May 4, 2021
A new IPO offers investors an opportunity to buy into China's vast, fast-growing audio content market. China's largest audio-based platform Ximalaya Inc., filed with the SEC on Friday. Ximalaya, the Mandarin pronunciation of "Himalaya," intends to list on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker name "XIMA." The shares haven't yet been priced. Backed by Tencent, Ximalaya is riding a boom of what Chinese tech insiders call the "Ear Economy" (耳朵经济). The popularity of podcasts and audiobooks in China has been growing, with demand for such content particularly high during the pandemic. China is the world's largest online audio market by sheer number of online audio users. But China's online audio monthly active users only counted for 16.1% of the country's total mobile internet users in 2020, a penetration rate far below that of the U.S. figure — 47% — over the same period, according to China Insights Consultancy. This means China's audio content sector, which Ximalaya leads, offers tremendous growth potential. What does Ximalaya do? Founded in 2012, Ximalaya has built an audio-based platform and community, Ximalaya FM, with 250 million average monthly users, 146 million of whom tuned in to the company's audio content through internet-of-things (IoT) devices and other third-party platforms. Throughout 2020, users on Ximalaya spent a total of 26 billion hours listening to its audio offerings, including podcasts, audiobooks, audio drama shows, livestreaming, education programs and audio comics. That made up 75% of total mobile listening time across all audio-based platforms in China, according to China Insights Consultancy. Apart from being the most popular audio platform among listeners, Ximalaya is also the most preferred independent online audio platform in China among professional and amature audio content creators. In 2020, 5.2 million content producers shared their work, paid or free, on Ximalaya. Ximalaya's financials
According to Reuters, Ximalaya's valuation reached $3.71 billion in 2018. The company's revenue growth has been robust since 2018. According to its preliminary prospectus , Ximalaya booked $176.3 million in revenue in the first quarter in 2021, a 65.2% surge from the same period in 2020. In 2020, the company's annual revenue was $620.7 million, up 51.3% from its 2020 figures. Ximalaya's main streams of revenue comprise subscription, advertising and livestreaming, which monetizes via sales of virtual gifts to users. In 2020, 43.3% of its total revenue came from membership subscriptions and paid services. Advertising and livestreaming made up 26.5% and 17.7% of its annual revenue, respectively. But like many startups in the audio content market, Ximalaya is facing pressure to turn a profit — the company has consistently lost money since 2018. In the first quarter of 2021, Ximalaya's net loss reached $40.8 million, a slight dip from the $43.7 million net loss it booked in the same period last year. The company's total net loss in 2020 was $92.7 million, 21.8% less than its 2019 total loss. What's next for Ximalaya
Ximalaya intends to use the funds raised in the IPO for R&D, content expansion, marketing and investments and acquisitions. In its prospectus, Ximalaya says it plans to devote 30% of the offering proceeds to developing and advancing new technologies and its AI and big data capabilities. These technologies are critical in gaining insights into user preferences and needs, and they are also important for achieving effective censorship of audio content. Ximalaya says it intends to use another 25% of its proceeds to expand and enhance its content offerings, as well as "empowering" content producers, although the company doesn't clarify what empowering means in this context. Another 25% of the proceeds will be spent on marketing and branding, and the rest for "strategic investments and acquisitions." Ximalaya believes that the rising trend of IoT and in-car listening will bring growth for the industry, and says it will continue to upgrade its platform to allow users to access content through IoT devices like smart speakers, smart watches and cars. What could go wrong? Ximalaya faces a challenge shared by many other user-driven content platforms in China: content monetization. If the platform can't grow its user base or convert non-paying users into paying users, its bottom line will continue to be red. The company has warned investors in the prospectus that it will probably continue to incur losses in the future. Similarly, if Ximalaya can't continue to attract and retain content producers, the company could lose listeners, which would negatively affect its business. As a content platform, Ximalaya might find itself in intellectual property disputes. Over the years, the platform has published content uploaded by individual users who didn't own the copyrights. Ximalaya has been sued for third-party copyright violations before. If the company can't source required intellectual property rights from third-party IP partners, or if content creators upload content without obtaining necessary copyright licenses, Ximalaya could be in trouble. Ximalaya has also acknowledged its content-monitoring system might not be effective in preventing illegal, fraudulent or inappropriate content. The company could be liable for its content or even face the suspension of its business licenses for violations of Chinese laws and regulations. Censorship in China and elsewhere Ximalaya operates could also expose the company to risks. Ximalaya was among 11 Chinese tech companies summoned by China's cyberspace regulator in March. The Cyberspace Administration of China claimed the companies were audio-based social networking apps and apps that involve "deepfake" technologies that had failed to perform required security assessment procedures. Who gets rich? Yu Jianjun: Ximalaya's co-founder and CEO is the biggest shareholder of the company. He owns 17.2% of the audio giant. Chen Yuxin: Ximalaya's other co-founder Chen Yuxin is the second-largest shareholder. She holds 13.5% of Ximalaya's equity through an entity called Touch Sound Limited. Xiong Mingwang: Ximalaya's director and founding partner of Xingwang Investment. Xiong Mingwang owns 10.7% of the company. Other major shareholders include the VC firm Trustbridge (7.5%) and Image Frame, a subsidiary of Tencent (5.4%). What people are saying
"As Chinese tech companies, including Baidu, Xiaomi, Huawei and Oppo have all flocked to make cars, over 60 carmakers have embedded Ximalaya's in-car devices. Ximalaya will see lucrative returns on its increasing investments in hardware devices like in-cars devices, smart home gadgets, smart speakers and smart wearables." —Tech blogger Huang Qingchun. "The audio industry is waiting for an opportunity. If Ximalaya FM can successfully go public, the value of the whole industry may be re-evaluated." —WeChat account What's New on the Internet

