholder conduct, never interfering in operations, but always offering support and help. I advise anyone interested in venture capital to approach it with the same perspective as choosing a son-in-law and loving one's daughter—guaranteed to be the right choice!