NetEase : Q2 2016 Earnings Release

Juliet Yang NetEase, Inc.

hzyangyy@corp.netease.com Tel: (+86) 571-8985-3378

Brandi Piacente Investor Relations

brandi@corp.netease.com Tel: (+1) 212-481-2050

(Beijing - August 17, 2016) - NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES) ("NetEase" or the "Company"), one of China's leading internet and online game services providers, today announced its unaudited financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2016.

"Our outstanding second quarter results reflect NetEase's leadership in China's dynamic online games industry where we continue to introduce premium game content, innovative technology and effective marketing strategies," said Mr. William Ding, Chief Executive Officer and Director of NetEase. "Our total second quarter net revenues grew 96.0% compared with the second quarter of 2015, with each business segment posting impressive year-over-year improvement, including increases of 76.0% in online game services, 24.2% in advertising services, and 310.6% in our e-mail, e-commerce and others business."

"As we focus on delivering the highest quality games and unmatched user experiences, we also move the industry forward by exploring new technologies such as virtual reality and augmented reality and developing content for a variety of genres."

"Our business and the overall online games industry are being driven by the popularity and demand for mobile games. We are well positioned to exploit this trend with a mobile game portfolio that now includes more than 100 titles. In the second quarter, we launched the mobile version of New Ghost, which ranked as a top 10 grossing title on China's iOS app store, and Fantasy Westward Journey: Warriors and Raven, Korea's top ARPG, also quickly attracted large audiences following their introductions in the second quarter. Two of our best-selling mobile games, the Fantasy Westward Journey and Westward Journey mobile games, maintained their popularity on China's iOS app store throughout the second quarter. Our other mobile games, such as Invincible and Kai-ri-sei Million Arthur, also made solid contributions to our second quarter year-over-year growth."

"In addition to the launch of the well-received 3D Tianxia III mobile on July 29, our new mobile game releases planned for the next several months include the 3D RPG Onmyoji, Audition Mobile, the mobile version of a popular dancing game, and HIT, a breathtaking ARPG."

"We launched several new expansion packs and new versions for a number of our highly popular PC-client games in the second quarter including New Ghost, Tianxia III, Demon Seals, Kung Fu Master II and Revelation, which gained players' attention. New expansion packs for Fantasy Westward Journey II, New Westward Journey Online II, New Westward Journey Online III and Heroes of Tang Dynasty Zero were also released more recently. The new expansion packs for Revelation and New Ghost will be released on August 18 and August 19, respectively. We also look forward to preparing for the first closed beta testing of our real-time action tactic thriller War Rage. I am also pleased with the ongoing development of the Chinese version of Minecraft. Our cooperation with Microsoft and Mojang AB, the creator of Minecraft, reflects NetEase's deep understanding of the Chinese market and ability to successfully launch the most renowned PC-client and mobile games."

"On May 24 we brought Blizzard Entertainment's highly anticipated team-based first-person shooter game, Overwatch®, to players in China in conjunction with its global launch. Following the release, Overwatch has received unprecedented attention and praise from the online players' community. It surpassed the sales record established last year by Blizzard Entertainment's Diablo III®: Reaper of Souls™ in the category of buy-to-play PC-client games in China, with nearly 3 million copies sold by the end of June. In addition, Blizzard Entertainment's Hearthstone®: Heroes of Warcraft™ achieved new records for revenues and the number of active players in the second quarter, following the April release of its third expansion pack, Whisper of the Old Gods™."

"Led by the automobile, internet services and real estate sectors, advertising revenue achieved another quarter of solid growth. We continued to promote our Mobile News App live streaming services and further invested in high quality content and simultaneously, we launched our NetEase Media Platform to broaden our Professionally Generated Content (PGC) platform, all of which we hope will attract additional advertisers and enlarge the user base. In addition, our cross-border e-commerce platform, Kaola.com, sustained its strong revenue and gross profit margin growth through the second quarter and is creating exciting strategic partnership opportunities."

"China is now the world's largest online game market, providing NetEase an opportunity to further expand its loyal customer base, develop new strategic business partnerships and enhance its industry leadership position. Our progress in the first half of 2016 clearly demonstrates that we have the resources and commitment to continue the exceptional growth and success of each of our business segments," Mr. Ding concluded.

