Tag Archives: TRN

At ‘GAC Tech Day’, hydrogen fuel-cell technology takes the limelight, highlights GAC’s scientific depth and technical capabilities

GUANGZHOU, China, Aug. 31, 2020 — Recently at the GAC Tech Day 2020, GAC Group unveiled its latest scientific and technological achievements, including two major platform technologies and three futuristic technologies. Powering current innovations at GAC Group are the Global Platform Modular Architecture (GPMA) that incorporates traditional fuel power as well as the GAC Electric Platform (GEP) 2.0. Building on these platforms, GAC Group announced three technological breakthroughs: the ADiGO 3.0 intelligent driving interconnected ecosystem, hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle Aion LX Fuel Cell and 3DG graphene preparation technology, these leading technologies will enable GAC Group to achieve much more in the near future.

Aion LX Fuel Cell
Aion LX Fuel Cell

At the event, GAC unveiled its first hydrogen fuel-cell passenger car, the Aion LX Fuel Cell, attracting major industry observers and media due key benefits such as its fast charging times, long battery life and zero pollution. Industry experts have lauded the advent of hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles, as it is expected to become a popular environmentally friendly solution for vehicles with zero carbon emissions.

GAC Group has prioritized climate conversation as a strategy and are focusing on hydrogen-based clean energy, known as the "ultimate energy" of the 21st century. Hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles have become a forward-looking technology with promising development prospects.

GAC Group has achieved an industry-leading advantage in hydrogen fuel-cell technology through the launch of the Aion LX Fuel Cell. The hydrogen-based vehicle developed on the GEP 2.0 platform is equipped with a hydrogen fuel-cell system independently developed also by GAC Group.

GAC’s hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle has shown to solve several problems of current renewable energy vehicles. Firstly, it only takes 3-5 minutes to recharge each time, which is shorter than the charging time of most electric vehicles. Secondly, the NEDC operating range of this car exceeds 650KM, reaching international benchmarks. Thirdly, the car also solves the problem of ignition and operations in low-temperature weather: at minus 30°C, a one-button cold start can be enabled sans an external heat source without affecting the cruising range. Most importantly, its emissions are only pure water, and the filter element carried can filter 99% of the inhalable particulate matter, not only reducing pollution but also purifying the surrounding air.

The Aion LX Fuel Cell has also been comprehensively upgraded to exceed safety expectations. Built upon the five-star safety of the original model Aion LX, it has also passed difficult safety tests such as 32km/h side column collision and 80km/h rear collision.

Riding on the wave of technology and digitization, GAC Group has taken the lead in laying out a strategic industry-wide roadmap for technological innovation. GAC MOTOR has developed rapidly in overseas markets in recent years. Supported by GAC Group’s strong scientific and technological backing, the Group remains committed to bring a high-tech driving experience to people all over the world and continue to create value for a lifestyle of mobility for humankind.

Photo – https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20200831/2903236-1?lang=0

HARTING Technology Group has been shaping the future for 75 years

Innovative products and solutions for Industry 4.0

ESPELKAMP, Germany, Aug. 28, 2020 For 75 years now, the HARTING Technology Group has been driving technological change. The vision formulated in 1996 by the owner family "We want to shape the future with technologies for people" remains the guiding star of our entrepreneurial activities. September 1 marks the 75th anniversary of the founding day of the family company.

The manufacturer of everyday products such as waffle irons and irons has evolved into a worldwide leading supplier of industrial connection technology for the three lifelines of data, signal and power, a global player fielding innovative products and solutions focusing on Industry 4.0 and digitization.    

– Cross reference: Picture is available at AP Images (http://www.apimages.com) –

Wilhelm and Marie Harting opened the "Wilhelm Harting Mechanical Workshops" on September 1, 1945, in a repair workshop covering a good 100 square meters in Minden. From 1950 onwards, the company gradually moved to the neighbouring town Espelkamp. This was the period in which the success story of the Han® connector commenced. The Han® (HARTING standard), patented in 1956 and a registered trademark since 1957, became the standard, the epitome of the industrial connector. Thanks to the Han-Modular® series, customers are able to achieve optimal design solutions for the supply of machines, systems and plants.   

In October 2015, Dietmar Harting, son of Marie and Wilhelm Harting, handed over the reins as Chairman of the Board to his son Philip. Today, Philip Harting and his sister Maresa Harting-Hertz work closely with their parents Margrit and Dietmar Harting on the Board. The body includes three managers from outside the family.

Contact:

HARTING Stiftung & Co. KG
Detlef Sieverdingbeck
General Manager
Corporate Communications & Branding (CCB) 
Marienwerderstr. 3
32339 Espelkamp

Tel.: 05772 47-244
Fax:  05772 47-400
Detlef.Sieverdingbeck@HARTING.com
More information at www.HARTING.com

 

 

Related Links :

http://www.harting.com/

Vehicle Displays & Interfaces Virtual Technical Symposium & Expo to Provide a First Look at the Future of the Vehicle-to-Human Interface

Society for Information Display (SID) Metropolitan Detroit Chapter Annual Meeting Sidelined by Pandemic to Now Take Place for a Global Engineering Virtual Only Audience October 14-15, 2020 and On Demand Until February 15, 2021

DETROIT, Aug. 27, 2020 — The Metropolitan Detroit Chapter of the Society for Information Display (SID) is pleased to announce the 27th Annual Vehicle Displays & Interfaces Symposium & Expo will take place in a virtual-only format Wednesday and Thursday October 14-15, 2020, for the benefit of multi-disciplined and multi-international OEM teams and specialists composed of designers, engineers, scientists, technologists, researchers, and system integrators of land, air, sea, and space vehicle displays.

The SID Metropolitan Detroit Chapter recognizes that in the high-tech 4th Industrial Revolution a strong technical understanding of new and emerging Display 3.0 technologies is essential to the global success of engineers, display specialists and executives who design, manufacture, sell and buy vehicle displays, display components, services, and products that integrate display and visual information technology into vehicles. 

In the 2020-decade, the rapid evolution and divergence of visual information technologies continues on pace to connect humankind with their land, air, sea and space vehicles, and their vehicles to them.

"This year’s technical program underscores how the future of electronic vehicle displays resides in the confluence of new and emerging sciences, materials, form factors and technological advances in hardware, software, sensors, systems, components and applications." – Silviu Pala, SID Symposium Chair

The two-day Vehicle Displays & Interfaces October event gives registrants an opportunity for in-depth learning and valuable insights from keynote and back-to-back technical presentations from globally recognized scientists, tech visionaries, thought leaders and researchers presenting leading-edge science and R&D, with leading value-add suppliers providing solutions to global supply chains from pandemic disruption. Registrants can conduct online Q&A with speakers in ‘chat,’ as well as move projects forward by arranging real-time ‘private chat’ sessions with expert exhibitor technical staff.

The 2020 online technical program features distinguished speaker presentations from the global display, HMI, vehicle systems, photonics, academic and vehicle OEM communities. Peer-reviewed papers provide in-depth knowledge and insights on the latest scientific advances, most recent breakthroughs, and potentially revolutionary applications.

TECHNICAL PROGRAM SEGMENTS, TOPICS AND SPEAKERS FROM US, ASIA, EUROPE

Displays and HMI Systems:

  • Reflection Properties of AR Coated Flat and AG Glass Surfaces
    Dave McLean, MAC Thin Films, Santa Rosa, CA, US
  • IOT Intelligent Display Technology
    Lingling Zhang, Tianma, Shanghai, China
  • Display Module with Integrated Driver of Multi-screen
    Liang Zhou, Tianma, Shanghai, China
  • High Precision Optical Bonding for Free-form and Curved Displays
    Gino Mariani, Henkel Surface Technologies, Madison Heights, MI, US

Head-Up Displays:

  • Diffusive Microlens Array for Head-Up Display Applications
    Jerry Wu, Dexerials Corporation, Tagajo-shi, Japan
  • Human Perception Studies of Head-Up Display Ghosting
    Steve Pankratz, 3M Display Materials and Systems Division, St. Paul, MN, US
  • Computational Holographic Displays for 3D AR HUD Using Free-Form Optics
    Hakan Urey, CY Vision, San Jose, CA, US
  • Holographic Optical Elements and Projector Design Considerations for Automotive Windshield Displays
    Michael Firth, CERES Holographics, St. Andrews, Scotland, UK

Tutorial:
Drs. Kai-Han Chang and Thomas Seder from GM R&D will deliver a presentation entitled ‘Holography and Its Automotive Applications: A Tutorial’

Display Metrology:                          

  • Understanding and Achieving Reproducible Sparkle Measurements for an Automotive Specification
    Ingo Rotscholl, TechnoTeam Bildverarbeitung GmbH, Ilmenau, Germany
  • Measuring MicroLEDs for Color Non-Uniformity Correction
    Mike Naldrett, ELDIM, Radiant Vision Systems LLC, Redmond, Washington, US

