Cheetah Mobile (CMCM) Risk Factors

On March 15, 2019, the Foreign Investment Law, or the FIL, was adopted and approved by Second Session of the 13th National People's Congress of China. On December 26, 2019, the Implementation Regulation for the Foreign Investment Law of the People's Republic of China, or the FIL Implementing Regulations, was issued by the State Council. Both the FIL and the FIL Implementing Regulations came into force on January 1, 2020. The FIL and the FIL Implementing Regulations, upon taking effect, have replaced the three existing laws on foreign investment (collectively "Three FDI law"), namely, the Law on Sino-Foreign Equity Joint Ventures, the Law on Sino-Foreign Contractual Joint Ventures and the Law on Wholly Foreign Owned Enterprises, and become a fundamental law of China in the foreign investment area, setting forth the basic legal framework in this regard. According to the FIL, foreign investment may be conducted through the following four ways: (i) foreign investor, independently or jointly with other investors, set up foreign-invested enterprises in China, (ii) foreign investors obtain shares, equities, property shares or other similar rights and interests of Chinese domestic enterprises, (iii) foreign investor, independently or jointly with other investors, invests in a new project (the "Project Investment") and (iv) other forms stipulated under laws, administrative regulations and provisions of the State Council. For more details, see "Item 4. Information on the Company-B. Business Overview-Regulations-Regulations of Foreign Investment". It is worth noting that the FIL has removed the "variable interest equity" or VIE structure from the definition of foreign investment and cancelled the standard of "actual control" to identify the foreign investment as was introduced in the draft of the proposed Foreign Investment Law published by the MOFCOM in 2015, or the 2015 Draft. Notwithstanding the above, the FIL stipulates that foreign investment include "other forms stipulated under laws and regulations", a catch-all clause which needs to be further clarified as to whether the VIE structure will be interpreted to fall within it. There are possibilities that future laws, administrative regulations or provisions prescribed by the State Council may stipulate VIE structure as a form of foreign investment, at which time it will be uncertain whether the VIE structure through which we conduct our operations will be deemed to be in violation of the foreign investment access requirements and how the above-mentioned VIE structure will be handled. Certain services we provide and businesses we operate through the VIEs are subject to the foreign investment restrictions or prohibitions set forth in the Negative List (2021 Version). Where a foreign investor invests in a field or sector that is prohibited under the Negative List, it will be ordered to stop the investment activities, dispose of the shares or assets or take other necessary measures within a specified time limit, and restore to the status to be prior to the occurrence of the aforesaid investment, and the gains of such foreign investor (if any) will be confiscated by competent authority. If the VIE structure is deemed to be a form of foreign investment as interpreted by the FIL or future laws and regulations, we may be required to dispose of our subsidiaries, or have to take other actions to adjust our corporate structure and operations, which could have an adverse effect on our corporate structure, financial conditions and business operations. The FIL also establishes several administration systems for foreign investment, amongst others, the information reporting system. Foreign investors or FIEs are required to submit investment information to the competent authorities through the system of enterprises registration and enterprise credibility disclosure. The FIL clearly stipulates that any company found to be non-compliant with these information reporting obligations is subject to fines and other penalties. On December 30, 2019, the MOFCOM and SAMR issued the Measures of Information Report of Foreign Investment, or the FI Information Report Measures, according to which foreign investors establishing foreign investment enterprises in China shall submit an initial report through the Enterprise Registration System at the time of completion of registration formalities for establishment of foreign investment enterprises. Where there is a change in the information in the initial report which involves change registration (filing) of the enterprise, the FIE shall submit the change report through the enterprise registration system at the time of completion of change registration (filing) for the enterprise. In addition, FIEs are required to submit their annual reports for the previous year through the National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System from January 1 to June 30 each year. The MOFCOM and its local departments shall supervise and inspect the compliance with the FI Information Report Measures, through random inspection and other methods. The Foreign Investment Law and the FI Information Report Measures may also impact our corporate governance practice and increase our compliance costs. For instance, the Foreign Investment Law imposes stringent ad hoc and periodic information reporting requirements on foreign investors and the applicable FIEs. Aside from investment initial report and change report that are required at each investment and alteration of investment specifics, an annual report is mandatory. Any company found to be non-compliant with these information reporting obligations may potentially be subject to fines and/or administrative or criminal liabilities, and the persons directly responsible may be subject to criminal liabilities.

