NetEase : Q4 2018 Earnings Release

Contact for Media and Investors: Margaret Shi

NetEase, [e-mail]: [phone]

Brandi Piacente

Investor [e-mail]: [phone]

NetEase Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2018 Unaudited Financial Results

(Beijing - February 20, 2019) - NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES) ("NetEase" or the "Company"), one of China's leading internet and online game services providers, today announced its unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended December 31, 2018.

Fourth Quarter 2018 Financial Highlights

• • Net revenues[1] were RMB19,844.3 million (US$2,886.2 million), an increase of 35.8% compared with the fourth quarter of 2017.

  • - Online game services net revenues were RMB11,019.6 million (US$1,602.7 million), an increase of 37.7% compared with the fourth quarter of 2017.

  • - E-commerce net revenues were RMB6,678.7 million (US$971.4 million), an increase of 43.5% compared with the fourth quarter of 2017.

  • - Advertising services net revenues were RMB760.5 million (US$110.6 million), an increase of 3.3% compared with the fourth quarter of 2017.

  • - Innovative businesses and others[2] net revenues were RMB1,385.5 million (US$201.5 million), an increase of 14.2% compared with the fourth quarter of 2017.

• • Gross profit was RMB7,657.5 million (US$1,113.7 million), an increase of 33.3% compared with the fourth quarter of 2017.

[1] The Company adopted ASC 606 as of January 1, 2018 on a modified retrospective basis. The adoption did not have a significant impact on the Company's operating results for the fourth quarter of 2018 and comparable periods. See "Impact of The Recently Adopted Major Accounting Pronouncements" in this press release.

[2] Effective as of December 31, 2018, the Company renamed its "e-mail and others" segment to "innovative businesses and others" to better articulate the businesses included in this segment. See "Change in Segment Reporting" in this press release.

• • Total operating expenses were RMB5,412.3 million (US$787.2 million), an increase of 25.3% compared with the fourth quarter of 2017.

• • Net income attributable to the Company's shareholders was RMB1,697.7 million (US$246.9 million). Non-GAAP net income attributable to the Company's shareholders was RMB2,359.6 million (US$343.2 million). [3]

• • Diluted earnings per ADS were US$1.92; non-GAAP diluted earnings per ADS were US$2.66.

Fourth Quarter 2018 and Recent 2019 Operational Highlights

• • Introduced exciting new mobile titles including:

  • - Night Falls: Survival, which topped the China's iOS download chart in November and ranked third in China's iOS game grossing chart for November and December;

  • - Ink, Mountains and Mystery, with its stunning display of classical Chinese arts, reached No.1 on China's iOS download chart on January 1, 2019, the day of its launch.

• • Expanded footprint beyond mainland China and deepened global reach:

  • - Maintained Knives Out's position as China's top grossing mobile game in overseas markets for five consecutive months since August 2018;

  • - Launched titles overseas in January 2019 including: Night Falls: Survival in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan and QwQ in Japan and South Korea;

  -Furthered collaboration with leading game studios worldwide, including a joint development agreement with Codemasters, a UK game studio, as well as made a minority investment in Quantic Dream, a French game studio, and announced an investment in U.S.-based Second Dinner, a studio founded by ex-Blizzard veterans.

• • Fortified strong performance of flagship titles, such as Fantasy Westward Journey and New Westward Journey Online series with new expansion packs released (for PC-client and mobile users), which further promoted user engagement and contributed to steady sequential quarterly revenue growth.

• • Renewed 11-year partnership with Blizzard Entertainment in mainland China, extending the publishing agreement between the two companies until January 2023.

• • Advanced pipeline with upcoming titles including Fantasy Westward Journey 3D, Xuanyuan Sword, Ages of Isle and Pokémon Quest.

• • Opened Kaola's first flagship store and first brick-and-mortar store for Yanxuan, both located in Hangzhou's West Lake business district.

"We finished the year with total annual net revenues of RMB67 billion, a 24% increase from 2017, driven by a diverse portfolio of online games as well as healthy growth in our e-commerce, advertising services and other internet product and service offerings," said Mr. William Ding, Chief Executive Officer and Director of NetEase. "2018 was a very fruitful year of diversification for our online games. While our flagship titles

[3] As used in this press release, non-GAAP net income attributable to the Company's shareholders is defined to exclude share-based compensation expenses. See "Unaudited Reconciliation of GAAP and Non-GAAP Results" at the end of this press release.

remain stronger than ever, we also introduced a number of highly successful titles for PC-client and mobile platforms. These new titles span a wide variety of genres and led to rapid growth in our user base, gaining us access to new demographics and instilling confidence in our ability to branch out beyond MMORPG categories.

"Throughout the year we also made a number of advancements to better position us on the world's stage, most notably in Japan. Our world-class R&D capabilities, particularly in the mobile arena, afford us an exciting opportunity to appeal to a global audience. We plan to continue to invest in global talent, IP and collaboration with other elite game developers worldwide to further this momentum.

"While online games remain the cornerstone of our business, we also see huge potential in e-commerce, music and online education. These will be the primary focus of our business strategy in 2019. Our relentless drive to create premium content has paved the way for our success, and our highly focused investments in carefully-chosen new business categories have allowed NetEase to stand the test of time in a rapidly evolving internet industry. Two decades after our inception, our focus on quality remains at the heart of our Company, propelling the unique value proposition we offer to our community and driving our growing success," Mr. Ding concluded.