New Display Solutions:

  • Supervising (Automotive) Displays for Safe Visualization of Camera Video
    Benjamin Axmann, Mercedes-Benz Cars Group Research, Future Technologies, Boeblingen, Germany
  • Customized Local Dimming Algorithm and BLU for Automotive Application towards Low Power Consumption and High Visual Quality
    Maxim Schmidt, Institute of Microelectronics, Saarland University, Saarbrücken, Germany 
  • Automotive Smart Surfaces: Conformable HDR Displays and Smart Windows to Activate Almost Any Surface
    Paul Cain, FlexEnable, Cambridge, UK
  • The Functional Safety Designs of Vehicle Display Driver ICs
    Cheng-Chih Deno, Himax, Hsinchu City, Taiwan
  • Automotive Dual Cell microZone™LCD Development
    Paul Weindorf, Visteon Corporation, Van Buren TWP, MI, US
  • A Low-power Transflective TFT-LCD Based on IGZO TFT
    Lou Tenggang, Tianma Micro-Electronics Group, Shanghai, China
  • A Micro LED Device With 0mm Border
    TengGang Lou, Tianma Micro-Electronics Group, Shanghai, China
  • Enabling Features of VueReal MicroLED Technology for Automotive Applications
    Rexa Chaji, VueReal Inc, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
  • New Challenges and Testing Solutions for Flexible Vehicle Displays & Interfaces
    Eisuke Tsuyuzaki, Bayflex Solutions, Alameda, CA, US
  • New Material Solutions for Automotive Displays. Interfaces and Applications
    Eisuke Tsuyuzaki, Bayflex Solutions, Alameda, CA, US 
  • An Alternative to OLED with Full-array Local Dimming in Automotive Displays
    Logan Cummins, Texas Instruments, Dallas, TX, US

Post-Event On Demand Viewing:
Registrants can view symposium presentations and virtual exhibitor booth content and videos anyplace, anytime, any time zone on demand until February 15, 2021.

Links:
To review the symposium program and exhibitor list, go to www.VehicleDisplay.org
To register, go to www.VehicleDisplay.org.
To secure a virtual exhibitor booth or sponsorship opportunity contact Joe Nemchek at jnemchek.@pcm411, or call (203) 502-8338.

About SID Vehicle Displays & Interfaces Detroit Symposium & Expo:
The SID Vehicle Displays & Interfaces Symposium & Expo Detroit is presented by the Metro-Detroit Chapter of SID (Society for Information Display) www.SID.org. SID is the only professional society focused on the advancement of electronic display and visual information technologies. By exclusively focusing on the advancement of electronic display and visual information technologies, SID provides a unique platform for industry collaboration, communication and training in all related technologies while showcasing the industry’s best new products. The organization’s members are professionals in the technical and business disciplines that relate to display research, design, manufacturing, applications, marketing and sales.

Bitauto Announces Second Quarter 2020 Results

BEIJING, Aug. 24, 2020 — Bitauto Holdings Limited ("Bitauto" or the "Company") (NYSE: BITA), a leading provider of internet content & marketing services, and transaction services for China’s automotive industry, today announced its unaudited financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2020[1].

Bitauto Second Quarter 2020 Highlights

  • Revenue in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB1.96 billion (US$276.9 million), compared to RMB2.79 billion (US$395.1 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.
  • Gross profit in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB1.30 billion (US$184.4 million), compared to RMB1.67 billion (US$236.9 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.
  • Net loss in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB536.4 million (US$75.9 million), compared to net loss of RMB136.2 million (US$19.3 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.
    Non-GAAP net loss in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB447.3 million (US$63.3 million), compared to Non-GAAP net income of RMB216.0 million (US$30.6 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.
  • Net loss attributable to Bitauto in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB368.8 million (US$52.2 million), compared to net loss attributable to Bitauto of RMB145.5 million (US$20.6 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.
    Non-GAAP net loss attributable to Bitauto in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB333.6 million (US$47.2 million), compared to Non-GAAP net income attributable to Bitauto of RMB155.3 million (US$22.0 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.

Mr. Andy Zhang, chief executive officer of Bitauto, said, "Despite China’s gradual economic recovery following the COVID-19 outbreak, the domestic automobile industry remained challenged during the second quarter of 2020 with sluggish retail passenger vehicle sales and rising dealer inventory levels. The macro situation presents both challenges and opportunities for our business."

"While weak vehicle sales and increasingly fierce competition in China’s online automobile advertising sector put pressure on our advertising business, Bitauto’s paying subscriber base increased slightly during the quarter, helping to drive mild revenue growth in our subscription business. In our transaction services business, due to its conservative risk control approach, Yixin recorded about 69,000 total transactions in the second quarter, representing a year-over-year decrease of approximately 49.9%."

"In the months ahead, in response to the uncertainties in China’s overall economic environment and particularly the automobile sector, we will stay focused on our core strategic initiatives. First, our continued efforts to upgrade our content and product offerings will provide better value to automobile customers, car owners, automakers and dealer customers. Second, we will further raise Bitauto’s brand recognition through our on-going strategic brand building campaign, which we expect will help further expand our user base and enhance user engagement. Third, Yixin will continue to optimize its conservative risk assessment methodology and strengthen its dealer and financial institution partnerships to explore opportunities as China’s automobile market recovers. We believe our efforts will help strengthen Bitauto’s position as the leading provider of Internet content and marketing services and transaction services for China’s automobile industry."

Mr. Ming Xu, chief financial officer of Bitauto, said, "The weakness in China’s automobile sector in the second quarter of 2020 continued to impact our top line results. We also continued to experience margin pressure this quarter due to our branding and marketing initiatives as well as our on-going investments in user acquisition. In the long run, we expect these efforts will form a solid foundation to attract users and enhance our value proposition for our business partners."

Bitauto Second Quarter 2020 Results 

Bitauto reported revenue of RMB1.96 billion (US$276.9 million) in the second quarter of 2020, compared to RMB2.79 billion (US$395.1 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.

  • Revenue from the advertising and subscription business in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB1.03 billion (US$145.5 million), representing a 2.2% increase from RMB1.01 billion (US$142.4 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.
  • Revenue from the transaction services business in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB737.6 million (US$104.4 million), compared to RMB1.49 billion (US$211.0 million) in the corresponding period in 2019, mainly due to weak passenger vehicle sales following the COVID-19 outbreak and more cautious underwriting standards imposed by Yixin.
  • Revenue from the digital marketing solutions business in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB190.3 million (US$26.9 million), compared to RMB294.7 million (US$41.7 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.

Cost of revenue in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB653.5 million (US$92.5 million), compared to RMB1.12 billion (US$158.2 million) in the corresponding period in 2019. Cost of revenue as a percentage of revenue in the second quarter of 2020 was 33.4%, compared to 40.0% in the corresponding period in 2019.

Gross profit in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB1.30 billion (US$184.4 million), compared to RMB1.67 billion (US$236.9 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.

Selling and administrative expenses in the second quarter of 2020 were RMB1.80 billion (US$255.1 million), representing a 10.1% increase from the corresponding period in 2019. This increase was primarily due to the increase in provision for credit losses of receivables related to Yixin and the increase in marketing expenses associated with the Company’s branding and marketing efforts, partially offset by the decrease in amortization of intangible assets related to the strategic cooperation with JD.com, and decrease in expenses related to personnel.

Product development expenses in the second quarter of 2020 were RMB147.2 million (US$20.8 million), representing a 3.7% increase from the corresponding period in 2019.

Share-based compensation, which was allocated to related operating expense line items, was RMB55.0 million (US$7.8 million) in the second quarter of 2020, compared to RMB99.9 million (US$14.1 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.

Loss from operations in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB670.0 million (US$94.8 million), compared to loss from operations of RMB48.9 million (US$6.9 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.

Non-GAAP loss from operations in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB594.3 million (US$84.1 million), compared to Non-GAAP income from operations of RMB215.4 million (US$30.5 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.

Income tax benefit in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB148.0 million (US$20.9 million), compared to income tax expense of RMB6.7 million (US$1.0 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.

Net loss in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB536.4 million (US$75.9 million), compared to net loss of RMB136.2 million (US$19.3 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.

Non-GAAP net loss in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB447.3 million (US$63.3 million), compared to Non-GAAP net income of RMB216.0 million (US$30.6 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.

Net loss attributable to Bitauto in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB368.8 million (US$52.2 million), compared to net loss attributable to Bitauto of RMB145.5 million (US$20.6 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.