Foreign ownership of internet-based, including mobile-based, businesses is subject to significant restrictions under current PRC laws and regulations. The PRC government regulates internet access, distribution of internet information services and value-added telecommunication services through strict business licensing requirements and other government regulations. These laws and regulations also limit foreign ownership of PRC companies that provide internet information services. According to the Special Administrative Measures(Negative List) for Access of Foreign Investment(2021 Version) (the "Negative List (2021 Version)"), foreign investment in internet news information services, online publication services, online audio-visual program services, internet cultural business (except for music) are prohibited, and foreign equity share in a value-added telecommunication business shall not exceed 50% (excluding e-commerce, domestic multi-party communication, store-and-forward, and call center), and the basic telecommunication services shall be controlled by the Chinese party. In addition, according to the Several Opinions on the Introduction of Foreign Investment in the Cultural Industry promulgated by the MOC, the SARFT, the National Development and Reform Commission, or the NDRC, and the Ministry of Commerce, or the MOFCOM, in July 2005, foreign investors are prohibited from investing in or operating, among other things, any internet cultural operating entities. Companies providing mobile internet services such as ours are governed by these rules and regulations on internet companies in China. Cheetah Mobile Inc. is a Cayman Islands holding company with no equity ownership in the VIEs, and we conduct part of our operations through the VIEs. The VIEs, together with their subsidiaries, contributed a portion of our consolidated revenues in the years ended December 31, 2021, 2022 and 2023. We consolidate the VIEs through a series of contractual arrangements that those entities and/or their shareholders signed with our company, our wholly-owned PRC subsidiaries, including but not limited to Beijing Kingsoft Internet Security Software Co., Ltd., or Beijing Security, Conew Network Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd., or Conew Network. Our contractual arrangements with the VIEs and their shareholders enable us to consolidate the VIEs and give us the obligation to absorb losses and the right to receive benefits of the VIEs, enabling us to consolidate their operating results. For a detailed description of these contractual arrangements, see "Item 4. Information on the Company-C. Organizational Structure-Contractual Arrangements with the VIEs." Holders of our Class A ordinary shares or the ADSs hold equity interest in a Cayman Islands holding company, but do not directly or indirectly hold equity interest in the VIEs or their subsidiaries. If the PRC government deems that our contractual arrangements with the consolidated variable interest entities do not comply with PRC regulatory restrictions on foreign investment in the relevant industries, or if these regulations or the interpretation of existing regulations change or are interpreted differently in the future, we could be subject to severe penalties or be forced to relinquish our interests in those operations. We may not be able to repay our indebtedness, and our shares may decline in value or become worthless, if we are unable to assert our contractual control rights over the assets of the consolidated variable interest entities, which contribute to 42.9% of our revenues in 2023. Our holding company in the Cayman Islands, the consolidated variable interest entities, and investors of our company face uncertainty about potential future actions by the PRC government that could affect the enforceability of the contractual arrangements with the consolidated variable interest entities and, consequently, significantly affect the financial performance of the consolidated variable interest entities and our company as a group. Based on the advice of our PRC legal counsel, Global Law Office, the contractual arrangements among our PRC subsidiaries, the VIEs, their shareholders and us, as described in this annual report, are valid, legal and binding on each of the above-mentioned parties thereto in accordance with the terms of respective contractual arrangements. However, we were further advised by Global Law Office that there are substantial uncertainties regarding the interpretation and application of current or future PRC laws and regulations, and that these laws or regulations or interpretations of these laws or regulations may change in the future. Furthermore, the relevant government authorities have broad discretion in interpreting and implementing these laws and regulations. Accordingly, we cannot assure you that PRC government authorities will not ultimately take a view contrary to that of our PRC legal counsel. If our corporate structure, contractual arrangements and businesses of our company, or our PRC entities, including our PRC subsidiaries and VIEs are found to be in violation of any existing or future PRC laws or regulations, the relevant governmental authorities would have broad discretion in dealing with such violation, including: - levying fines or confiscating our income or the income of our PRC entities;- revoking or suspending the business licenses or operating licenses of our PRC entities;- shutting down our servers or blocking our platform, discontinuing or placing restrictions or onerous conditions on our operations;- requiring us to discontinue or restrict our operations; and - taking other regulatory or enforcement actions that could be harmful to our business. The imposition of any of these penalties would result in a material and adverse effect on our ability to conduct our business. In addition, it is unclear what impact the PRC government actions would have on us and on our ability to consolidate the financial results of our variable interest entities in our consolidated financial statements, if the PRC government authorities were to find our legal structure and contractual arrangements to be in violation of PRC laws and regulations. If the imposition of any of these government actions causes us to lose our right to direct the activities of our variable interest entities or our right to receive substantially all the economic benefits and residual returns from our variable interest entities and we are not able to restructure our ownership structure and operations in a satisfactory manner, we would no longer be able to consolidate the financial results of our variable interest entities in our consolidated financial statements. Either of these results, or any other significant penalties that might be imposed on us in this event, would have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. Although we believe we, our PRC subsidiaries and the consolidated variable interest entities comply with current PRC laws and regulations, we cannot assure you that the PRC government would agree that our contractual arrangements comply with PRC licensing, registration or other regulatory requirements, with existing policies or with requirements or policies that may be adopted in the future. The PRC government has broad discretion in determining rectifiable or punitive measures for non-compliance with or violations of PRC laws and regulations. If the PRC government determines that we or the consolidated variable interest entities do not comply with applicable law, it could revoke the consolidated variable interest entities' business and operating licenses, require the consolidated variable interest entities to discontinue or restrict the consolidated variable interest entities' operations, restrict the consolidated variable interest entities' right to collect revenues, block the consolidated variable interest entities' websites, require the consolidated variable interest entities to restructure our operations, impose additional conditions or requirements with which the consolidated variable interest entities may not be able to comply, impose restrictions on the consolidated variable interest entities' business operations or on their customers, or take other regulatory or enforcement actions against the consolidated variable interest entities that could be harmful to their business. Any of these or similar occurrences could significantly disrupt our or the consolidated variable interest entities' business operations or restrict the consolidated variable interest entities from conducting a substantial portion of their business operations, which could materially and adversely affect the consolidated variable interest entities' business, financial condition and results of operations. If any of these occurrences results in our inability to direct the activities of any of the consolidated variable interest entities that most significantly impact its economic performance, and/or our failure to receive the economic benefits from any of the consolidated variable interest entities, we may not be able to consolidate these entities in our consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

The internet industry, including the mobile internet industry and artificial intelligence industry, is highly regulated in China. The VIEs are required to obtain and maintain applicable licenses and approvals from different regulatory authorities in order to provide their current services. Under the current PRC regulatory scheme, a number of regulatory agencies, including but not limited to the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television, or SARFT, which has been reformed and become National Radio and Television Administration, or NRTA, the Ministry of Culture, or MOC, which were consolidated with the National Tourism Administration and has been reformed and become the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, or MCT, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, or MIIT, the State Council Information Office, or SCIO, the Cyberspace Administration of China, or CAC, and the State Administration for Market Regulation, or SAMR, jointly regulate all major aspects of the internet industry, including mobile and PC internet businesses. Operators must obtain various government approvals and licenses for relevant internet or mobile business. We have obtained Internet Content Provider Licenses, or ICP Licenses, for the provision of internet information services, a license for value-added telecommunications services with the specification of online data processing and transaction processing business, or EDI license, Business License of Value-Added Telecommunications Services, or SP license, Computer Information System Security Products Sales License for our mobile and PC security applications, the Network Culture Business License for network culture business, and Algorithm Filing for in-country deep synthesis services (service technology supporter). These licenses and filing are essential to the operation of our business and are generally subject to regular government review or renewal. However, we cannot assure you that we can successfully renew these licenses or filing in a timely manner or that these licenses and filing are sufficient to conduct all of our present or future business. Also, according to the current relevant regulations of AIGC, large language models shall be got Algorithm Filing and Large Language Model Filing. As of the date of this annual report, our large language model, "OrionStar", has already been got Algorithm Filing for in-country deep synthesis services (service technology supporter), and the large language model filing materials has been submitted, which is expected be completed soon. However, the AI industry in which we operate is highly regulated. Other than large language models, mobile applications based on large language models shall also be required to get Algorithm Filing and pass security assessment, and requirements of different application markets varies. Therefore, we cannot assure that we can successfully renew current licenses, filings or assessments required for our business in a timely manner or that these licenses, filings or assessments are sufficient to conduct all of current or future business. If we fail to obtain, renew or maintain any of the requisite licenses or approvals or make necessary and appropriate filings in any of the jurisdictions where we have business operations, we may be subject to various penalties, including fines, discontinuation or restriction of our business operations. Considerable uncertainties also exist regarding the interpretation and implementation of existing and future laws and regulations governing our current business activities and new industries or businesses we may expand into. We cannot assure you that we will not be found in violation of any future laws and regulations or any of the laws and regulations currently in effect due to changes in the relevant authorities' implementation or interpretation of these laws and regulations. If we fail to complete, obtain or maintain any of the required licenses or approvals or make the necessary filings, or otherwise fail to comply with the laws and regulations, we may be subject to various penalties, such as confiscation of revenues that were generated through the unlicensed internet or mobile activities, the imposition of fines and the discontinuation or restriction of our operations. Any such penalties may disrupt our business operations and materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Pursuant to NDRC Order 11, any sensitive outbound investment project carried out by overseas enterprise controlled by a PRC natural person shall be subject to a verification and approval procedure, and any non-sensitive outbound investment project, with the total investment amount from any Chinese investor via overseas enterprise under its control exceeding US$300 million, shall be reported to NDRC before the implementation of the project. On February 12, 2017, Kingsoft Corporation have entered into a voting proxy agreement with Mr. Sheng Fu, which became effective on October 1, 2017. According to such agreement, Kingsoft Corporation have delegated to Mr. Sheng Fu its approximately 37.8% voting power of our company. Mr. Sheng Fu has approximately 47.6% voting power of our company so far. As we and our overseas subsidiaries may be considered as companies under control of Mr. Sheng Fu pursuant to NDRC Order 11, verification and approval procedure or reporting may be required when we or our subsidiaries make investments outside China. While we endeavor to comply with NDRC Order 11 and other regulations regarding outbound investment, we cannot assure you that our existing or future subsidiaries will maintain all applicable outbound investment procedures in a timely manner, and any non-compliance on their part may cause potential liabilities to us and disrupt our operations. See "Item 4. Information on the Company-B. Business Overview-Regulations- Regulations on Outbound Investment" for further details.

