Hello, ladies and gentlemen, thank you for standing by for LIZHI Inc. third quarter 2023 earnings conference call. Please note, all participants are in listen-only mode now, and today's conference call is being recorded. I now turn the call over to your host, Effy Kang, Head of Capital Markets for the company. Please go ahead.
Thank you very much. Hello, everyone, and welcome to LIZHI Inc. third quarter 2023 earnings conference call. We released our financial and operating results via Newswire services earlier today, and they are available online. Participants on today's call will include our founder and CEO, Mr. Marco Lai, and our acting CFO, Ms. Chengfang Lu. Management will begin with prepared remarks, introducing business development and financial performance in the third quarter. As a reminder, this conference is being recorded. In addition, a webcast replay of this conference call will be available on the IR section of our website at ir.lizhi.fm. Before we continue, please note that today's discussions will contain forward-looking statements made under the Safe Harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements typically contain words such as may, will, expect, target, estimate, intent, believe, potential, continue, or other similar expressions.
Forward-looking statements involving high risks and uncertainties. The accuracy of these statements may be impacted by a number of business risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or anticipated, many of which factors are beyond our control. The company, its affiliates, advisors, representatives, and underwriters do not undertake any obligation to update this forward-looking information, except as required under the applicable law. Please also note that LIZHI's earnings press release and this conference call include discussions of unaudited GAAP financial measures, as well as unaudited non-GAAP financial measures. Please refer to LIZHI's earnings press release for a reconciliation of unaudited non-GAAP measures to unaudited GAAP measures. I will now turn the call over to our founder and CEO, Mr. Marco Lai. Please go ahead.
大家好，谢谢大家参加荔枝2023年第三季度的业绩电话会。[Foreign Language].
Hello, everyone. Thank you for joining LIZHI Inc. third quarter 2023 earnings conference call.
在2023年第三季度，荔枝继续深化以音频为核心的全球化发展战略，利用长期技术储备，继续赋能国内的业务创新，稳步推进全球化业务的发展，构建多元化的业务生态。第三季度，我们整体营收为4.25亿元人民币，总体移动端平均月活用户数为4,210万，月均总付费用户数为40.26万。尽管目前面临宏观环境的诸多挑战，我们对长期发展的方向始终坚定不移。本季度，我们持续进行降本增效，致力于提升组织的效率和灵活性，同时， [Foreign Language].
推动全球化的能力建设，更好地支撑多元化的业务的发展。接下来，我将介绍第三季度业务发展的具体情况。 [ Foreign Language].
In the third quarter of 2023, we further strengthened the execution of our online audio-centric globalization strategy. Leveraging our long-term technological assets, we consistently empower the domestic business innovation while steadily advancing our global business, fostering a vibrant and a diversified ecosystem. In the third quarter of 2023, our revenue reached RMB 425 million. Our total average mobile MAUs amounted to 42.1 million, and our average monthly paying users totaled 402.6 thousand. Despite macro headwinds, we steadfastly pursued the course we had charted, reinforcing our commitment to our long-term vision. During the quarter, we continued to reduce costs and increase operating efficiency to improve organizational efficiency and agility, while also reinforcing our globalization capabilities to better support the development of our diverse spectrum of businesses. Now, let me go over our business developments during the third quarter.
在音频娱乐业务方面，我们致力于打造健康可持续的产品生态，通过持续优化运营策略，完善内容创作者的拓展和赋能机制，提升创作者的规模和质量，以此来增强平台的竞争力。本季度除了对内容创作者的平台进行了不断的优化以外，我们推出了-... [Foreign Language].
星光挑战赛等活动，对中长尾部的的内容创作者给予了扶持，对头部内容创作者给予激励，帮助内容创作者展示其独特的声音的采访，进一步激发了他们的创作热情和潜力，也增强了平台对内容创作者的吸引力。 [Foreign Language].
In terms of our audio entertainment business, we remain committed to building a healthy and sustainable product ecosystem through proactive optimization of our operating strategies and a meticulous refinement of our mechanisms for expanding and nurturing our content creator base. We have enhanced the creator quality and increased the scale of our creator base, while also solidifying our platform's competitive edges. During the quarter, in addition to the continuous optimization of our content creator platform, we launched the Starlight Challenge, a strategic initiative designed to cultivate mid and long tail content creators and motivate our top tier contributors. This program empowers content creators to showcase their distinctive vocal talents for the unlocking their creative potential, while also elevating the platform's appeal to the content creator community.
此外，我们通过内容品类扩展以及产品创新的持续改善，用户体验，吸引更多高质量的用户群体。本季度，我们基于用户偏好，推出了多个的精选模块，丰富内容品类，为用户提供更多元化的内容的供给。此外，我们基于平台特性，持续对产品设计进行更新迭代，开发了全新的产品功能以及互动的工具，结合前沿技术的应用，推出创新性的音频互动娱乐玩法，并通过丰富的运营活动以及主题赛事吸引了用户去参与，进一步增强用户的粘性和活跃度。 [Foreign Language].