Non-GAAP net loss attributable to Bitauto in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB333.6 million (US$47.2 million), compared to Non-GAAP net income attributable to Bitauto of RMB155.3 million (US$22.0 million) in the corresponding period in 2019.

Basic and diluted net loss per ADS, each representing one ordinary share, in the second quarter of 2020 amounted to RMB5.15 (US$0.73) and RMB5.15 (US$0.73), respectively.

Non-GAAP basic and diluted net loss per ADS in the second quarter of 2020 amounted to RMB4.65 (US$0.66) and RMB4.65 (US$0.66), respectively.

As of June 30, 2020, the Company had cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash of RMB8.61 billion (US$1.22 billion). Cash used in operating activities, cash provided by investing activities, and cash used in financing activities in the second quarter of 2020 were RMB830.5 million (US$117.5 million), RMB3.33 billion (US$471.4 million), and RMB2.19 billion (US$309.9 million), respectively.

The number of employees totaled 6,837 as of June 30, 2020, including employees of entities in which Bitauto has acquired and holds controlling interests as of such date. This represented an 18.6% year-over-year decrease, as Yixin optimized its team to improve operational efficiency.

As of June 30, 2020, the Company had a total of 73,761,089 ordinary shares. Non-GAAP basic and diluted per ADS figures for the second quarter of 2020 were calculated using a weighted average of 71,796,549 and 71,796,549 ADSs, respectively. Each ADS represents one ordinary share of the Company.

Yixin Second Quarter 2020 Highlights

Bitauto’s controlled subsidiary Yixin, the primary operator of the Company’s transaction services business, facilitated approximately 69,000 financed transactions for the three months ended June 30, 2020, representing a year-over-year decrease of approximately 49.9%. The decrease was primarily driven by Yixin’s more conservative risk control methodology. The total aggregate financing amount facilitated through Yixin’s loan facilitation services and self-operated financing business was approximately RMB5.38 billion (US$761.3 million).

Amid the challenging macroeconomic environment, Yixin continued to adopt conservative risk control methodology and to focus on its loan facilitation services. For the three months ended June 30, 2020, Yixin facilitated approximately 53,000 financed transactions, representing a year-over-year decrease of 20.8% and approximately 76.9% of Yixin’s total financed transactions.

In the second quarter of 2020, under U.S. GAAP, Yixin’s total revenues were RMB745.2 million (US$105.5 million), representing a year-over-year decrease of 50.3%; new core services revenues, which include revenues from loan facilitation transactions and new self-operated financing lease transactions facilitated by Yixin during the period, were RMB254.7 million (US$36.0 million), representing a year-over-year decrease of 56.8%.

As of June 30, 2020, 90+ days (including 180+ days) past due ratio and 180+ days past due ratio for all financed transactions (including third-party loan facilitations) were 2.46% and 1.40%, respectively.

Under U.S. GAAP, Yixin’s provision for credit losses of finance receivables in the second quarter of 2020 was RMB321.4 million (US$45.5 million).

As Bitauto’s controlled subsidiary listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, Yixin announced its consolidated financial statements under IFRS for the first half of 2020. In order to help investors to understand the difference between IFRS and U.S. GAAP for Yixin’s operation results, a reconciliation of the IFRS data to U.S. GAAP is presented at the end of this earnings release.

Changes to Board of Directors

Bitauto today also announced the appointment of Mr. Chenkai Ling, Vice President of JD.com Inc. ("JD.com") as a director to its board of directors ("the board"). Mr. Ling replaces Mr. Sidney Huang as JD.com’s designated director on Bitauto’s board due to Mr. Huang’s upcoming retirement from JD.com in September 2020. The appointment and the resignation became effective as of August 21, 2020.

"We are delighted to welcome Mr. Chenkai Ling to Bitauto’s board and we look forward to drawing on his experience and knowledge as we execute on our long-term growth strategy," Mr. Andy Zhang said. "We would also like to sincerely thank Mr. Sidney Huang for his service and dedication to Bitauto’s board of directors. Over the past 10 years, Sidney has consistently drawn upon his deep knowledge of China’s e-commerce and internet industries as well as his experience as a corporate leader to make invaluable contributions to Bitauto. We wish him all the best in his upcoming retirement."

Mr. Chenkai Ling is vice president of JD.com, head of strategy and the chief of staff to the CEO of JD Retail. He joined JD.com in July 2016. He is responsible for JD Retail’s strategic planning, M&A and post-merger integration, as well as public affairs. Mr. Ling has almost two decades of experience in strategic planning, consultancy and operations, having worked for multinational companies in various roles. Prior to joining JD.com, he worked at Bain & Company as a principal. Mr. Ling earned his master’s degree in Business Administration from the Amos Tuck School of Business Administration at Dartmouth College and his MIS from Tongji University.

Conference Call Information 

Bitauto’s management will hold an earnings conference call at 8:15 AM on August 24, 2020 U.S. Eastern Time (8:15 PM on August 24, 2020 Beijing/Hong Kong Time).

Conference Call Pre-registration:

Please register in advance of the conference using the link provided below and dial in 10 minutes prior to the call. Once pre-registration has been completed, participants will receive dial-in numbers, direct event passcode, and registrant ID.

To join the conference, simply dial the number you receive, enter the event passcode followed by your unique registrant ID, and you will join the conference instantly.

PRE-REGISTER LINK: http://apac.directeventreg.com/registration/event/9674115

A replay of the conference call may be accessed by phone at the following number until September 1, 2020:

US:

+1-855-452-5696 or +1-646-254-3697

International:

+61-2-8199-0299

Conference ID:

9674115

Additionally, a live and archived webcast of this conference call will be available at http://ir.bitauto.com.

[1] This announcement contains translations of certain amounts in Renminbi into U.S. dollars at specified rates solely for the convenience of the readers. Unless otherwise noted, all translations from Renminbi to U.S. dollars are made at a rate of RMB7.0651 to US$1.00, the effective noon buying rate as of June 30, 2020 in The City of New York for cable transfers of Renminbi as certified for customs purposes by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. 

About Bitauto Holdings Limited

Bitauto Holdings Limited (NYSE: BITA) is a leading provider of internet content & marketing services, and transaction services for China’s automotive industry. Bitauto’s business consists of three segments: advertising and subscription business, transaction services business and digital marketing solutions business.

Bitauto’s advertising and subscription business provides a variety of advertising services to automakers through the bitauto.com website and corresponding mobile apps which provide consumers with up-to-date automobile pricing and promotional information, specifications, reviews and consumer feedback. Bitauto also provides transaction-focused online advertisements and services for promotional activities to its business partners, including automakers, automobile dealers, auto finance partners and insurance companies. Bitauto offers subscription services via its SaaS platform, which provides web-based and mobile-based integrated digital marketing solutions to new car automobile dealers in China. The SaaS platform enables automobile dealer subscribers to create their own online showrooms, list pricing and promotional information, provide automobile dealer contact information, place advertisements and manage customer relationships to help them reach a broad set of purchase-minded customers and effectively market their automobiles to consumers online.

Bitauto’s transaction services business is primarily conducted by its controlled subsidiary, Yixin Group Limited (SEHK: 2858), a leading online automobile finance transaction platform in China, which provides transaction platform services as well as self-operated financing services.

Bitauto’s digital marketing solutions business provides automakers with one-stop digital marketing solutions, including website creation and maintenance, online public relations, online marketing campaigns, advertising agent services, big data applications and digital image creation.

For more information, please visit ir.bitauto.com.

Safe Harbor Statement 

This announcement contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," "confident" and similar statements. Among other things, the business outlook of the Company and the quotations from management in this announcement, as well as Bitauto’s strategic and operational plans, contain forward-looking statements. Bitauto may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its periodic reports to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, in its annual report to shareholders, in press releases and other written materials and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about Bitauto’s beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement, including but not limited to the following: our goals and strategies; our future business development, financial condition and results of operations; the expected growth of the automobile industry and the internet marketing industry in China; our expectations regarding demand for and market acceptance of our services and service delivery model; our expectations regarding enhancing our brand recognition; our expectations regarding keeping and strengthening our relationships with major customers, partner websites and media vendors; relevant government policies and regulations relating to our businesses, automobile purchases and ownership in China; our ability to attract and retain quality employees; our ability to stay abreast of market trends and technological advances; competition in our industry in China and internationally; general economic and business conditions in China; and our ability to effectively protect our intellectual property rights and not infringe on the intellectual property rights of others. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in Bitauto’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its annual report on Form 20-F. Bitauto does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable law. All information provided in this press release and in the attachments is as of the date of this press release, and Bitauto undertakes no duty to update such information, except as required under applicable law.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures 

