Core Viewpoint - The recent performance of Reader Culture (读客文化) has been disappointing, with significant declines in revenue and profit, raising concerns about its business model and market strategy [1][2][6]. Group 1: Financial Performance - In the first half of 2025, Reader Culture reported revenue of 168 million yuan, a year-on-year decline of 15.38%, and a net profit of only 3.18 million yuan, down 57.76% [2]. - The company's market position has deteriorated, dropping from the second largest in 2021 to the lowest among its peers by mid-2025 [2][4]. - Reader Culture's gross margin fell to 32.4% in the first half of 2025, the lowest among its competitors [10][12]. Group 2: Market Challenges - The overall book retail market saw a slight growth of 0.73% in pricing but a decline of 0.31% in actual sales, indicating a challenging environment for all players [6]. - Reader Culture's sales of physical books decreased by 27.28% in terms of pricing and 19.33% in revenue [6]. Group 3: Strategic Issues - The company attributed its performance issues to "declining channel traffic," a claim that has been met with skepticism from industry analysts who argue that all companies face similar challenges [7]. - Despite increasing its sales expenses by 24% to 22.58 million yuan in the first half of 2025, including a near doubling of e-commerce promotion costs, Reader Culture failed to halt its revenue decline, suggesting deeper issues with its marketing strategy [7]. Group 4: Product Development - Reader Culture's "creative assembly line" approach, which previously yielded success, has seen a significant drop in new book releases, with only 55 new titles launched in the first half of 2025, a nearly 40% decrease from the previous year [9]. - The lack of appealing new titles has been identified as a critical factor in the company's struggles, indicating a potential "content anxiety" rather than merely a "traffic anxiety" [9]. Group 5: Management Changes - Recent management changes, including the resignation of the general manager while retaining the chairman position, may impact the company's strategic direction [13].