Sohu.com (SOHU) Q3 2022 Earnings Call Transcript

For the period ending September 30, 2022

November 14, 2022 7:30 a.m. ET

Prepared Remarks

Questions and Answers

Call Participants

Prepared Remarks:

Operator

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for standing by, and good evening. Thank you for joining Sohu's Third Quarter 2022 Earnings Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] Today's conference call is being recorded. If you have any objections, you may disconnect at this time. I would now like to turn the conference over to your host for today's conference call, Huang Pu. Investor Relations Director of Sohu. Please go ahead.

Huang Pu

Thanks, operator. Thank you for joining us to discuss Sohu's third quarter 2022 results. On the call are Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Charles Zhang; CFO, Joanna Lv; and Vice President of Finance, James Deng. Also with us are Changyou's CEO, Dewen Chen; and the CFO, Yaobin Wang.

Before management begins their prepared remarks, I would like to remind you of the company's safe harbor statement in connection with today's conference call. Except for the historical information contained herein, the measures discussed on this call may contain forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current plans, estimates and projections. And therefore, you should not place undue reliance on them.

Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. We caution you that a number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those containing and involve these statements. For more information about the potential risks and uncertainties, please refer to the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the most recent annual report on Form 20-F.

With that, I will now hand the call over to Dr. Charles Zhang. Charles, please proceed.

Charles Zhang

Thank you, Huang. And thank you, everyone, for joining our call. In the third quarter of 2022, we've faced severe headwinds from COVID-19 pandemic and uncertainties in the macroeconomic environment. Despite these, we maintained our focus on refining our products, improving operating efficiency and enhancing monetization capabilities. Thanks to strict budget control and solid performance of our online game business. Our bottom-line performance for the quarter was well above expectations.

For Sohu Media Portal, we enhanced user experience through continuous improvements in products and technology. For Sohu Video, we continued to execute our Twin Engine strategy, developing science and knowledge-based live broadcasting with our advanced live broadcasting technology and compelling content and events. Leveraging the differentiated advantages of the Sohu product matrix, we continue to explore ways to improve monetization for both Sohu Media Portal and Sohu Video. Online Games performed well during the quarter with revenues exceeding our prior guidance.