Net Revenues

Net revenues for the second quarter of 2016 were RMB8,952.8 million (US$1,347.1 million), compared to RMB7,915.4 million and RMB4,567.9 million for the preceding quarter and the second quarter of 2015, respectively.

Net revenues from online games were RMB6,438.3 million (US$968.8 million) for the second quarter of 2016, compared to RMB6,015.1 million and RMB3,657.1 million for the preceding quarter and the second quarter of 2015, respectively.

Net revenues from advertising services were RMB531.1 million (US$79.9 million) for the second quarter of 2016, compared to RMB393.2 million and RMB427.7 million for the preceding quarter and the second quarter of 2015, respectively.

Net revenues from e-mail, e-commerce and others were RMB1,983.4 million (US$298.4 million) for the second quarter of 2016, compared to RMB1,507.1 million and RMB483.0 million for the preceding quarter and the second quarter of 2015, respectively.

Gross Profit

Gross profit for the second quarter of 2016 was RMB5,280.4 million (US$794.5 million), compared to RMB4,586.6 million and RMB2,845.6 million for the preceding quarter and the second quarter of 2015, respectively.

The year-over-year increase in online games gross profit was primarily driven by revenue contribution from mobile games such as the Fantasy Westward Journey and Westward Journey Online mobile games, Invincible, and Blizzard Entertainment's Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft and Overwatch. The quarter-over-quarter increase in online games gross profit was primarily driven by revenue contribution from Blizzard Entertainment's Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft and Overwatch, as well as the Fantasy Westward Journey mobile game.

The year-over-year increase in advertising services gross profit was primarily attributable to strong demand from the automobile, internet services and real estate services sectors, and NetEase's monetization efforts for its mobile applications, primarily its Mobile News App. The quarter-over-quarter increase in advertising services gross profit was primarily due to seasonality.

The year-over-year and quarter-over-quarter increases in e-mail, e-commerce and others gross profit was primarily due to increased revenue contribution from NetEase's e-commerce businesses such as Kaola.com and other e-commerce products.

Gross Profit Margin

Gross profit margin for the online games business for the second quarter of 2016 was 66.2%, compared to 67.1% and 69.3% for the preceding quarter and the second quarter of 2015, respectively. The year-over-year decrease in gross profit margin was mainly due to increased revenue contribution from mobile games, which have relatively lower gross profit margins, as a percentage of NetEase's total online games revenues.

Gross profit margin for the advertising services business for the second quarter of 2016 was 65.5%, compared to 62.4% and 68.2% for the preceding quarter and the second quarter of 2015, respectively. The year-over-year decrease in gross profit margin was mainly due to higher staff-related costs resulting from an increase in headcount and average compensation. The quarter-over-quarter increase in gross profit margin was mainly due to seasonality.

Gross profit margin for the e-mail, e-commerce and others business for the second quarter of 2016 was 33.8%, compared to 20.4% and 4.2% for the preceding quarter and the second quarter of 2015, respectively. The year- over-year and the quarter-over-quarter improvement in gross profit margin was primarily attributable to the gross profit margin growth from NetEase's e-commerce businesses such as Kaola.com, as well as the continued shift in business strategy from direct merchandise sales to focus on providing platform services for certain e-commerce businesses.

Operating Expenses

Total operating expenses for the second quarter of 2016 were RMB2,232.5 million (US$335.9 million), compared to RMB1,718.9 million and RMB1,395.2 million for the preceding quarter and the second quarter of 2015, respectively. The year-over-year and quarter-over-quarter increases in operating expenses was mainly due to higher staff-related costs resulting from an increase in headcount and average compensation, increased research and development investments and selling and marketing expenses, as well as increased operating expenses related to Kaola.com.

Income Taxes

The Company recorded a net income tax charge of RMB262.7 million (US$39.5 million) for the second quarter of 2016, compared to RMB530.7 million and RMB145.9 million for the preceding quarter and the second quarter of 2015, respectively. The effective tax rate for the second quarter of 2016 was 8.6%, compared to 17.5% and 9.2% for the preceding quarter and the second quarter of 2015, respectively. The quarter-over-quarter decrease in the effective tax rate was mainly due to the fact that certain subsidiaries of the Company were approved as Key Software Enterprises in the second quarter of 2016 and subject to a preferential tax rate of 10% for 2015, and the Company recognized related tax credits in this quarter. The effective tax rate represents certain estimates by the Company as to the tax obligations and benefits applicable to it in each quarter.