In addition, we strive to improve the user experience and attract more high quality users through enriched content offerings and product innovations. During the quarter, based on user preferences, we added a suite of carefully curated modules to enrich our content genres, providing our users with more diverse and engaging content options. Furthermore, we continue to iterate our product design and cultivate new product features and engagement tools, harnessing cutting-edge technologies to introduce innovative audio-based interaction experiences. We sustain active user participation through a diverse array of marketing programs and themed events, augmenting both user stickiness and engagement.
对于全球化的创新业务，我们致力于打造新一代的社交通讯产品，并结合多终端实时AIGC的特性，持续优化产品的功能形态，通过前沿技术赋能产品创新，更好地满足用户的需求。同时，我们也致力于通过增强产品的网络效应，提升用户的参与度，促进用户规模的自然增长。组织能力上面，除了持续提升产品运营等各方面的本地化能力以外，我们建立了多团队参与的产品创新机制，提高创新的生产力。未来，我们将继续拓展海外市场，加强全球化能力的建设，加速全球化的布局。 [ Foreign Language].
As for our global innovative business, we are deeply invested in delighting our users with next generation social networking products. By integrating advanced features including cross-device functionality, real-time capabilities, AIGC technologies, and more, we continue to refine our product interface and functionality. We leverage advanced technologies to empower product innovation, catering to diverse user needs. Meanwhile, we endeavor to improve user experience, user engagement by enhancing the network effect of our offerings, thereby fostering organic user growth. Organizational wise, as we continue to boost our localization capabilities across product development, operations, and other key areas, we have also taken a collaborative, cross-team approach to product innovation to increase innovative productivity. Moving forward, we will continue developing international markets, reinforcing globalization capabilities, and ultimately accelerating the expansion of our global footprint.
在技术发展方面，我们持续加强核心技术的资源投入，自研能力，为产品提供更多定制化的支持，赋能产品创新，助力全球化的业务发展。在创新性业务布局方面，我们持续深耕多模态AIGC的技术能力集成和建设，基于情感增强模型的训练，进行算法的优化。... [Foreign Language].
持续增强 AI 技术能力的储备，并为产品的持续创新提供更多的可能。声音技术层面，我们正在不断地提升中英双语的 ASR，也就是音转文，TTS 和文转音的稳定性和性能，让这个能够适应多场景的应用。我们在 AI 变声技术上也取得了突破性的进展，和自研的 RTC 实时音频流技术平台，DOREME 实现了更好的融合。同时，我们持续提升了 IM 语音通讯平台 WaterX 的信息传输的质量，为业务提供高性能、低延迟、可扩展的定制化的即时通讯支持。此外，在通用平台建设方面，我们进一步优化了智能化数据分析和数据管理系统，将 AI 技术应用于市场营销等领域，有效促进整体经营效率的提升。总体而言，我们相信技术能力是业务发展的基石，我们将继续以业内领先的技术水平为目标，不断强化集团的核心技术能力，全面赋能业务发展。 [ Foreign Language].
With respect to technological advancement, we continue to strengthen our R&D capabilities to provide more customized product support. This in turn powers product innovation and drives progress across our global business. We have also consistently deepened the integration and development of multi-model AIGC technologies into our innovative business framework. Through emotion, enhance the model training and algorithm optimization, we are fortifying our AI assets, unlocking vast opportunities for ongoing product innovation. On voice technologies, we have been constantly improving the stability and performance of automatic speech recognition and text to speech, ASR and TTS for both Chinese and English languages, adapting them for diverse scenarios.
We have also achieved the breakthroughs in AI voice changing technology, including its seamless integration into DOREME, our in-house RTC platform for real-time audio and video streaming. In the meantime, we further enhance the quality of information transmission on our IM platform, WaterX, empowering our business with high performance, low latency, and scalable, customized instant messaging capabilities. In terms of our versatile technology platform construction, we further improve the data analytics and data management systems and apply the AI technology to marketing and other fields. Collectively, these initiatives have improved overall operating efficiency. In general, we believe technological advancements are the cornerstone of business development. We remain committed to pursuing industry leading technological standards and continually fortifying our core technological capabilities to empower the business development.
我们很高兴地宣布，上个月我们公司已经连续五年入选中国互联网协会发布的中国互联网综合实力前百家企业榜单，这也意味着协会和行业对集团综合能力的认可。未来，尽管宏观环境仍有挑战，我们将全力以赴，积极调整业务策略，打造更具竞争力的业务生态体系，并持续提升核心技术能力，全面深化AIGC、AI语音技术在各业务里面的应用。同时，我们也将进行精细化运营，提高资源配置的有效性，为公司的长期可持续发展注入更多动力。 [Foreign Language].