Everything you need to know about the Ximalaya IPO

News Snapshot:
by Xinhua writers Qiang Lijing, Tai Sicong and Yao Yulin BEIJING, Dec. 2 (Xinhua) -- As a popular storyteller on China's online audio-sharing platform Ximalaya FM, headmaster of a training school and founder of an NGO offering mental health services, Cao Yan seems always full of beans and ready for new adventures. "I would like to do things that others have never done before. Of course, such things must be useful to the society," Cao said. However, her audience may never know that such a lovely voice belongs to a 60-year-old woman who has suffered from severe disabilities for decades....

Profile: Disabled self-made online storyteller smiles at life  China

Hand Over Advertiser Info or Be Taken Down: Ximalaya Shocks Podcasters
posted on 3 hours agoEditor : Chen Du
The announcement infuriated some top of the line podcast creators, who said Ximalaya is attempting to freeload off their own advertiser resources and monopolize monetization channels. SHARE
In a shocking announcement to content creators that has now been deleted, Ximalaya FM, China's top user-generated audio content platform, has required them to file their advertisers' information prior to publishing content. In a screenshot seen by PingWest, Ximalaya FM now requires content creators, including podcasters, to submit to the company's Advertisement Business Groupthe name of their advertisers, the nature of the advertisement such as host-read or sponsored content, etc. The platform also asks the hosts to provide to go through the hassle and provide qualification documents from their advertisers to prove that what they are advertising in shows are true. But the most complained about part is that Ximalaya FM also required hosts to give out what they consider trade secret: quoted prices of such advertising deals. Failure to comply would result in shows taken down, and multiple offenses would mean a permanent ban from the platform, threatens Ximalaya FM. A screenshot of Ximalaya FM's new policy, asking content creators to submit all kinds of advertiser information. Multiple top podcasters in the industry told PingWest that they received notification about the new policy without being consulted with first nor any prior communication. Zhu Feng, founder and host at Dao.fm (津津乐道), a leading podcast network in China, said that his agreements with advertisers include confidentiality clauses, and that Ximalaya FM's new policy violates the rights of his clients by making their confidential information available to a third party. He also cautioned that the policy does not have a clear definition of what constitutes advertisement and what does not, so that it has the potential to be used as a weapon to interfere with content creator's creative and business process. The host said in a public statement that Dao.fm will suspend uploading to Ximalaya FM indefinitely until such policy is withdrew and an acceptable solution is provided. PingWest has reached out to Ximalaya FM for a comment but haven't heard back as of this writing. Ximalaya FM work as a moderated audio content platform, something that is not very common in the western podcast industry, meaning that it does not use standardized RSS feed from podcasts but rather lets users upload audio files directly. In this way Ximalaya gains the ability to take down shows based on its policies. In its announcement, the company laid out how content monetization on the platform would be carried out. Generally speaking, all advertisement deals would have to go through the company, depriving individual creators' ability to sign with advertisers on their own. Going forward, all advertising deals less than 30,000 RMB would have to go through Misheng (蜜声), an adword-like platform the company had developed. For deals larger than that number, Ximalaya FM would basically "weigh in" on the negotiating and creative process, and cuts an unspecified percentage as commission, giving as low as 20% of the entire deal for the hosts. In any case, Ximalaya FM would have the most say in advertising deals because under the new policy the platform screens advertisers and decide which type of deal to make, leaving minimum business and creative freedom for the content creators. A number of top podcasters said that they have tried to reach Ximalaya FM for answers but to no avail. However, private communications between hosts and the company's employees suggested that the new policy affect all creators, including storytellers and ASMR content makers on the platform. Sources close to Ximalaya FM told PingWest that the company developed this new policy while facing mounting pressure in monetization. One source said that creators of cultured, higher quality content should not be dealt with like this. Ximalaya FM said that the policy aims to help content creators better monetize, but many top podcasters said otherwise. A few of them told PingWest that podcasters on the platform and in the industry in general are like a pyramid, on which maybe the 20% on the pointy top has valuable advertiser resources, earning them a comfortable income to cover the cost. Top players' annual playbacks on Ximalaya FM reach the ballpark of millions, or even tens of millions each. However their revenue from the platform has been described to PingWest as "trivial" at best. One top host, who does not want his nor his brand's name public, told PingWest that he made a little more than 300 RMB, or 42 US dollars last year from Ximalaya FM. Another podcaster, who runs a slew of business-centric podcast brands featuring high-quality content garnering decent playback counts, said that she didn't even bother to check for how much she could withdraw from the platform. These podcasters said that their advertiser relations are the result of their own business negotiations and hard work creating content. However, Ximalaya FM did little in empowering content creators by developing advertiser resources and increasing revenue streams for them. "And now it's at the gate, wanting to take over our hard-earned advertiser resources," said one podcaster. Both of the aforementioned podcasters see Ximalaya FM as a top platform for audio content in China and an important source of listenership, but fear that this malicious business tactics are hurting the content creator community. Zhu, the host at Dao.fm, said that as an avid advocate for RSS-based podcast apps, leaving Ximalaya FM for now does not affect his income. "It is my hope that this can be sorted out nicely. Ximalaya FM is one of the largest platforms in China, and it should set up a good example."