The PRC legal system is based on written statutes and prior court decisions have limited value as precedents. Since these laws and regulations are relatively new and the PRC legal system continues to rapidly evolve, the interpretations of many laws, regulations and rules are not always uniform and enforcement of these laws, regulations and rules involves uncertainties. From time to time, we may have to resort to administrative and court proceedings to enforce our legal rights. However, certain administrative and court proceedings in China may be protracted, resulting in substantial costs and diversion of resources and management attention. Furthermore, the PRC legal system is based in part on government policies some of which are not published or not on a timely basis. As a result, we may not be aware of any violation of these policies and rules until after such violation. Such unpredictability, including uncertainty as to the scope and effect of our contractual, property (including intellectual property) and procedural rights, could materially and adversely affect our business and impede our ability to continue our operations.

We conduct our business primarily through the consolidated variable interest entities and their subsidiaries in China. Our operations in China are governed by PRC laws and regulations. The PRC government has significant oversight over the conduct of our business according to the laws and regulations of mainland China. However, since the PRC legal system continues to rapidly evolve and many laws and regulations are relatively new, the interpretation and enforcement of these laws, regulations and rules involve uncertainties. The PRC government has recently published new policies that significantly affected certain industries and we cannot rule out the possibility that it will in the future release regulations or policies that directly or indirectly affect our industry or require us to seek additional permission to continue our operations, which could result in a material adverse change in our operation and/or the value of our ADSs.

On July 6, 2021, the relevant PRC government authorities issued Opinions on Lawfully and Severely Combating Illegal Securities Activities. These opinions emphasized the need to strengthen the administration over illegal securities activities and the supervision on overseas listings by China-based companies and proposed to take effective measures, such as promoting the construction of relevant regulatory systems to deal with the risks and incidents faced by China-based overseas-listed companies. For more details of the relevant regulations, see "Item 4. Information on the Company-B. Business Overview-Regulations-Regulations on Overseas Offering and Listing." On December 28, 2021, twelve regulatory authorities jointly released the Cybersecurity Review Measures, which became effective on February 15, 2022. The Cybersecurity Review Measures also provides that a platform operator with more than one million users' personal information aiming to list abroad must apply for cybersecurity review. New York Stock Exchange fall within the definition of "abroad" in the provision, however, we are already listed on the New York Stock Exchange, therefore, there can be no assurance if we are required to follow the Cybersecurity review or the security assessment procedures, and if so, whether we would be able to complete the applicable cybersecurity review or the security assessment procedures in a timely manner. For more details of the relevant regulations, see "Item 4. Information on the Company-B. Business Overview-Regulations-Regulations on Overseas Offering and Listing." On February 17, 2023, the CSRC issued the Trial Administrative Measures and five supporting guidelines, which became effective on March 31, 2023. According to the Trial Administrative Measures, the overseas offering and listing by a domestic company, whether directly or indirectly, shall be filed with the CSRC. And subsequent securities offerings of a public company in the same overseas market where it has previously offered and listed securities shall be filed with the CSRC within 3 working days after the offering is completed. Subsequent securities offerings and listings of a public company in other overseas markets than where it has offered and listed shall be filed pursuant to provisions in the first paragraph of this Article of the Trial Administrative Measures. On February 24, 2023, CSRC and the other relevant PRC government authorities issued the Provisions on Strengthening Confidentiality and Archives Administration of Overseas Securities Offering and Listing by Domestic Companies (the "Confidentiality and Archives Administration Provisions"), which became effective on March 31, 2023, according to which a domestic company, including a joint-stock company incorporated domestically that conducts direct overseas offering and listing, and a domestic operating entity of a company that conducts indirect overseas offering and listing, its securities in an overseas market shall strictly abide by applicable PRC laws and regulations, enhance legal awareness of keeping state secrets and strengthening archives administration, institute a sound confidentiality and archives administration system, and take necessary measures to fulfill confidentiality and archives administration obligations. In addition, we cannot assure you that any new rules or regulations promulgated in the future will not impose additional requirements on us. If it is determined in the future that approval and filing from the CSRC or other regulatory authorities or other procedures, including the Cybersecurity review under the Cybersecurity Review Measures and the draft of Regulations on the Network Data Security, are required for our offshore offerings, it is uncertain whether we can or how long it will take us to obtain such approval or complete such filing procedures and any such approval or filing could be rescinded or rejected. Any failure to obtain or delay in obtaining such approval or completing such filing procedures for our offshore offerings, or a rescission of any such approval or filing if obtained by us, would subject us to sanctions by the CSRC or other PRC regulatory authorities for failure to seek CSRC approval or filing or other government authorization for our offshore offerings. These regulatory authorities may impose fines and penalties on our operations in China, limit our ability to pay dividends outside of China, limit our operating privileges in China, delay or restrict the repatriation of the proceeds from our offshore offerings into China or take other actions that could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, and prospects, as well as the trading price of our listed securities. The CSRC or other PRC regulatory authorities also may take actions requiring us, or making it advisable for us, to halt our offshore offerings before settlement and delivery of the shares offered. Consequently, if investors engage in market trading or other activities in anticipation of and prior to settlement and delivery, they do so at the risk that settlement and delivery may not occur. In addition, if the CSRC or other regulatory authorities later promulgate new rules or explanations requiring that we obtain their approvals or accomplish the required filing or other regulatory procedures for our prior offshore offerings, we may be unable to obtain a waiver of such approval requirements, if and when procedures are established to obtain such a waiver. Any uncertainties or negative publicity regarding such approval requirement could materially and adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition, reputation, and the trading price of our listed securities.