Fourth Quarter 2018 Financial Results

Net Revenues

Net revenues for the fourth quarter of 2018 were RMB19,844.3 million (US$2,886.2 million), compared to RMB16,855.3 million and RMB14,607.6 million for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively.

Net revenues from online games were RMB11,019.6 million (US$1,602.7 million) for the fourth quarter of 2018, compared to RMB10,348.4 million and RMB8,004.4 million for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively. Mobile games accounted for approximately 69.7% of net revenues from online games for the fourth quarter of 2018, compared to 68.0% each for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017.

Net revenues from e-commerce were RMB6,678.7 million (US$971.4 million) for the fourth quarter of 2018, compared to RMB4,458.8 million and RMB4,653.7 million for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively.

Net revenues from advertising services were RMB760.5 million (US$110.6 million) for the fourth quarter of 2018, compared to RMB644.2 million and RMB736.6 million for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively. The top performing advertising verticals in the fourth quarter of 2018 were automobile, real estate and internet services sectors.

Net revenues from innovative businesses and others were RMB1,385.5 million (US$201.5 million) for the fourth quarter of 2018, compared to RMB1,403.8 million and RMB1,213.0 million for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively.

Gross Profit/ (Loss)

Gross profit for the fourth quarter of 2018 was RMB7,657.5 million (US$1,113.7 million), compared to RMB7,547.3 million and RMB5,744.6 million for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively.

The quarter-over-quarter increase in online game services gross profit was primarily due to increased revenue contribution from newer mobile games such as Night Falls: Survival and Ancient Nocturne. The year-over-year increase in online game services gross profit was primarily due to increased revenue contribution from

mobile games including Knives Out, Chu Liu Xiang and Identity V.

The quarter-over-quarter and year-over-year decreases in e-commerce gross profit were primarily due to the larger-scale promotions and certain sales discounts in the fourth quarter of 2018.

The quarter-over-quarter increase in advertising services gross profit was primarily due to seasonality. The year-over-year decrease in advertising services gross profit was primarily due to higher staff-related costs and content purchase expenditures.

The quarter-over-quarter and year-over-year increases in innovative businesses and others gross loss were primarily due to decreased revenue contribution from certain online platform businesses, which have relatively higher margins.

Gross Profit/ (Loss) Margin

Gross profit margin for online game services for the fourth quarter of 2018 was 62.8%, compared to 65.1% and 61.4% for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively. The quarter-over-quarter decrease in gross profit margin was mainly due to increased revenue contribution from mobile games and licensed games, which have relatively lower profit margins than self-developed PC-client games. The year-over-year increase in gross profit margin was mainly due to increased revenue while certain costs related to the Company's online games segment were fixed.

Gross profit margin for e-commerce for the fourth quarter of 2018 was 4.5%, compared to 10.0% and 7.4% for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively. The quarter-over-quarter and year-over-year decreases in e-commerce gross profit margin were primarily due to the larger-scale promotions and certain sales discounts in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Gross profit margin for advertising services for the fourth quarter of 2018 was 66.3%, compared to 63.6% and 71.2% for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively. The quarter-over-quarter increase in advertising services gross profit margin was primarily due to seasonality. The year-over-year decrease inadvertising services gross profit margin was primarily due to higher staff-related costs and content purchase expenditures.

Gross loss margin for innovative businesses and others for the fourth quarter of 2018 was 5.2%, compared to gross loss margin of 3.3% each for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017. The year-over-year and quarter-over-quarter increases in gross loss margin were primarily due to decreased revenue contribution from certain online platform businesses which have relatively higher gross profit margins.

Operating Expenses

Total operating expenses for the fourth quarter of 2018 were RMB5,412.3 million (US$787.2 million), compared to RMB5,440.1 million and RMB4,317.8 million for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively. The year-over-year increase in operating expenses was mainly due to increased staff-related costs, research and development investments and shipping and handling costs. Shipping and handling costs included in selling and marketing expenses for the fourth quarter of 2018 were RMB572.5 million (US$83.3 million), compared to RMB385.5 million and RMB393.3 million for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively.

Income Taxes

The Company recorded a net income tax charge of RMB919.7 million (US$133.8 million) for the fourth quarter of 2018, compared to RMB843.8 million and RMB290.4 million for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively. The effective tax rate for the fourth quarter of 2018 was 34.0%, compared to 34.2% and 18.2% for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively. The higher effective tax rate for the fourth quarter of 2018 was due to the fact that certain subsidiaries of the Company experienced higher operating losses compared with the fourth quarter of 2017.

Net Income After Tax

Net income attributable to the Company's shareholders for the fourth quarter of 2018 totaled RMB1,697.7 million (US$246.9 million), compared to RMB1,596.3 million and RMB1,285.6 million for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively. Non-GAAP net income attributable to the Company's shareholders for the fourth quarter of 2018 totaled RMB2,359.6 million (US$343.2 million), compared to RMB2,258.8 million and RMB1,878.9 million for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively.

During the fourth quarter of 2018, the Company had a net foreign exchange loss of RMB27.1 million (US$3.9 million), compared to a net foreign exchange gain of RMB56.1 million and a net foreign exchange loss of RMB159.1 million for the preceding quarter and the fourth quarter of 2017, respectively. The changes in foreign exchange gains and losses were mainly due to foreign currency transactions and unrealized exchange gains and losses arising from the Company's U.S. dollar-denominated bank deposits and short-term loan balances as the exchange rate of the U.S. dollar against the RMB fluctuated over the periods.