To supplement Bitauto’s consolidated financial results presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP, Bitauto uses Non-GAAP income/(loss) from operations, Non-GAAP net income/(loss), Non-GAAP net income/(loss) attributable to Bitauto and Non-GAAP basic and diluted net income/(loss) per ADS as Non-GAAP financial measures , and uses Yixin’s Non-GAAP income/(loss) from operations and Yixin’s Non-GAAP net income/(loss) as Non-GAAP financial measures to supplement the disclosure of financial performance of Yixin. Non-GAAP income/(loss) from operations is defined as income/(loss) from operations excluding (i) share-based compensation; and (ii) amortization of intangible assets resulting from asset and business acquisitions. Non-GAAP net income/(loss) and Non-GAAP net income/(loss) attributable to Bitauto, respectively, are defined as net income/(loss) and net income/(loss) attributable to Bitauto excluding (i) share-based compensation; (ii) amortization of intangible assets resulting from asset and business acquisitions; (iii) investment loss/(income) associated with the share of equity method investments; (iv) investment loss/(income) associated with non-cash investment matters; (v) amortization of the BCF discount on the convertible notes; and (vi) tax effect of Non-GAAP line items. Non-GAAP basic and diluted net income/(loss) per ADS is defined as Non-GAAP net income/(loss) attributable to ordinary shareholders of the parent company divided by basic and diluted weighted average number of ADS. Yixin’s Non-GAAP income/(loss) from operations is defined as income/(loss) from operations excluding (i) share-based compensation; and (ii) amortization of intangible assets resulting from asset and business acquisitions. Yixin’s Non-GAAP net income/(loss) is defined as net income/(loss) excluding (i) share-based compensation; (ii) amortization of intangible assets resulting from asset and business acquisitions; and (iii) tax effect of Non-GAAP line items. These Non-GAAP financial measures provide Bitauto’s management with the ability to assess its operating results by excluding certain items that may not be indicative of the performance of its business such as non-cash and non-recurring items. Bitauto believes these Non-GAAP financial measures are useful to investors by understanding supplemental information used by management in its assessment of operating results.

The use of Non-GAAP financial measures has certain limitations. These Non-GAAP measures exclude certain items that have been and will continue to be incurred in the future and are not reflected in the presentation of the Non-GAAP financial measures. These Non-GAAP financial measures should be considered in addition to results prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP, and should not be considered a substitute for or superior to U.S. GAAP results. In addition, these Non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to similarly titled measures utilized by other companies since such other companies may not calculate such measures in the same manner as Bitauto or Yixin does.

Reconciliation of these Non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP financial measure is set forth at the end of this release.

For investor and media inquiries, please contact: 
China

Suki Li
Bitauto Holdings Limited
Phone: +86-10-6849-2145
ir@bitauto.com

Philip Lisio
Foote Group
Phone: +86-10-8429-9544
bitauto@thefootegroup.com

 

 

 

SELECTED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL DATA

Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations

For the Three Months Ended

For the Six Months Ended

June 30, 2019

June 30, 2020

June 30, 2020

RMB

RMB

RMB

(in thousands, except for per share data)

(in thousands, except for per share data)

Revenue 

2,791,586

1,956,260

3,694,477

Cost of revenue

(1,117,951)

(653,468)

(1,282,566)

Gross profit

1,673,635

1,302,792

2,411,911

Selling and administrative expenses

(1,637,159)

(1,802,355)

(4,255,383)

Product development expenses

(142,052)

(147,245)

(294,219)

Other gains/(losses), net

56,703

(23,237)

(70,959)

Loss from operations

(48,873)

(670,045)

(2,208,650)

Interest income

38,627

23,565

49,777

Interest expense

(90,487)

(9,955)

(15,703)

Share of results of equity investees

(21,328)

(18,938)

(32,812)

Investment loss

(7,384)

(9,000)

(7,604)

Loss before tax

(129,445)

(684,373)

(2,214,992)

Income tax (expense)/benefit

(6,740)

147,969

399,948

Net loss

(136,185)

(536,404)

(1,815,044)

Net income/(loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests

1,710

(175,784)

(630,526)

Accretion to redeemable noncontrolling interests

7,586

8,204

16,408

Net loss attributable to Bitauto Holdings Limited

(145,481)

(368,824)

(1,200,926)

Non-GAAP financial data

Non-GAAP net income/(loss)

216,044

(447,329)

(1,485,260)

Non-GAAP net income/(loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests

53,110

(121,966)

(524,603)

Accretion to redeemable noncontrolling interests

7,586

8,204

16,408

Non-GAAP net income/(loss) attributable to Bitauto Holdings Limited

155,348

(333,567)

(977,065)

Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP results

For the Three Months Ended

For the Six Months Ended

June 30, 2019

June 30, 2020

June 30, 2020

RMB

RMB

RMB

(in thousands, except for per share data)

(in thousands, except for per share data)

Loss from operations

(48,873)

(670,045)

(2,208,650)

Share-based compensation

99,881

54,957

133,108

Amortization of intangible assets resulting from asset and business acquisitions

164,390

20,783

185,039

Non-GAAP income/(loss) from operations

215,398

(594,305)

(1,890,503)

Net loss

(136,185)

(536,404)

(1,815,044)

Share-based compensation

99,881

54,957

133,108

Amortization of intangible assets resulting from asset and business acquisitions

164,390

20,783

185,039

Investment loss associated with the share of equity method investments

1,541

5,969

5,905

Investment loss associated with non-cash investment matters

7,384

9,000

9,000

Amortization of the BCF discount on the convertible notes

80,701

Tax effect of Non-GAAP line items

(1,668)

(1,634)

(3,268)

Non-GAAP net income/(loss)

216,044

(447,329)

(1,485,260)

Non-GAAP net income/(loss) per ADS

Basic

2.17

(4.65)

(13.62)

Diluted

2.12

(4.65)

(13.62)

 

 

SELECTED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL DATA

Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets

December 31, 2019

June 30, 2020

RMB

RMB

(in thousands)

Assets

Current assets

  Cash and cash equivalents

4,260,533

4,963,823

  Restricted cash

3,136,926

3,467,575

  Accounts receivable, net

3,792,641

3,881,598

  Uncollateralized finance receivables – current portion, net

4,451,575

2,932,424

  Collateralized finance receivables – current portion, net

12,301,329

8,950,691

  Other current assets

2,720,558

2,936,796

30,663,562

27,132,907

Non-current assets

  Restricted cash

114,318

181,858

  Investments in equity investees

1,912,803

1,881,535

  Investment in convertible notes

2,153,790

2,185,682

  Property, plant and equipment, net

205,394

618,559

  Intangible assets, net

381,749

189,679

  Goodwill

861,583

861,609

  Uncollateralized finance receivables – non-current portion, net

2,906,280

1,838,716

  Collateralized finance receivables – non-current portion, net

7,330,610

3,941,436

  Other non-current assets

1,846,955

1,901,850

17,713,482

13,600,924

Total assets

48,377,044

40,733,831

Liabilities

Current liabilities

  Short term borrowings

10,860,862

9,256,192

  Asset-backed securitization debt

6,201,021

3,884,712

  Accounts payable

3,081,405

3,247,919

  Other current liabilities

3,499,449

3,438,106

23,642,737

19,826,929

Non-current liabilities

  Long term borrowings

2,263,614

1,088,815

  Asset-backed securitization debt

1,167,910

466,487

  Other non-current liabilities

1,546,562

1,492,226

4,978,086

3,047,528

Total liabilities

28,620,823

22,874,457

Redeemable noncontrolling interests

390,437

406,845

Total equity *

19,365,784

17,452,529

Total liabilities, redeemable noncontrolling interests
and equity 

48,377,044

40,733,831

* The Company has adopted ASU No. 2016-13 Financial Instruments – Credit Losses ("ASC 326") beginning January 1, 2020
by applying the modified retrospective method with the cumulative effect of initially applying the guidance recognized at the
date of initial application. The new guidance would mainly have impact on credit losses in connection with finance receivables,
accounts receivables, and guarantee liabilities. The cumulative effect on the opening balance of accumulated deficit upon
adoption of ASC 326 is RMB267.4 million.