The PRC government has adopted regulations governing internet and wireless access and the distribution of information over the internet and wireless telecommunication networks. Under these regulations, internet content providers and internet publishers are prohibited from posting or displaying over the internet or wireless networks content that, among other things, violates PRC laws and regulations, impairs the national dignity of China or the public interest, or is obscene, superstitious, fraudulent or defamatory. Furthermore, internet content providers are also prohibited from displaying content that may be deemed by relevant government authorities as "socially destabilizing" or leaking "state secrets" of the PRC. Meanwhile, the network information content service platforms are required to fulfill their primary responsibilities for management of information contents, and are required not to disseminate any illegal information as mentioned in the Provisions on Governance of the Network Information Content Ecology released by the CAC on December 15, 2019, with effect from March 1, 2020. Also, according to the Administrative Provisions on Mobile Internet Applications Information Services released by the CAC revised on June 14, 2022, APP providers and APP distribution platforms shall perform the primary responsibility for information content management, actively cooperate with the State to implement the strategy of trusted identities in cyberspace, establish sound information content security management systems, information content ecological governance systems, data security and personal information protection systems, minor protection systems and other management systems to ensure cyber security and maintain a good network ecology. Failure to comply with these requirements may result in the revocation of licenses to provide internet content or other licenses, the closure of the concerned platforms and reputational harm. The operator may also be held liable for any censored information displayed on or linked to their platform, and hence we may also be subject to potential liability for any unlawful actions by our users or customers on our platform. For a detailed discussion, see "Item 4. Information on the Company-B. Business Overview-Regulations." Since our inception, we have worked to monitor the content on our platform and applications and to make the utmost effort to comply with relevant laws and regulations. However, it may not be possible to determine in all cases the types of content that could result in our liability as a distributor of such content and, if any of the content posted or displayed on our mobile and PC platforms and applications is deemed by the PRC government to violate any content restrictions, we would not be able to continue to display such content and could become subject to penalties, including confiscation of income, fines, suspension of business and revocation of required licenses, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. The costs of monitoring the content on our platform and applications may also continue to increase as a result of more content being made available by an increasing number of users and customers on our mobile and PC applications. In addition, under PRC advertising laws and regulations, we are obligated to monitor the advertising content shown on our platform and applications to ensure that such content is true, accurate and in full compliance with applicable laws and regulations. Where a special government review is required for specific types of advertisements prior to internet posting, such as advertisements relating to pharmaceuticals, medical instruments, agrochemicals and veterinary pharmaceuticals, we are obligated to confirm that such review has been performed and approval has been obtained. Violation of these laws and regulations may subject us to penalties, including fines, confiscation of our advertising income, orders to cease dissemination of the advertisements and orders to publish an announcement correcting the misleading information. In circumstances involving serious violations by us, PRC governmental authorities may force us to terminate our advertising operations or revoke our licenses. While we have made significant efforts to ensure that the advertisements shown on our mobile and PC platforms and applications are in full compliance with applicable PRC laws and regulations, we cannot assure you that all the content contained in such advertisements or offers is true and accurate as required by the advertising laws and regulations, especially given the uncertainty in the interpretation of these PRC laws and regulations. If we are found to be in violation of applicable PRC advertising laws and regulations, we may be subject to penalties and our reputation may be harmed, which may have a material and adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

The Regulations on Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors, or the M&A Rules, and other recently adopted regulations and rules concerning mergers and acquisitions established additional procedures and requirements that could make merger and acquisition activities by foreign investors more time-consuming and complex. For example, the M&A Rules require that the MOFCOM be notified in advance of any change-of-control transaction in which a foreign investor takes control of a PRC domestic enterprise, if (i) any important industry is concerned, (ii) such transaction involves factors that impact or may impact national economic security, or (iii) such transaction will lead to a change in control of a domestic enterprise which holds a famous trademark or PRC time-honored brand. The M&A Rules requires that mergers and acquisitions of domestic enterprises by foreign investors shall be subject to the approval of the MOFCOM or its delegates at provincial level. In the event that any domestic company, enterprise or natural person merges or acquires a domestic company that has affiliated relationship with it through an overseas company legally established or controlled by such domestic company, enterprise or natural person (the "Affiliated M&A"), the merger and acquisition applications shall be submitted to the MOFCOM for approval. Any circumvention on the requirement including domestic re-investment of a foreign invested enterprise is not allowed. In addition, on February 3, 2011, the General Office of the State Council promulgated a Notice on Establishing the Security Review System for Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors, or the Circular 6, which officially established a security review system for mergers and acquisitions of domestic enterprises by foreign investors. Further, on August 25, 2011, MOFCOM promulgated the Regulations on Implementation of Security Review System for the Merger and Acquisition of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors, or the MOFCOM Security Review Regulations, which became effective on September 1, 2011, to implement the Circular 6. Under Circular 6, a security review is required for mergers and acquisitions by foreign investors having "national defense and security" concerns and mergers and acquisitions by which foreign investors may acquire the "de facto control" of domestic enterprises with "national security" concerns. Under the MOFCOM Security Review Regulations, the MOFCOM will focus on the substance and actual impact of the transaction when deciding whether a specific merger or acquisition is subject to security review. If the MOFCOM decides that a specific merger or acquisition is subject to security review, it will submit it to the Inter-Ministerial Panel, an authority established under the Circular 6 led by the NDRC and the MOFCOM under the leadership of the State Council, to carry out security review. Prior the promulgation of the Foreign Investment Law or the FIL, only principal provisions are scattered and mentioned in few articles of regulations. In this context, FIL officially established safety review system for foreign investment at the level of law for the first time. Article 35 of the FIL stipulates that the State establishes a foreign investment security review system to conduct security review on foreign investments which have or may have an impact on national security. The safety review decision made in accordance with the law is final. The regulations prohibit foreign investors from bypassing the security review by structuring transactions through trusts, indirect investments, leases, loans, control through contractual arrangements or offshore transactions. There is no explicit provision or official interpretation stating that the merging or acquisition of a company engaged in online marketing or mobile games business requires security review, and there is no requirement that acquisitions completed prior to the promulgation of the Security Review Circular are subject to MOFCOM review. On December 19, 2020, the NDRC and the MOFCOM promulgated Measures for Security Review of Foreign Investment, or the Security Review Measures, being effective from January 18, 2021. According to the Security Review Measures, the state shall establish a working mechanism for the security review of foreign investment (the "Security Review Mechanism") in charge of organization, coordination, and guidance of foreign investment security review. A working mechanism office shall be established under the NDRC and led by the NDRC and the MOFCOM to undertake routine work on the security review of foreign investment. According to the Security Review Measures, in terms of foreign investments falling in the scope such as important cultural products and services, important information technologies and Internet products and services, important financial services, key technologies and other important fields that concern state security while obtaining the actual control over the enterprises invested in, a foreign investor or a party concerned in the PRC shall take the initiative to make a declaration to the working mechanism office prior to making the investment. We have grown and may continue to grow our business by acquiring complementary businesses. Complying with the requirements of the above-mentioned regulations and other relevant rules to complete such transactions could be time-consuming, and any required approval processes, including obtaining approval from the MOFCOM or its local counterparts may delay or inhibit our ability to complete such transactions. It is unclear whether our business would be deemed to be in an industry that raises "national defense and security" or "national security" concerns. However, the MOFCOM or other government agencies may publish explanations in the future determining that our business is in an industry subject to the security review, in which case our future acquisitions in the PRC, including those by entering into contractual control arrangements with target entities, may be closely scrutinized or prohibited. Our ability to expand our business or maintain or expand our market share through future acquisitions would as such be materially and adversely affected.

