Company: ZHIHF
Filing Date: 2025-04-15
Form Type: 20-F
Source: 0001410578-25-000729
Chunk: 19

Company: Zhihu Inc.
Filing Date: 2025-04-15
Form: 20-F
Item: Item 3
Chunk 19
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s. The holders of new securities may also have rights, preferences, or privileges that are senior to those of existing stockholders. In addition, we currently have limited asset to pledge for loans or other debt financing transactions. If new financing sources are required, but are insufficient or unavailable, we may need to modify our growth and operating plans and business strategies based on available funding, if any, which would harm our ability to grow our business.

If we fail to retain or attract merchants and brands, or to increase their spending with us, our business, financial condition, and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

Revenues generated from our business side customers, such as marketing services revenue from merchants and brands, are crucial to our business. In 2022, 2023, and 2024, the revenues from marketing services accounted for 54.3%, 39.4%, and 34.7% of our total revenue, respectively. We cannot assure you that we will be able to retain existing or attract new merchants and brands effectively. If the marketing budgets of merchants and brands decrease, or if they believe that they can achieve better returns elsewhere, we may experience a decline in their spending with us. Our competitors may provide better marketing services. If merchants and brands believe that their spending on online content communities do not generate expected returns, they may also switch to other internet channels such as search engines, news platforms, short video platforms, e-commerce platforms, and social media platforms, or other traditional channels such as television, newspapers, and magazines, and reduce or discontinue business with us. Among our marketing services, merchants and brands may find our online advertising to be ineffective to market their products and services, and competition may lead to a decrease in our fee rates. In addition, if the commercial content created through our marketing services does not appeal to or is not successfully distributed to the targeted audience, we may not attract sufficient merchants and brands or generate expected revenue. Moreover, merchants and brands may have limited experience in our services for commercial content and may not be able to utilize our solutions effectively to achieve expected commercial results or otherwise meet their expectation. Furthermore, some of the merchants and brands may have different budget allocation strategies, which may affect their spending on our marketing services. Failure to retain existing or attract new merchants and brands, to increase their spending with us, or to develop effective marketing services may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

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We cannot assure you that our new business initiatives and