 

 

Yixin

Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations

(in thousands)

For the Six Months Ended

June 30, 2020

June 30, 2020

June 30, 2020

RMB

RMB

RMB

IFRS

Reconcilation

U.S. GAAP

Revenue 

1,623,834

(16,640)

1,607,194

Cost of revenue

(888,734)

(888,734)

Gross profit

735,100

(16,640)

718,460

Selling and administrative expenses

(2,114,153)

53,259

(2,060,894)

Product development expenses

(82,023)

(85)

(82,108)

Other gains/(losses), net

88,772

(122,486)

(33,714)

Loss from operations

(1,372,304)

(85,952)

(1,458,256)

Interest income

15,004

15,004

Interest expense

(17,902)

624

(17,278)

Share of results of equity investees

(833)

(833)

Loss before tax

(1,376,035)

(85,328)

(1,461,363)

Income tax benefit

323,123

21,707

344,830

Net loss

(1,052,912)

(63,621)

(1,116,533)

Reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP results

For the Six Months Ended

June 30, 2020

June 30, 2020

June 30, 2020

RMB

RMB

RMB

IFRS

Reconcilation

U.S. GAAP

Loss from operations

(1,372,304)

(85,952)

(1,458,256)

Share-based compensation

63,409

63,409

Amortization of intangible assets resulting from asset and business acquisitions

119,041

(1,755)

117,286

Non-GAAP loss from operations

(1,189,854)

(87,707)

(1,277,561)

Net loss

(1,052,912)

(63,621)

(1,116,533)

Share-based compensation

63,409

63,409

Amortization of intangible assets resulting from asset and business acquisitions

119,041

(1,755)

117,286

Tax effect of Non-GAAP line items

(83)

(83)

Non-GAAP net loss

(870,545)

(65,376)

(935,921)

 

 

Related Links :

http://ir.bitauto.com/

Baidu Opens Apollo Go Robotaxi Service to the Public in Cangzhou

Users now can hail a robotaxi from train stations, hotels, and other public spaces in one easy click

CANGZHOU, China, August 21, 2020 — Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU) today opened the Apollo Go Robotaxi service in Cangzhou, Hebei province, extending robotaxi coverage to the downtown area of a city for the first time in China. The launch marks a significant milestone in Baidu’s development of autonomous driving technology and its aim to bring about the era of intelligent transportation.

With Apollo Go, people in Cangzhou can hail a robotaxi ride from train stations and other public spaces.
With Apollo Go, people in Cangzhou can hail a robotaxi ride from train stations and other public spaces.

At first, the Apollo Go Robotaxi service in Cangzhou covers 55 pick-up and drop-off stations across the city, including train stations, schools, hotels, museums, business and industrial areas, and other public spaces. The launch in Cangzhou comes after Baidu opened robotaxi services in a 130 square kilometer region of Changsha, Hunan province, in April this year. By servicing busy areas of Cangzhou, Apollo Go is making autonomous driving technology more accessible—and helpful—to users as they go about their daily lives.

People in Cangzhou can easily hail a free robotaxi ride through one click on Baidu Maps. For example, visitors to Cangzhou could hail a robotaxi after getting off the train to take them to their hotels. With safety a top priority, a human operator is assigned to each vehicle to take control of the autonomous system as a backup.

The launch of Apollo Go in Cangzhou follows years of extensive testing and trial operations across several cities. Technological progress now enables robotaxis to safely operate in busier areas that have more variables for the autonomous driving system to process. In addition to the operations in Changsha and Cangzhou, Apollo continues to conduct manned autonomous driving tests in Beijing, Chongqing, and other cities.

Cangzhou is a strategically important city, located within the BeijingTianjinHebei region and on the BeijingShanghai corridor. In recent years, it has invested heavily in the development of intelligent network technology to facilitate the rollout of autonomous driving. Cangzhou was the first city in northern China to allow manned autonomous driving tests and has built one of the largest road networks for testing autonomous vehicles. Baidu reached a strategic cooperation agreement with Cangzhou to promote autonomous driving in September 2019. In November, the city opened certain road networks for manned autonomous driving testing, and Baidu Apollo’s fleet began testing with passengers shortly afterwards.

The ability of autonomous vehicles to operate in busier areas of a city is a result of Baidu’s continuous innovation. In 2019, Baidu Apollo and FAW Group jointly developed Hongqi EV, the first pre-installed and mass-produced L4 autonomous driving vehicle in China, and launched trial operations in Changsha in September.

Baidu Apollo is the world’s largest autonomous driving open platform. The Apollo fleet includes around 500 autonomous driving vehicles that have driven over 6 million kilometers and safely carried more than 100,000 passengers. Apollo now holds over 150 autonomous driving road test licenses and more than 1,800 intelligent driving patents globally.

About Baidu

Baidu, Inc. is a leading search engine, knowledge and information centered Internet platform and AI company. The Company’s mission is to make the complicated world simpler through technology. Baidu’s ADSs trade on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol "BIDU". Currently, ten ADSs represent one Class A ordinary share.

Media Contact 

Intlcomm@baidu.com

 

FarEye Raises USD 37.5 Mn In Series D Funding To Expand Its Delivery Logistics Platform Used By DHL & Amway


  • The Fundamentum Partnership & KB Global Platform Fund Invest In FarEye 
  • FarEye accelerates its global expansion as enterprises move towards customer-centric supply chains  

SINGAPORE, Aug. 21, 2020 — FarEye, a leading logistics SaaS platform for predictive visibility, today announced that it has raised additional USD 13 Mn as an extension to its Series D investment led by The Fundamentum Partnership, the growth-capital fund for mid-stage technology companies in India backed by Nandan Nilekani and Sanjeev Aggarwal and KB Global Platform Fund, one of the leading investment firm of Korea. The investment will accelerate FarEye’s global expansion to address the steepening digital curve for logistics transformation. The need is being further accelerated by enterprises and end consumers demanding a high level of transparency, faster and more convenient delivery experiences. There is also an increased need for flexible supply chains to meet these demands.

FarEye works with its enterprise customers to provide higher control on their supply chains and offer a superior delivery experience to their end customers. The company’s technology platform digitizes the way enterprises dispatch, execute, track, and optimize the movement of goods, enabling enterprises to lower logistics costs while delighting end consumers.

"The support and trust of our investors, customers, and partners underpin our deep desire to make logistics better for brands, their customers, and the environment. We are seeing a surge in the need for real-time visibility in logistics for businesses to build customer-centric supply chains. With recently raised funds, we will continue to invest in the best talent in the Americas, Europe, and APAC to support our hyper-growth in these regions. With a vision to make FarEye one of the most customer-centric organizations globally, we aim to make every delivery delightful for the consumers," said Kushal Nahata, CEO, FarEye.

Commenting on the investment Sanjeev Aggarwal, Co-founder of Fundamentum, said, "Investment in the logistics space is essential for the economic growth of any nation. FarEye has captured the pulse of this industry and has all the ingredients to head towards global leadership. I believe in the founders and the team has the clarity of vision. We are excited to partner with FarEye in its journey to create a global technology leader in the logistics space."

This is the second time this year that FarEye has been able to raise funds to support its hyper-growth in global markets, making it a total of USD 51 Mn investment so far. In April, FarEye had raised USD 24.5 Million in Series D from M12 (Microsoft’s venture fund) with participation from Eight Roads Ventures, Honeywell Ventures, and existing investor SAIF Partners.

With a clear mandate to establish Singapore as their hub for international expansion, FarEye recently named Singapore-based ex-Blue Yonder Veteran Amit Bagga as its Chief Revenue Officer. His appointment comes as FarEye undertakes aggressive plans for global expansion. Bagga has established FarEye’s field headquarters in Singapore with investments in sales, solutions, services, and customer success teams, and continues to accelerate investments in the company’s expansion into Europe and the Americas.

"Logistics is the backbone of any given economy, and yet it has been a difficult space to innovate.  We are excited to partner with FarEye as it paves the way for its enterprise customers such as DHL and Walmart to gain flexibility as well as visibility in logistics by providing the easy-to-use platform to manage all moving parts. The newly raised capital will allow the team to deliver additional value to its enterprise customers by bringing in more global talents who will ultimately contribute to the advancement of the platform’s predictive capabilities and customer services. We look forward to FarEye’s contribution to its enterprise customers around the globe both during and post the current pandemic as seamless logistics has never been more vital to their business. We have been deeply impressed with FarEye’s response during the pandemic as a global leader in the logistics SaaS space," said Chunsoo Kim, Managing Director (Head of Global Investment Group) at KB Investment.

About FarEye- https://www.getfareye.com/

CONTACT:
Ms. Komal Puri
komal.puri@getfareye.com

Logo: https://techent.tv/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/fareye-raises-usd-37-5-mn-in-series-d-funding-to-expand-its-delivery-logistics-platform-used-by-dhl-amway.jpg

Related Links :

https://www.getfareye.com/

Meituan Dianping Announces Financial Results for the Three and Six Months Ended June 30, 2020


HONG KONG, Aug. 21, 2020 — Meituan Dianping (HKG: 3690) (the "Company" or "Meituan"), China’s leading e-commerce platform for services, today announced the unaudited consolidated results of the Company for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020.