The SAFE promulgated the Circular on Relevant Issues Relating to Domestic Resident's Investment and Financing and Round-trip Investment through Special Purpose Vehicles, or SAFE Circular 37, in July 2014. SAFE Circular 37 requires PRC residents that directly establish or indirectly control offshore special purpose vehicles, or SPVs, for the purpose of seeking offshore investment and financing and conducting round trip investment in China, to register with the SAFE or its local branch in connection with their ownership in the SPVs, and to amend the SAFE registrations to reflect any subsequent changes thereof. To our knowledge, all our significant individual PRC shareholders have completed foreign exchange registration. However, we may not be fully informed of the identities of all our beneficial owners who are PRC citizens or residents, and we cannot compel our beneficial owners to comply with SAFE registration requirements. As a result, we cannot assure you that all of our shareholders or beneficial owners who are PRC citizens or residents have complied with and will in the future make or obtain any applicable registrations or approvals required by, SAFE regulations. If our shareholders or beneficial owners who are PRC citizens or residents fail to complete their SAFE registration, our PRC subsidiaries may be prohibited from distributing their profits and proceeds from any reduction in capital, share transfer or liquidation to us, and we may be restricted in our ability to contribute additional capital to our PRC subsidiaries. Moreover, failure to comply with the SAFE registration and amendment requirements described above could result in liability under PRC laws for evasion of applicable foreign exchange restrictions.

On February 15, 2012, the SAFE promulgated the Notices on Issues Concerning the Foreign Exchange Administration for Domestic Individuals Participating in Stock Incentive Plans of Overseas Publicly-Listed Companies, or the Stock Option Rules, which replaced the Application Procedures of Foreign Exchange Administration for Domestic Individuals Participating in Employee Stock Ownership Plans or Stock Option Plans of Overseas Publicly-Listed Companies issued by the SAFE on March 28, 2007. Under the Stock Option Rules and other relevant rules and regulations, PRC residents who participate in stock incentive plan in an overseas publicly-listed company are required to register with the SAFE or its local branches and complete certain other procedures. Participants of a stock incentive plan who are PRC residents must retain a qualified PRC agent, which could be a PRC subsidiary of such overseas publicly listed company or another qualified institution selected by such PRC subsidiary, to conduct the SAFE registration and other procedures with respect to the stock incentive plan on behalf of its participants. Such participants must also retain an overseas entrusted institution to handle matters in connection with their exercise of stock options, the purchase and sale of corresponding stocks or interests and fund transfers. In addition, the PRC agent is required to amend the SAFE registration with respect to the stock incentive plan if there is any material change to the stock incentive plan, the PRC agent or the overseas entrusted institution or other material changes. We and our PRC employees who have been granted stock options have been subject to these regulations upon the completion of the initial public offering in May 2014. Failure of our PRC stock option holders to complete their SAFE registrations may subject these PRC residents to fines and legal sanctions and may also limit our ability to contribute additional capital into our PRC subsidiaries, limit our PRC subsidiaries' ability to distribute dividends to us, or otherwise materially adversely affect our business. In addition, this Notice issued by the SAFE only covers two categories of equity incentive plans, i.e., employee stock ownership plans and stock option plans. As a result, we also face regulatory uncertainties that could restrict our ability to adopt additional equity incentive plans for our directors and employees under PRC laws and regulations if we adopt other employee equity incentive plans in the future.

We are an offshore holding company conducting our operations in China through our PRC entities, including PRC subsidiaries and VIEs. We may make loans to our PRC entities, or we may make additional capital contributions to our PRC subsidiaries, or we may establish new PRC subsidiaries and make capital contributions to these new PRC subsidiaries, or we may acquire offshore entities with business operations in China in an offshore transaction. Most of these financing means are subject to PRC regulations and approvals. For example, loans by us to our wholly-owned PRC subsidiaries to finance their activities cannot exceed statutory limits and must be registered with the local counterpart of the SAFE. Due to the restrictions imposed on loans in foreign currencies extended to any PRC domestic companies, we are not likely to make such loans to the VIEs, which are PRC domestic companies. Further, we are not likely to finance the activities of the VIEs by means of capital contributions due to regulatory restrictions relating to foreign investment in PRC domestic enterprises engaged in mobile internet services, online advertising, online games and related businesses. On March 30, 2015, the SAFE promulgated the Circular on the Reform of the Administrative Method of the Settlement of Foreign Currency Capital of Foreign-Invested Enterprises, or Circular 19, which became effective as of June 1, 2015. Among other things, under Circular 19, foreign-invested enterprises may either continue to follow the payment-based foreign currency settlement system or elect to follow the so-called "conversion-at-will" of foreign currency settlement system. On October 23, 2019, the SAFE promulgated the Notice of Foreign Exchange of Further Facilitating Cross-border Trade and Investment, or SAFE Circular 28, and the Notice of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange on Reducing Foreign Exchange Accounts, or SAFE Circular 29, clearly cancelling the restrictions on domestic equity investment of capital funds by ordinary foreign-invested enterprises. On December 4, 2023, the SAFE promulgated Circular of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange on Further Deepening Reforms to Facilitate Cross-Border Trade and Investment, which took effect on December 4, 2023, providing that an enterprise meeting certain conditions may participate in the cross-border financing facilitation business in accordance with the relevant provisions, and borrow foreign debts at its discretion within a certain amount. For detailed information, please see "Item 4. Regulations-Regulations of Foreign Currency Exchange, Foreign Debt and Dividend Distribution." In light of the various requirements imposed by PRC regulations on loans to and direct investment in PRC entities by offshore holding companies as discussed above, we cannot assure you that we will be able to complete the necessary government registrations or obtain the necessary government approvals on a timely basis, or at all, with respect to future loans by us to our PRC entities or with respect to future capital contributions by us to our PRC subsidiaries. If we fail to complete such registrations or obtain such approvals, our ability to capitalize or otherwise fund our PRC operations may be negatively affected, which could materially and adversely affect our liquidity and our ability to fund and expand our business.

