Cheetah Mobile Inc. Elects to Rely on the SEC Order for Filing Relief in Connection with its Form20-F for the Year Ended December 31, 2019
Cheetah Mobile Inc. (the “Company”) is filing this current report on Form 6-K, pursuant to an order issued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Under Section 36 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 on March 4, 2020, as amended on March 25, 2020 (the “SEC Order”), providing conditional relief to public companies that are unable to timely comply with their filing obligations as a result of the outbreak ofCOVID-19.
The recent outbreak ofCOVID-19 has posed a significant impact on the Company’s ability to file on a timely basis its Annual Report on Form20-F for the year ended December 31, 2019 (the “Annual Report”), which is due to be filed on April 30, 2020 (the “Original Due Date”). Therefore, the Company has elected to rely on the conditional filing relief provided under the SEC Order. In accordance with the SEC Order, the Company plans to file the Annual Report no later than 45 days after the Original Due Date.
Starting from early 2020, in connection with the intensifying efforts to contain the spread ofCOVID-19, the Chinese government has taken a number of actions, which included extending the Chinese New Year holiday, quarantining individuals infected with or suspected of havingCOVID-19, restricting residents from travel, encouraging employees of enterprises to work remotely from home and cancelling public activities, among others. To cope with the impact and to protect its employees, the Company has also taken a series of measures, including, among others, temporary closure of certain offices, remote working arrangements for its employees and travel restrictions or suspension. These measures have reduced the capacity and efficiency of the Company’s operations. As a result, the preparation of the Company’s Annual Report has been delayed. Considering the lack of time for the collection, examination and compilation of the information required to be presented, and the importance of investors to receive materially accurate information in the Annual Report, the Company has decided to rely on the SEC Order.
When the Company files the Annual Report, the Company plans to include the following risk factor, as may be expanded or revised as the Company determines appropriate, to reflect the currently unknown and constantly evolving effects of theCOVID-19 pandemic and the resulting worldwide crisis:
Our business has been and is likely to continue to be materially adversely affected by the outbreak ofCOVID-19 in China.
Recently, there was an outbreak of a novel strain of coronavirus(COVID-19), which has spread rapidly to many parts of the world. In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID19 a pandemic. The pandemic has resulted in quarantines, travel restrictions, the temporary closure of stores and facilities, and reducing budgets for advertising and marketing globally for the past few months.