Company Financial Highlights

Although the COVID-19 pandemic continued to impact the daily operations of our merchants, including restaurants, hotels and other local services merchants, our businesses demonstrated resilience and recovered at a gradual pace. Total revenues for the second quarter of 2020 increased by 8.9% year-over-year to RMB 24.7 billion from RMB 22.7 billion for the same period of 2019. Operating profit improved to RMB 2.2 billion in the second quarter of 2020, increasing by 95.5% year-over-year, while operating margin increased from 4.9% to 8.8%. Both adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net profit experienced positive year-over-year growth and improved to RMB 2.6 billion and RMB 2.7 billion, respectively. Our operating cash flow also turned to positive RMB 5.6 billion for the second quarter of 2020 from negative RMB5 .0 billion for the first quarter of 2020. We had cash and cash equivalents of RMB 13.9 billion and short-term investments of RMB44.5 billion as of June 30, 2020, compared to the balances of RMB 14.1 billion and RMB 42.4 billion, respectively, as of March 31, 2020.

"Although we continued to see impacts from the outbreak of COVID-19 in the second quarter, our business demonstrated resilience and recovered at a good pace," said Xing Wang, Chairman and CEO of Meituan. "During the quarter, we helped our merchants to weather the storm, which created value for our vast community of consumers and merchants, and, as a result, stimulated the progressive recovery of the local services industry from the pandemic. We further boosted the competitive advantages of our core businesses while enhancing our ecosystem during our business recovery process. In the second quarter, we utilized advanced digital operations tools to enable more merchants, enhanced our on-demand delivery infrastructure to better facilitate the digital lifestyle of consumers, and accelerated the online penetration and digitization of essential local services on both the demand and supply side."

"As the leading e-commerce platform for services, Meituan will continue to fulfill our social responsibilities," Wang said. "We will help to further boost consumption growth and to recover local economies to the best of our abilities despite the uncertainties and challenges in the next few quarters. We believe that our philosophy of focusing on the long-term growth and rewards will continue to yield positive results for all participants in the Meituan ecosystem."

Company Business Highlights

Food delivery

For the second quarter of 2020, GTV of our food delivery business increased by 16.9% year-over-year to RMB108.8 billion. The daily average number of food delivery transactions increased by 6.9% year-over-year to 24.5 million. The average value per order of our food delivery business increased by 9.4% year-over-year. Monetization Rate[i] of our food delivery business decreased to 13.4% for the second quarter of 2020 from 13.8% for the same period of 2019. As a result, revenues of food delivery business increased by 13.2% year-over-year to RMB 14.5 billion for the second quarter of 2020. Operating profit from our food delivery business turned to positive RMB 1.3 billion for the second quarter of 2020, compared to operating loss of RMB70.9 million for the first quarter of 2020, while operating margin turned to positive 8.6% from negative 0.7%. Moreover, operating profit from the food delivery business increased by 65.7% year-over-year, while operating margin improved by 2.7 percentage points year-over-year.

Despite the pandemic’s continuous impact, we further demonstrated the unique competitiveness of our business model and validated the essential needs for food delivery services from both consumers and merchants. Especially, our immediate response to the COVID-19 new cases that occurred in Beijing showcased our increasing experience in managing the recurring outbreaks of COVID-19. To ensure the safety of our delivery riders and consumers, among other measures, we immediately organized nucleic acid testing for all of our delivery riders in Beijing, expanded the use of "intelligent lockers" in the city, and further upgraded our contactless delivery process. For merchants, we rolled out targeted support and commission rebate programs to help them better survive the COVID-19 new cases that occurred in Beijing. We also created a portal for merchants to upload their green COVID-19 testing results so as to provide consumers with extra food safety assurance.

In the second quarter of 2020, we continued to launch various promotional campaigns to stimulate the recovery of our food delivery business. For example, we rolled out the "June 18 Food Delivery Festival" and engaged around 4,000 reputable restaurants and brands to provide consumers with a wide variety of attractive promotions in the period. We were also spot-on in identifying consumers’ behavioral changes and used targeted promotions to actively increase the consumption of afternoon tea and late-night snacks. Moreover, we have further stepped up the portion of subsidies allocated to targeted repeat consumers through our effective food delivery membership program. As a result, the order volume of our food delivery business experienced positive year-over-year growth in the second quarter of 2020, with the daily average number of food delivery transactions increasing by 6.9% year-over-year to 24.5 million.

On the merchant side, a further recovery in merchant operation and consumer consumption led to the strong marketing demand from merchants in the second quarter of 2020. Meanwhile, the pandemic has accelerated the restaurants’ online migration, increasing the mix of high-quality merchants on our platform during the period. Notably, the number of newly-onboard branded merchants increased by more than 110% in the second quarter as compared to the prior year period. Their increased demand for online traffic has accelerated their adoption of our online marketing services. As a result, online marketing services revenues experienced rapid growth in the second quarter of 2020, increased by 62.2% year-over-year.

On the delivery front, we further improved our delivery efficiency in the second quarter of 2020, attributable to the refinement of our proprietary dispatching system algorithms and the continuous improvement of the operation of our delivery network. In addition, the sufficient delivery capacity and the favorable weather condition across the country enabled us to reduce the amount of seasonal incentives paid to delivery riders on a quarter-over-quarter basis. These factors together have allowed us to better control delivery cost per order on both a quarter-over-quarter and a year-over-year basis. Meantime, the importance of our on-demand delivery network as a critical component of society’s broader logistical infrastructure has been substantially elevated post the outbreak of COVID-19. Our delivery network helped to ensure continuity in people’s daily lives during the pandemic and served as a stabilizing force for society by creating abundant employment opportunities. We will continue to explore diversified delivery models and invest in the cutting-edge technology for autonomous delivery to further improve our operating efficiency and enlarge our capacity while striving to serve the needs of our merchants and consumers in more service categories.

In-store, hotel & travel

Revenues from our in-store, hotel & travel businesses decreased by 13.4% year-over-year to RMB4.5 billion in the second quarter of 2020. Operating profit of our in-store, hotel & travel businesses decreased by 11.9% year-over-year, but increased by 178.1% quarter-over-quarter to RMB 1.9 billion in the second quarter of 2020, while operating margin increased by 0.7 percentage points year-over-year and by 19.6 percentage points quarter-over-quarter to 41.6%.

During the second quarter of 2020, the in-store segment continued to recover at a slower pace than the food delivery business as consumers needed more time to rebuild confidence in certain discretionary in-store consumptions. In order to stimulate local services consumption and restore local economies, we cooperated with local governments to launch the "Safe Consumption Festival" in more than 60 cities and issued e-Vouchers during this quarter. These e-Vouchers were mainly for in-store dining initially, but we have since expanded them to cover hotels, shopping, and other local services. We also launched a series of promotional campaigns in the second quarter of 2020, including Labour Day promotions, Dragon Boat Festival promotions, and June 18 Marketing Festival promotions. These events covered all the aspects of our in-store services and helped to accelerate our collaborations with popular merchant brands to further improve our merchant base and offer consumers a wider variety of choices in turn. As a result, the recovery of transaction volume and merchants’ marketing demand of our in-store segment was on the right track. The year-over-year decline in commission revenues and online marketing services revenues were significantly narrowed from the first quarter of 2020. Moreover, we published a new 2020 version of our reputable "Must List Series." This series has evolved into a comprehensive and professional local services guide over the years. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we noticed that consumers became more price-sensitive and conscious of hygiene factors, which further compounded the ability of our trusted Must List Series to attract user traffic and guide consumers to quality merchants. It also created a positive feedback loop for merchants to upgrade their services and better meet the emerging needs of consumers.

Our hotel business continued to be significantly affected by the pandemic, with the number of domestic room nights consumed on our platform in the second quarter of 2020 decreasing by 17% year-over-year. Nevertheless, we kept increasing our partnership with more hotels via our "Safe Stay" program to provide travelers with accommodation options that are more conducive to their desires and the quarantine environment. Meantime, in light of the increasing demand for intra-city and short-distance local travel, we also launched the "Safe Travel" program to help expedite the recovery of the industry. More notably, the pace of development for our high-star hotel partnerships also picked up, and we established a significant increase in relationships with these types of hotels in the second quarter of 2020 by increasing their non-lodging revenues through our "hotel + x" program. As a result, the contribution from high-end hotels further increased year-over-year.

New initiatives and others

Revenues from the new initiatives and others segment increased by 22.1% year-over-year to RMB5.6 billion in the second quarter of 2020. On a sequential basis, operating loss from the new initiatives and others segment expanded by 7.0% to RMB1.5 billion for the second quarter of 2020 from RMB 1.4 billion for the first quarter of 2020, while operating margin improved by 6.8 percentage points to negative 25.9% for the second quarter of 2020 from negative 32.7% for the first quarter of 2020. Operating loss from the new initiatives and others segment narrowed by 11.3% on a year-over-year basis, while operating margin improved by 9.8 percentage points year-over-year.