We are delighted to announce that last month the company was lauded as one of China's top 100 Internet companies by the Internet Society of China. This marks the fifth consecutive year that we have received this honor, representing powerful recognition of our comprehensive capabilities by the Internet Society of China and the broader industry. Going forward, despite the macro challenges, we will spare no effort in proactively refining our business strategies and building a more competitive ecosystem. We will continue to improve our core technology capabilities, while also adopting and more deeply integrating AIGC and voice AI technologies throughout the business. Meanwhile, we will further streamline our operations and improve the effectiveness of resource allocation, propelling the company's long-term sustainable development with fresh momentum.
谢谢大家！下面请我们的代理CFO，鲁晨芳女士为我们介绍财务方面的业绩。 [Foreign Language].
... Thank you all. With that, I will now turn the call over to our acting CFO, Ms. Chengfang Lu, who will discuss our financial results in more detail.
Okay, thank you, Marco, and hello, everyone. Online revenues in the third quarter of 2023 were RMB 425.1 million. Despite the complex backdrop and market uncertainties than anticipated, we remained steadfast in strengthening our core competitiveness through technological innovation during the quarter. Moving forward, we remain committed to further enhancing organizational efficiency, developing globalization capability, and enhancing overall agility, positioning us to deliver enduring value to our stakeholders. Now, I'd like to provide a brief overview of our financial results for the third quarter of 2023. In this quarter, our total net revenues were RMB 425.1 million, compared with RMB 565.2 million in the same period of last year, primarily due to the decline in average paying users and user spending on our audio entertainment products.
Cost of revenue was RMB 317.3 million in this quarter, compared with RMB 376.2 million in the same period of last year, mainly attributable to the decreased revenue share fees, share-based compensation expenses, payment handling costs, and other miscellaneous costs. Gross profit was RMB 107.8 million in the third quarter of 2023, compared with RMB 189.1 million in the same period of last year. Non-GAAP gross profit was RMB 107.9 million in this quarter, compared with RMB 190.8 million in the same period of last year. Gross margin in this quarter of 2023 was 25%, compared with 33% in the same period of last year.
Non-GAAP gross margin in this quarter was 25%, compared with 34% in the same period of last year. Operating expenses were CNY 167.9 million in the third quarter of 2023, compared with CNY 156.6 million in the same period of last year. Research and development expenses were CNY 83.8 million in the third quarter of 2023, representing an increase of 7% year-over-year, primarily due to the increased salary and welfare benefits expenses related to increased severance pay to optimize the R&D efficiency, partially offset by the decreased expenses related to research and development services provided by third parties. Selling and marketing expenses were CNY 59.1 million in this quarter, compared with CNY 71.2 million in the same period of last year, primarily attributable to decreased branding and marketing expenses.
The company will monitor its discretionary advertising and promotion expenses and adjust accordingly, depending on market conditions. General and administrative expenses were CNY 25.1 million in the third quarter of 2023, compared with CNY 27.1 million in the same period of last year, mainly driven by decreased professional service fees provided by third parties, provision for litigation contingencies, and other miscellaneous expenses. Operating loss was CNY 60.1 million in the third quarter of 2023, compared with operating income of CNY 12.5 million in the same period of last year. Non-GAAP operating loss was CNY 55 million in this quarter, compared with non-GAAP operating income of CNY 20.2 million in the same period of last year.
Other expenses were CNY 5.9 million in the third quarter of 2023, compared with other income of CNY 1.7 million in the same period of last year, mainly attributable to the remuneration fees to the depositary bank in relation to the ratio change of ADS on September 20th, 2023. Net loss was CNY 62 million in the third quarter of 2023, compared with net income of CNY 19.8 million in the same period of last year. Non-GAAP net loss was CNY 56.9 million in this quarter, compared with non-GAAP net income of CNY 27.5 million in the same period of last year.
Basic and dilutive net loss per ADS were both 11.01 in the third quarter of 2023, compared with basic and dilutive net income of RMB 3.81 and 3.79 per ADS in the same period of last year. Non-GAAP basic and dilutive net loss per ADS were both RMB 10.07 in the third quarter of 2023, compared with non-GAAP basic and dilutive net income of RMB 5.29 and 5.26 per ADS in the same period of last year. As of September 30, 2023, we had cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash of RMB 615.8 million. Okay, this concludes all of our prepared remarks. Thank you once again for joining us today.
If you have further questions, please feel free to contact LIZHI's Investor Relations through the contact information provided on our website, ir.lizhi.fm, or Piacente Financial Communications.
Thank you. This concludes the conference call. You may now disconnect your line. Thank you. Have a good day.