Shareholder claims or regulatory investigation that are common in the United States generally are difficult to pursue as a matter of law or practicality in China. For example, in China, there are significant legal and other obstacles to providing information needed for regulatory investigations or litigation initiated outside China. Although the authorities in China may establish a regulatory cooperation mechanism with the securities regulatory authorities of another country or region to implement cross-border supervision and administration, such cooperation with the securities regulatory authorities in the Unities States may not be efficient in the absence of mutual and practical cooperation mechanism. According to Article 177 of the PRC Securities Law, or Article 177, which became effective in March 2020, no overseas securities regulator is allowed to directly conduct investigation or evidence collection activities within the territory of the PRC. Without the consent of the securities authorities and the relevant competent authorities of the State Council, no entity or individual may provide documents or materials relating to securities business activities to overseas. Also, according to Article 36 of the Data Security Law, which became effective in September 2021, the competent authority of the People's Republic of China shall, in accordance with the relevant laws or the international treaties and agreements concluded or acceded to by the People's Republic of China, or on the principle of equality and reciprocity, handle the requests for provision of data from foreign judicial or law enforcement organizations. Without the approval of the competent authorities of the People's Republic of China, no organization or individual shall provide the data stored within the territory of the People's Republic of China to foreign judicial or law enforcement organizations. According to Article 4 of the Measures for the Security Assessment of Outbound Data Transfers, which became effective in September 2022, for an outbound data transfer by a data processor that falls under specific circumstances, the data processor shall apply to the national cyberspace administration authority for the security assessment via the local provincial-level cyberspace administration authority. While detailed interpretation of or implementation rules have yet to be promulgated, the inability for an overseas securities regulator to directly conduct investigation, evidence collection, or data acquisition activities within China may further increase difficulties faced by you in protecting your interests. Also, on February 24, 2023, CSRC and other three PRC regulatory authorities jointly issued the Confidentiality and Archives Administration Provisions, which will take effect on March 31, 2023, according to which, overseas securities regulators and competent overseas authorities may request to inspect, investigate or collect evidence from a domestic company concerning its overseas offering and listing or from the domestic securities companies and securities service providers that undertake relevant businesses for such domestic companies, such inspection, investigation and evidence collection shall be conducted under a cross-border regulatory cooperation mechanism, and the CSRC or other competent Chinese authorities will provide necessary assistance pursuant to bilateral and multilateral cooperation mechanisms. The domestic company, securities companies and securities service providers shall first obtain approval from the CSRC or other competent Chinese authorities before cooperating with the inspection and investigation by the overseas securities regulator or competent overseas authority, or providing documents and materials requested in such inspection and investigation. As the Confidentiality and Archives Administration Provisions are relatively new, there are uncertainties with respect to their interpretation and implementation. See also "-Risks Relating to the ADSs-You may face difficulties in protecting your interests, and your ability to protect your rights through U.S. courts may be limited, because we are incorporated under Cayman Islands law" for risks associated with investing in us as a Cayman Islands company.

We have historically to defended against putative shareholder class action lawsuits described in "Item 8. Financial Information-A. Consolidated Statements and Other Financial Information-Legal Proceedings." We may be named as a defendant in putative shareholder class action lawsuit in the future. We will be unable to estimate the possible loss or possible range of loss, if any, associated with the resolution of any such lawsuit. In the event that our defense of any such lawsuit is unsuccessful, there can be no assurance that we will prevail in any appeal. Any adverse outcome of these cases, including any plaintiff's appeal of a judgment in any such lawsuit, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operation, cash flows and reputation. In addition, there can be no assurance that our insurance carriers will cover all or part of the defense costs, or any liabilities that may arise from any such lawsuit. The litigation processes may utilize a significant portion of our cash resources and divert management's attention from the day-to-day operations of our company, all of which could harm our business. We also may be subject to claims for indemnification related to any such lawsuit, and we cannot predict the impact that indemnification claims may have on our business or financial results.

The Chinese government has provided various tax incentives to our subsidiaries and VIEs in China. These incentives include reduced enterprise income tax rates. For example, under the EIT Law and its implementation rules, the statutory enterprise income tax rate is 25%. However, an enterprise holding a valid certificate of new software enterprise or animation enterprise is entitled to an exemption of enterprise income tax for the first two years and a 50% reduction of enterprise income tax for the subsequent three years, commencing from the first profit-making year, while an enterprise qualified as key software enterprise can enjoy a preferential EIT rate of 10%. In addition, enterprises that are granted the high and new technology enterprises status, as well as those that located in Guangdong-Macao Deep Cooperation Zone which also qualify as encouraged industrial enterprises and meet the substantive operational requirements, shall enjoy a favorable income tax rate of 15%. Certain of our PRC subsidiaries and VIEs were eligible for preferential tax treatments as new software enterprises, animation enterprise and/or high and new technology enterprises. See "Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects-A. Operating Results-Taxation." Any increase in the enterprise income tax rate applicable to our PRC entities in China, or any discontinuation or retroactive or future reduction of any of the preferential tax treatments currently enjoyed by our PRC entities in China, could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, in the ordinary course of our business, we are subject to complex income tax and other tax regulations and significant judgment is required in the determination of a provision for income taxes. Although we believe our tax provisions are reasonable, if the PRC tax authorities successfully challenge our position and we are required to pay tax, interest and penalties in excess of our tax provisions, our financial condition and results of operations would be materially and adversely affected.