The COVID-19 pandemic was a catalyst for several of our new initiatives, and we saw a noticeable shift in the online shopping behavior on the consumer side and accelerated online penetration of traditional offline service businesses during the pandemic. During the second quarter of 2020, we maintained the rapid expansion of our key businesses, especially grocery retail business. Our marketplace model "Meituan Instashopping" achieved stellar revenue growth during the second quarter of 2020 on a year-over-year basis as we expanded our product variety and SKU categories to significantly grow our merchant base. "Caidaquan," our relatively nascent fresh produce-focused brand under "Meituan Instashopping," enabled more than 300 traditional wet markets to sell online and operate digitally. Our self-operated model, "Meituan Grocery," not only significantly expanded its coverage in key cities, such as Beijing and Shenzhen, but also began operations in new cities, such as Guangzhou, in July 2020. During the second quarter of 2020, we also established a new business division for community group purchase services, rolling out the "Meituan Selected" service brand accordingly in Jinan, Shandong in July 2020, which offers carefully selected fresh produce and daily necessities at attractive prices for local consumers living in different communities. Group leaders are appointed by us in each community to promote our discounted grocery products via WeChat groups. Group members can place orders through our WeChat Mini Program and pick up their products the next day at self-pickup points located in nearby convenience stores.

For bike-sharing services, we replaced around 1.5 million old bikes with new "Meituan Bikes" during the second quarter of 2020. The average turnover rate per bike improved incrementally and the unit economics also improved. Additionally, we launched more than 290,000 electric bikes. During this period, the average turnover rate per electric bike achieved better unit economics as compared to traditional bikes and demonstrated a clear path to independent profitability.

For the full announcement of Meituan 2020 interim results, please visit:
http://meituan.todayir.com/attachment/202008211704561761848748_en.pdf

About Meituan Dianping

Meituan Dianping (HKG: 3690) (the "Company" or "Meituan") is China’s leading e-commerce platform for services. With the mission of "We help people eat better, live better," the Company’s platform uses technology to connect consumers and merchants. Service offerings on the platform address people’s daily needs for food, and extend further to broad lifestyle and travel services. Meituan is the world’s leading on-demand food delivery service provider and China’s leading e-commerce platform for in-store dining services. Meituan helps consumers discover merchant information, make informed decisions, complete online and offline transactions and enjoy on-demand delivery. The Company currently owns several household brands in China, including Meituan, China’s leading online marketplace for services, Dianping, China’s leading online destination for discovering local services, Meituan Waimai for on-demand delivery services, and Meituan Bikes for bike-sharing services. Meituan has 457.3 million Annual Transacting Users and 6.3 million Annual Active Merchants as of June 30, 2020. The Company operates in over 2,800 cities and counties in China.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements relating to the business outlook, forecast business plans and growth strategies of the Company. These forward-looking statements are based on information currently available to the Company and are stated herein on the basis of the outlook at the time of this press release. They are based on certain expectations, assumptions and premises, some of which are subjective or beyond our control. These forward-looking statements may prove to be incorrect and may not be realized in future. Underlying the forward-looking statements is a large number of risks and uncertainties. Further information regarding these risks and uncertainties is included in our other public disclosure documents on our corporate website.

For media inquiries, please contact:
Meituan Dianping
pr.global@meituan.com   
ir@meituan.com

Edmond Lococo
ICR Inc.
Email: Edmond.Lococo@icrinc.com
Tel: +86 138-1079-1408

[i] Monetization rate equals the revenues for the period divided by the Gross Transaction Volume for the period.

Related Links :

https://www.meituan.com/

Geek+ and Körber announce global partnership for AMR deployment

HAMBURG, Germany and BEIJING, Aug. 20, 2020 — Extended relationship showcases commitment to providing customers worldwide across industries with smart AMR solutions to combat supply chain complexities.

Geek+ and Körber announce global partnership for AMR deployment
Geek+ and Körber announce global partnership for AMR deployment

Geek+, a global AMR leader, and Körber, the global supply chain technology leader from software to materials handling automation, are pleased to announce the beginning of a global strategic partnership. Together, the two companies declare a joint commitment to provide businesses worldwide with Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs) that can enable efficient, flexible, and smart logistics solutions.

Geek+ and Körber announce global partnership for AMR deployment
Geek+ and Körber announce global partnership for AMR deployment

With an already extensive portfolio of successful cases across industries and a wide variety of AI-driven robotics solutions applicable to different supply chain scenarios, Geek+ will make its technology available to Kӧrber’s global customer base. Combining Kӧrber’s capabilities for integration, advisory, and maintenance for robotics with Geek+, the partnership addresses the current market needs for technologies and strategies to effectively mitigate increasing supply chain complexities through the joint capabilities of AI, robotics, software and machine learning. This is particularly true in light of COVID-19, resulting in a multitude of challenges such as labor shortages, health risks, and unpredictable fluctuations in demand.

Hong Yu, CMO at Geek+ commented, "We are excited to be entering into our first global partnership and equally excited that it is with Körber. This partnership allows us to provide businesses worldwide with AMR solutions that can help realize flexible and efficient logistics operations. Having already experienced successful collaboration between Geek+ and Kӧrber within the Asia Pacific region, we are confident that this global partnership will lead to accelerated market expansion. Together, we are bringing the future of smart warehousing to companies worldwide."

In the past 5 years, Geek+ ability to deliver real value to its customers has led to international expansion and rapid growth. This includes the successful deployment of 10,000 AMRs globally in support of over 300 world-renowned customer brands. Geek+ robotic systems continuously demonstrate high effectiveness that helps its customers improve operational performance and drive improved business continuity.

"Körber’s relationship with Geek+ is spurred by innovation," said Nishan Wijemanne, global leader for AMR Solutions at Körber. "Our ongoing global investments in the advancement of robotics brings a new level of performance to the warehouse floor. By collaborating with Geek+, Kӧrber provides the flexibility, adaptability and precision businesses need to conquer supply chain complexity today and beyond."

"With the right technologies and partner, businesses can turn today’s supply chain complexities into a strategic differentiator with robotics," said John Santagate, vice president of robotics at Kӧrber Supply Chain – Software. "Be it the rise in consumer expectations, increasing product counts, supply network complexity, or growing distribution channels, Kӧrber’s relationship with Geek+ empowers businesses to effectively integrate mobile robotics into their operation in the effort to revolutionize workflows across the globe."

The Körber Business Area Supply Chain is part of the international technology group Körber. This includes Aberle, Aberle Software, Cirrus Logistics, Cohesio  Group, Consoveyo, DMLogic, HighJump, inconso, Otimis, Langhammer, Riantics and Voiteq. Körber has proven success with thousands of companies worldwide. All companies will officially transition to the brand name ‘Kӧrber’ in the fall of 2020.

About Geek+

Geek+ is a global technology company leading the intelligent logistics revolution. We apply advanced robotics and AI technologies to realize flexible, reliable and highly-efficient solutions for warehouses and supply chain management. Geek+ counts 300 global customers and has deployed more than 10,000 robots worldwide. Geek+ is the only AMR provider that develops a full range of logistics robots covering all robotics categories and scenarios in both warehousing and factory environments. These include Goods-to-Person Picking, Bin-to-Person RoboShuttle System, Disinfection Robots, Sorting, Moving, Forklift, as well as fully integrated solutions for automated smart fulfillment centers and smart factories.

Founded in 2015, Geek+ has over 800 employees and is headquartered in Beijing, with offices in Germany, the UK, the US, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore. For more information, please visit: https://www.geekplus.com/

About the Körber Business Area Supply Chain

Supply chains are growing more complex by the day. Körber uniquely provides a broad range of proven, end-to-end supply chain solutions fitting any business size, strategy or appetite for growth. Capable of delivering not just software, but automation, voice, robotics, and materials handling – plus the expertise to tie it all together. We are a global partner not just for today, but also as the needs of supply chains continue to evolve. Conquer supply chain complexity – with Körber. The Business Area Supply Chain is part of the global technology group Körber. Find out more on www.koerber-supplychain.com  

Photo – https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20200820/2892174-1-a?lang=0
Photo – https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20200820/2892174-1-b?lang=0

 

Related Links :

https://www.koerber-supplychain.com

iQOO becomes Premium Partner of BMW M Motorsport for the 2020 DTM Season

SHENZHEN, China, Aug. 19, 2020 — vivo’s global smartphone brand iQOO can today announce it is a Premium Partner of BMW M Motorsport in the DTM (Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters). The BMW worksdriver Timo Glock, from Germany, will give his best to drive the iQOO BMW M4 DTM to victory this season and champion extreme speed and powerful performance under the new partnership.

iQOO becomes Premium Partner of BMW M Motorsport for the 2020 DTM Season
iQOO becomes Premium Partner of BMW M Motorsport for the 2020 DTM Season

As a legend in DTM events, BMW M Motorsport represents the ultimate pursuit of speed, and also ultimate performance, which coincides with iQOO’s brand concept of ‘I Quest On and On’ for perfect performance and breakthrough innovation.