Hand Over Advertiser Info or Be Taken Down: Ximalaya Shocks Podcasters

The Ximalaya logo on a building. (Image credit: TechNode/Coco Gao)
An investor that Himalaya Media, a San Francisco-based podcast platform backed by Chinese audio service platform Ximalaya FM, said contributed to its $100 million venture capital funding has denied participation in the deal, according to an Axios report on Wednesday. Why it matters: The deal, which was announced in February, was considered to be Shanghai-based Ximalaya FM’s first international push, though the two firms say that they are operated separately. Ximalaya FM was valued at RMB 24 billion (around $3.4 billion) after receiving an RMB 4 billion funding from Tencent and General Atlantic in August 2018. In February, Himalaya announced that it had raised $100 million from General Atlantic, SIG, and Ximalaya FM. Details: General Atlantic said it never invested in the US podcasting startup, according to a company spokesperson cited by Axios. Himalaya CEO Yu Wang said that General Atlantic didn’t directly invest in the company and the $100 million was a three-year commitment mostly from Ximalaya FM, of which Himalaya has received only around $10 million to date, said the report. Himalaya has removed a press release about the funding because, Wang said, part of the release was “a little bit confusing.”
Context: Overstating investments is an “open secret” among Chinese startups, Xu Xiaoping, the founder of ZhenFund, a venture capital firm in China, told Chinese tech news outlet Tencent Tech in 2015. It was common for startups to exaggerate their amounts of funding by up to ten times, or to just substitute the currencies of the investments from RMB with US dollars, said an anonymous venture capitalist cited by Tencent Tech.

Podcast startup Himalaya’s $100 million VC funding called into doubt: report

An investor that Himalaya Media, a San Francisco-based podcast platform backed by Chinese audio service platform Ximalaya FM, said contributed to its $100 million venture capital funding has denied participation in the deal, according to an Axios report on Wednesday. Why it matters: The deal, which was announced in February, was considered to be Shanghai-based Ximalaya FM’s first international push, though the two firms say that they are operated separately. Ximalaya FM was valued at RMB 24 billion (around $3.4 billion) after receiving an RMB 4 billion funding from Tencent and General Atlantic in August 2018. In February, Himalaya announced that it had raised $100 million from General Atlantic, SIG, and Ximalaya FM. Details: General Atlantic said it never invested in the US podcasting startup, according to a company spokesperson cited by Axios. Himalaya CEO Yu Wang said that General Atlantic didn’t directly invest in the company and the $100 million was a three-year commitment mostly from Ximalaya FM, of which Himalaya has received only around $10 million to date, said the report. The text above is a summary, you can read full article here . 2

Funding Date

Pre-Money Valuation

Post-Money Valuation

Amount Raised

Shares Authorized

Issuance Price

Dividend Rate

Liquidation Preferences

Liquidation Price

Participation

Conversion Price

Anti Dilution

General Voting

Board Voting

Par Value

Legend Star

LinkSure Network

Unicorns- Billion Dollar Startups

Series D

Series A

Series B

Series C

Series C - II

Ximalaya FM serves as a mobile social podcast platform. It provides cloud synchronization and a one-click download facility. The company was founded in 2012 and is based in Shanghai, China.

Ximalaya FM

Whale Capital

Xingwang Investment Management

Name	Work History	Title	Status
Jianjun Yu		Chief Executive Officer	Current
Subscribe to see more	Subscribe to see more	Subscribe to see more	Subscribe to see more

Name	Jianjun Yu	Subscribe to see more
Work History		Subscribe to see more
Title	Chief Executive Officer	Subscribe to see more
Status	Current	Subscribe to see more

Wells Fargo Success Story

Professional Services

Platform Overview

Ximalaya FM

Executives

Ximalaya FM Management Team

2 Team Members