We will be a "passive foreign investment company," or "PFIC," if, in the case of any particular taxable year, after applying applicable look-through rules, either (a) 75% or more of our gross income for such year consists of certain types of "passive" income or (b) 50% or more of the value of our assets (generally determined on the basis of a quarterly average) during such year is attributable to assets that produce or are held for the production of passive income. Although the law in this regard is unclear, we treat the VIEs as being owned by us for United States federal income tax purposes, not only because we consolidate the operation of such entities but also because we are entitled to substantially all of their economic benefits, and, as a result, we consolidate their results of operations in our consolidated financial statements. Based on the market price of our ADSs and the value, nature and composition of our assets (in particular the substantial amount of cash and investments), we believe that we were a PFIC for United States federal income tax purposes for the taxable year ended December 31, 2023, although there can be no assurance in this regard. If we are a PFIC in any taxable year (as we believe we are for the 2023 taxable year and the prior two years), a U.S. holder (as defined in "Item 10. Additional Information- E. Taxation-United States Federal Income Taxation") will be subject to special and adverse tax rules with respect to any "excess distribution" received from the Company or and any gain recognized on the sale or other disposition of the ADSs or Class A ordinary shares. Further, if we are a PFIC for any year during which a U.S. holder holds the ADSs or our Class A ordinary shares (as we believe we are for the 2023 taxable year and the prior two years), we generally will continue to be treated as a PFIC for all succeeding years during which such U.S. holder holds the ADSs or our Class A ordinary shares. For more information see "Item 10. Additional Information-E. Taxation-United States Federal Income Taxation-Passive Foreign Investment Company Considerations."

Third parties, including our competitors, may assert claims against us for alleged infringements of their technology patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets and internet content. Third parties may also claim that our employees have misappropriated or divulged their former employers' proprietary rights or confidential information. Our internal procedures and licensing practices may not be effective in completely preventing the unauthorized use of copyrighted materials or the infringement of other rights of third parties by us or our users. The validity, enforceability and scope of protection of intellectual property rights in internet-related industries, particularly in China, is uncertain and still evolving. If a claim of infringement brought against us in China or another jurisdiction is successful, we may be required to pay substantial penalties or other damages and fines, enter into license agreements which may not be available on commercially reasonable terms or at all or be subject to injunction or court orders. We may be subject to injunction or court orders or required to redesign our products or technology, any of which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Even if allegations or claims lack merit, defending against them could be both costly and time-consuming and could significantly divert the efforts and resources of our management and other personnel. In addition, regardless of the outcome of the lawsuit, we could suffer reputational harm. For example, we changed our corporate name, company logo and trademark to reflect our new name Cheetah Mobile in the first half of 2014. Cheetah is commonly used in corporate names in China, the United States and elsewhere. Although we believe in good faith that our use of Cheetah Mobile does not infringe on any third-party intellectual property rights and we have filed trademark applications in certain categories in China, third parties may bring trademark and other intellectual property infringement claims against us, which could distract our management attention and result in us incurring significant cost to defend ourselves. Further, we license and use technologies from third parties in our applications. These third-party technology licenses may not continue to be available to us on acceptable terms or at all, and may expose us to liability. Any such liability, or our inability to use any of these third-party technologies, could result in disruptions to our business that could materially and adversely affect our operating and financial results.

Although we seek to reduce the possibility of disruptions and other outages, our applications may be disrupted by problems with our own cloud-based technology and system, such as malfunctions in our software or other facilities or network overload. Our systems may be vulnerable to damage or interruption caused by telecommunication failures, power loss, human error, computer attacks or viruses, earthquakes, floods, fires, terrorist attacks, change of relevant laws, regulations or policies and similar events. Our IT systems may not be fully redundant or backed up, and our disaster recovery planning may not be sufficient for all eventualities. Despite any precautions we may take, the occurrence of natural disasters, policy changes or other unanticipated problems at our hosting facilities or similar events affecting our ability to use necessary online resources could result in interruptions in the availability of our products and services. In particular, we may be required to expand and adapt our technology and infrastructure to continue to reliably store, process and analyze user content as well as to ensure smooth delivery of high quality content. Any interruption in the ability of our users to use our applications could damage our reputation, reduce our future revenues, harm our future operations, subject us to regulatory scrutiny and lead users to seek alternative products. We mostly use third party cloud-based services, such as Tencent cloud, AWS etc. instead of self-owned servers. These third-party services may experience downtime from time to time, and we have limited control over the quality and reliability of these services. Any scheduled or unscheduled interruption in our ability to use such services could result in service disruption, which could result in an immediate, and possibly substantial, loss of revenues. If any such incidents take place, our brands and user perception of the reliability of our systems may be adversely affected.

Our users rely on our utility products to optimize the performance of their PC and mobile devices, provide real time protection against security threats, and gain personalized device experience. Our software and applications are highly technical and complex and, when deployed, may contain defects or security vulnerabilities. Some errors in our products may only be discovered after a product has been installed and used by our users. Most of our software and applications for users rely on our cloud-based data analytics engines to optimize system performance and protect against security threats. The data analytics engines include our most up-to-date security threats library and application behavior library in the cloud, and our products only include a subset of these libraries on the users' end devices. If our data analytics engines do not function properly, or if the infrastructure supporting the data analytics engine malfunctions, our applications may not achieve optimal results. Our cloud-based data analytics engines employ a heuristic, or experience-based, approach to detect unknown security threats and behavior of unknown PC software and mobile applications. However, new malware and malicious software and applications are constantly appearing and evolving, and our detection technologies may not detect all forms of security threats or malicious software and applications encountered by our users. In addition, our products may not work properly with the Windows, Android or iOS operating systems if we cannot promptly upgrade our products following any changes or updates to these operating systems. We previously experienced system disruption due to compatibility issues resulting from an update to the Windows operating system. Any of these defects, vulnerabilities or failures could result in damage to our reputation, decrease in our user base and loss of customers, and our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

To ensure adequate inventory supply for our products, we procure products and components based on demand and production forecasts. The ability to accurately forecast demand for our products and services could be affected by many factors, including changes in customer demand for our products and services, and unanticipated changes in general market and economic conditions. In addition, as we continue to introduce new products and services, we may also face challenges managing the production plan of our existing products, which may in turn affect the inventory management for our existing products. If we fail to accurately forecast customer demand, we may experience excess inventory levels or a shortage of products available for sale. Inventory levels in excess of customer demand may result in inventory write-downs or write-offs and the sale of excess inventory at discounted prices, which may cause our gross margin to suffer and could impair the strength of our brand. In 2021, 2022, and 2023, our impairment of inventory were RMB7.6 million, nil and RMB2.6 million (US$0.4 million), respectively. On the other hand, in the case we experience shortage of products, we may be unable to meet the demand for our products, and our business and operating results could be adversely affected.