"The iQOO racing spirit will ignite a worldwide passion for ultra-fast technology. iQOO phones are built for consumers with a need for speed, who are naturally inclined toward superior performance. As a Premium Partner, this is a momentous opportunity for our brand. We can’t wait to demonstrate iQOO’s high performance to the world," said Felix Feng, President of iQOO China.

"Welcome, iQOO, to the BMW DTM family," said BMW Group Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt. "Technology and innovation are what drive us, and these are the values that also stand for iQOO. This is the perfect basis for a successful partnership. We are very happy to welcome iQOO as a new Premium Partner on board, and all the more so in the unusual and difficult times that we are currently experiencing worldwide and also in motorsport. In addition, the iQOO BMW M4 DTM looks great."

Since the start of the DTM season on the first weekend in August, Timo Glock has already contested four races in the iQOO BMW M4 DTM at Spa-Francorchamps (BEL) and at the Lausitzring (GER). He said: "It’s great that BMW M Motorsport has managed to attract such a large and forward-thinking concern as iQOO, the high-end smartphone brand to the DTM as Premium Partner. This is a great sign for the racing series, especially in these difficult times. I am particularly happy to be back in my familiar colour of yellow from my first few years in the DTM – when you look from the front, at least. I am enjoying driving the iQOO BMW M4 DTM."

Glock contests his eighth DTM season in 2020. In his 116 races to date, he has claimed five victories, five pole positions and 14 podium finishes.

About vivo

vivo is a leading, product-driven, global technology company, with its core business focusing on smart devices and intelligent services. vivo is committed to connecting users around the globe, through design of exciting and innovative smartphones and companion devices, as well as services which integrate technology and design thinking in unique and creative ways. Following the company core values, which include innovation, consumer orientation and benfen*, vivo has implemented a sustainable development strategy, with the vision of becoming a leading, long-lasting, world-class enterprise.

With headquarters in China, supported by a network of 9 R&D centers in Shenzhen, Dongguan, Nanjing, Beijing, Hangzhou, Shanghai, Taipei, Tokyo and San Diego, vivo is focusing on the development of state-of-the-art consumer technologies, including 5G, artificial intelligence, industrial design, photography and other up-and-coming technologies. vivo has also set-up five production hubs (including brand authorized manufacturing center), across China, South- and Southeast Asia, manufacturing over 200 million smartphones each year. As of 2019, vivo has branched out its sales network across more than 30 countries and regions, and is loved by more than 350 million users worldwide.

*"Benfen" is a term describing the attitude on doing the right things and doing things right – which is the ideal description of vivo’s mission to build technology for good.

Please stay informed of vivo’s news at https://www.vivo.com/en/about-vivo/news 

Photo – https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20200819/2889720-1?lang=0

 

Related Links :

https://www.vivo.com

Baemin Introduces an Outdoor Delivery Robot “The City of the Future Became A Reality”

– Baedal Minjok started an outdoor delivery robot service at “Gwanggyo Alley Way,” a multipurpose housing complex in Gwanggyo

– When orders are placed in restaurants within the plaza via Baemin application, the robot delivers to the ground floor of customer’s residence

– Delivery fee goes down thanks to the robot covering short distance delivery … less burden for customers and higher revenue for restaurant owners

SEOUL, South Korea, Aug. 18, 2020The service that allows delivery robots to come and go outdoor between restaurants and apartments to deliver food has become a reality for the first time in Korea. Woowa Brothers Corp. (CEO Bomjun Kim), the mother company that runs "Baedal Minjok" (hereinafter Baemin) stated on August 18 that the company has started a delivery service using self-driving outdoor delivery robot, "Dilly Drive," at "Gwanggyo Alley Way," a multipurpose housing complex in Gwanggyo, Suwon city.

Woowa Brothers Corp. (CEO Bomjun Kim), the mother company that runs "Baedal Minjok" (hereinafter Baemin) has started a delivery service using self-driving outdoor delivery robot, "Dilly Drive," at "Gwanggyo Alley Way," a multipurpose housing complex in Gwanggyo, Suwon city.
Woowa Brothers Corp. (CEO Bomjun Kim), the mother company that runs "Baedal Minjok" (hereinafter Baemin) has started a delivery service using self-driving outdoor delivery robot, "Dilly Drive," at "Gwanggyo Alley Way," a multipurpose housing complex in Gwanggyo, Suwon city.

The outdoor delivery robot service newly introduced to Gwanggyo Alley Way can be used by anyone, including residents and visitors. 1,100 residents of apartments and studio flats in Gwanggyo Alley Way can choose the menu and make orders from the restaurants and cafes within the apartment complex by just opening their Baemin applications and scanning QR codes in their houses. Orders can also be made at the plaza within the complex, using QR codes placed on outdoor tables.

When there’s an order, the five Dilly drives at Gwanggyo Alley Way go from the station to the restaurant on its own. And once the restaurant staff places the food in Dilly Drive and press ‘go’ button, the robot starts the delivery. Customers can check the current location of Dilly Drive via Baemin application and get notifications 100m before and upon arrival. Customers can receive food either on the first floor of the building or at the designated outdoor table in the plaza.

The Dilly Drive at Gwanggyo Alley Way has evolved with a newly added remote control function, which the Dilly Drive used at the Konkuk University campus did not have. With its 6 wheels, Dilly Drive walks in the speed of 4~5 km per hour, which is the speed of a person walking. Once charged, it can run for more than 8 hours, and with its headlights, it can deliver at night as well. Dilly Drive can carry about 6 lunch boxes or 12 cups of beverages per delivery.

Woowa Brothers has prepared various safety measures to guarantee the safe driving of Dilly Drive. The company has thoroughly examined the road condition and travel route of the people in the complex, and set Dilly Drive to go slowly in parts where there usually are a lot of people or children. At crosswalks with a lot of cars, Dilly Drive comes to a stop, and its safety has been enhanced with the real time control via the video surveillance system installed at the apartment complex. For the first month of service, Dilly Drive will run from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. during the weekdays, and its hours of operation will gradually be extended.

It is a first time in Korea and not very common worldwide for a delivery robot to receive food from restaurants and deliver outdoors. There is a higher technological barrier for outdoor self-driving robots than for indoor robots. Outdoor self-driving robots have to detect the subtle movements of not only cars and bicycles but also children and companion animals, and can only be commercialized when they operate stably even on bumpy roads and ever-changing weather conditions.

In November 2019, Woowa Brothers has conducted a month-long pilot test in Konkuk University campus to commercialize Dilly Drive. At the time, Dilly Drive has carried out more than 2,000 deliveries and improved its service quality. And from last June, Woowa Brothers has been working together with SK Telecom to conduct tests to build the control system crucial to outdoor delivery robot service.

The outdoor delivery robot service via Dilly Drive is going to be a new source of income for restaurant and café owners. Until now, customers were reluctant to make close-range deliveries due to delivery fees. Since robots carry out close-range deliveries at half the existing delivery fee, owners can now expect new sales revenue.

Woowa Brothers plans to keep enhancing the technological standard of outdoor delivery robot. For now, Dilly Drive can self drive from the restaurant to the first floor of an apartment, but it will be able to deliver right to the door in the first half of 2021.

Joseph Kim, Head of Robot Business Development at Woowa Brother said, "Outdoor delivery robot service includes a lot more obstacles that interrupt the robot’s drive, such as the road surface, obstacles, the weather, unexpected events, and so on. It can be commercialized when sophisticated technology and service know-hows come together." He also added that "Woowa Brothers will continue the development of delivery robot service for advanced delivery ecosystem."

Woowa Brothers operate South Korea’s most favored food delivery platform, "Baedal Minjok." While the company ceaselessly works to innovate the food-tech industry through robotics technology, recently, it also launched ‘B Mart,’ a service that delivers groceries under 30 minutes, to expand its line of business. Since the company first launched the app in 2010, Woowa Brothers grew to attract 10 million monthly active users and accomplished KRW 8.7 trillion yearly transactions last year.

Media Contact
Sungjun Huh
toto@woowahan.com

It can run for more than 8 hours, and it can deliver at night as well with its headlights. Dilly Drive can carry about 6 lunch boxes or 12 cups of beverages per delivery.
It can run for more than 8 hours, and it can deliver at night as well with its headlights. Dilly Drive can carry about 6 lunch boxes or 12 cups of beverages per delivery.

Related Links :

https://woowahan.com/