The size of our user base and our users' level of engagement are critical to our success. Our business and financial performance have been and will continue to be significantly determined by our success in retaining and engaging active users. We have been consistently anticipating user demand and developing innovative products and services to attract and retain users. However, the internet industry, including the mobile internet industry, is characterized by constant and rapid technological changes. As a result, users may switch from one set of products to others more quickly than in other sectors. Our success will become increasingly dependent on our ability to increase levels of user engagement and monetization in our key markets. Our user engagement could be adversely affected if: - we fail to maintain the popularity of our existing products for users;- we are unsuccessful in launching new and popular applications in a cost-effective manner to further diversify our product offerings and increase user engagement;- technical or other problems prevent us from delivering our products or services in a rapid and reliable manner or otherwise affect user experience;- strategic investments or acquisitions that we make to diversify or improve our products or services offerings fail to generate the favorable results or synergies that we anticipate;- there are user concerns related to privacy, safety, security or other factors;- our competitors may launch or develop products and services similar to ours, which may result in a loss of existing users or reduced growth in new users;- products adopting new technologies displace our products;- there are adverse changes in our products or services that are mandated by, or that we elect to make to address, legislation, regulatory authorities or litigation, including settlements or consent decrees;- there are regulatory enforcement actions or negative publicity for actual or perceived defects of our products and services;- we fail to provide adequate customer service to users;- we do not maintain our brand image, or our reputation is damaged; or - any other unexpected events or changes disrupt our operations in China or elsewhere. We have experienced a decline in users and monthly active users of certain of our products and services in recent years. A number of factors may have contributed to this decline, including increased competition, changes in consumer preferences and spending, and challenges in maintaining user engagement over time. If these unfavorable trends continue or worsen, they could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations and financial condition. Lower user and active user metrics can directly translate to decreased revenues and profits. They may also indicate deeper challenges in continuing to attract new users or maintain our relevance in the marketplace amid shifting consumer demands. However, there can be no guarantee that our efforts to reverse the declines in users and active users will succeed. If declines persist despite our initiatives, our results of operations, financial performance and growth prospects could be materially and adversely impacted. Furthermore, if any major distribution channel changes their standard terms and conditions in a manner that is detrimental to us, or terminate their existing relationship with us, our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected. We received in the past and may continue to receive, complaints from users regarding our mobile applications primarily regarding privacy settings and certain third-party website promotion activities on our mobile applications. While we did not incur any material costs to address the complaints, we may need to incur substantial expenditures in the future. If we are unable to address user complaints timely or at all, our reputation may be harmed, and our user base may continue to decline. Our efforts to avoid or address any of these events could require us to incur substantial expenditures to modify or adapt our products, services or infrastructure. If we fail to retain our user base, or if our users decrease their engagement with our products, our business, financial condition and results of operations would be materially and adversely affected.

Currently, a limited number of customers contribute a significant portion of our revenues. Our customers primarily comprise mobile advertising networks and partners, e-commerce companies, mobile application developers and mobile game developers, as well as individual customers, to which we refer traffic, sell advertisements, provide network security and technical services. In 2021, 2022 and 2023, our five largest customers in aggregate contributed approximately 35.6%, 46.3% and 29.2% of our revenues, respectively. We expect that a limited number of our customers will continue to contribute a significant portion of our revenues in the near future. If we lose any of these customers, or if revenues generated from a significant customer are substantially reduced due to, for example, increased competition, a significant change in the customer's business policy or operation, suspected breach or violation to the underlying contract or policy, any deterioration in customer relationship, or significant delays in payments for our services, our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

Most of our core mobile utility applications are created for Android devices. Any significant downturn in the overall popularity of the Android ecosystem or the use of Android devices could materially and adversely affect the demand for and revenues generated from these mobile utility applications. Although the Android ecosystem has grown rapidly in recent years, it is uncertain whether it will continue to grow at a similar rate in the future. In addition, due to the constantly evolving nature of the mobile industry, another operating system for mobile devices may eclipse Android and decrease its popularity. To the extent that our mobile utility applications continue to mainly support Android devices, our utility products would be vulnerable to any decline in popularity of the Android operating system.

Our future success depends substantially on the continued efforts of our management team and key employees, in particular, Mr. Sheng Fu, our chief executive officer. The loss of Mr. Fu or any of our management team members could harm our business. In addition, if our key employees were unable or unwilling to continue their services with us, we may not be able to replace them easily, in a timely manner, or at all, which could result in significant disruptions to our business. The integration of any replacement personnel could be time-consuming, expensive and cause additional disruption to our business. If any of our management team members or key employees joins a competitor or forms a competing company, we may lose customers, know-how and staff. Each of our executive officers and key employees has agreed to non-competition obligations. However, these agreements may not be properly and effectively implemented in China, where our executives and key employees reside, in light of uncertainties relating to China's legal system. If any of our executive officers or key employees violates the terms of their non-competition or other employment agreements with us, or their legal duties by diverting business opportunities from us, it will result in our loss of corporate opportunities. Although we have adopted a code of business conduct and ethics to help restrict conflicts of interest involving directors and officers,any violation of this code by our directors or officers may materially and adversely affect our business operations, prospects and reputation.

Because of PRC restrictions on foreign ownership of internet businesses in China, we depend on contractual arrangements with the VIEs, in which we have no ownership interest, to conduct our business in China. These contractual arrangements are intended to provide us with effective control over these entities and allow us to obtain economic benefits from them. The shareholders of the VIEs include, but not limited to, Mr. Sheng Fu, who is also our director, as well as Ms. Weiqin Qiu, Mr. Kun Wang and Mr. Wei Liu. For additional details on these ownership interests, see "Item 4. Information on the Company-C. Organizational Structure-Contractual Arrangements with the VIEs." However, these contractual arrangements may not be as effective in providing control as direct ownership. For example, the VIEs and their shareholders could breach their contractual arrangements with us by, among other things, failing to operate our business in an acceptable manner or taking other actions that are detrimental to our interests. If we were the controlling shareholder of these VIEs with direct ownership, we would be able to exercise our rights as shareholders to effect changes to their board of directors, which in turn could implement changes at the management and operational level. However, under the current contractual arrangements, as a legal matter, if the VIEs or their shareholders fail to perform their obligations under these contractual arrangements, we may have to incur substantial costs to enforce such arrangements, and rely on legal remedies under PRC law, including contract remedies, which may be time-consuming, unpredictable and expensive. If we are unable to enforce these contractual arrangements, or if we suffer significant delay or other obstacles in the process of enforcing them, our business and operations could be severely disrupted, which could materially and adversely affect our results of operations and damage our reputation. See "-Risks Relating to Doing Business in China-Uncertainties in the interpretation and enforcement of Chinese laws and regulations could limit the legal protections available to you and us."