DouYu International Holdings Limited (DOYU): Marketing Mix Analysis [Dec-2025 Updated]

You're looking for a clear-eyed view of DouYu International Holdings Limited's (DOYU) marketing mix as we close out 2025, and honestly, the four P's tell a story of a company navigating intense regulatory pressure and a shifting content landscape. After two decades analyzing these spaces, what I see is a business fundamentally tethered to its core revenue engine: virtual gifting, which still accounts for over $\mathbf{85\%}$ of net revenue, even with $\mathbf{50}$ million Monthly Active Users. Their Place is almost entirely the PRC, and Promotion hinges on locking down top-tier Key Opinion Leaders. To really understand where the risk and upside lie for DOYU right now, you need to look past the headlines and see how these four levers-Product, Place, Promotion, and Price-are set for the next reporting cycle. Let's break down the specifics below.

DouYu International Holdings Limited (DOYU) - Marketing Mix: Product

The core offering of DouYu International Holdings Limited remains its game-centric live streaming platform, accessible via PC and mobile applications. This product is built around immersive and interactive games and entertainment livestreaming, complemented by video and graphic content, and community event participation opportunities. DouYu International Holdings Limited is a pioneer in the eSports value chain in China.

To diversify the user base beyond its core gaming focus, DouYu International Holdings Limited has expanded its product scope into non-gaming content. The segment encompassing its innovative business, advertising, and other revenues-which includes voice-based social networking and game membership services-demonstrates this diversification effort. For the third quarter of 2025, this segment generated revenues of RMB377.0 million (US$53.0 million), marking a 21.2% year-over-year increase.

User engagement is boosted through integrated features. In the third quarter of 2025, DouYu International Holdings Limited continued to upgrade its product ecosystem by enriching premium offerings, such as e-sports tournaments, and launching AI-powered bullet comment features designed to enhance user interaction with premium content and communities. The platform also focuses on technology for streaming quality; bandwidth costs for Q3 2025 were RMB47.5 million (US$6.7 million), a 34.2% decrease year-over-year, attributed to bandwidth allocation advancement and reduced peak usage.

The interactive virtual gifting system is the key product component driving the majority of the core revenue stream. Livestreaming revenues, which are heavily reliant on this system, reached RMB522.1 million (US$73.3 million) in the third quarter of 2025. This figure represented a 30.6% decrease compared to the same period in 2024, primarily due to declines in both the number of total paying users and the average revenue per paying user.

The platform's product performance and user base metrics for the third quarter of 2025 are summarized below:

The content mix reflects the platform's dual focus on competitive gaming and broader entertainment. Top categories on DouYu International Holdings Limited in the third quarter of 2025 included both gaming and non-gaming genres:

• Video Games: League of Legends
• Video Games: Honor of Kings
• Non-Gaming: Star Show
• Non-Gaming: Outdoor
• Non-Gaming: Party

The platform operates on both PC and mobile apps, serving a user base where average mobile Monthly Active Users (MAUs) were reported at 44.5 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, which was an increase of 5.9% from the preceding quarter.

DouYu International Holdings Limited (DOYU) - Marketing Mix: Place

You're analyzing the distribution footprint for DouYu International Holdings Limited, and the picture is clearly one of intense domestic focus. The entire distribution strategy centers on maximizing accessibility within the People's Republic of China (PRC).

Primary market remains the People's Republic of China (PRC), accessible via mobile app and PC web. DouYu International Holdings Limited is headquartered in Wuhan, China, and its operational focus is squarely on the domestic game-centric live streaming market. The platform's delivery mechanism is dual-platform, ensuring users can access content through its dedicated mobile application and its PC web interface. This dual-channel approach is fundamental to its reach within the PRC.

Distribution is heavily reliant on major Chinese app stores and direct downloads. The primary mechanism for user acquisition and platform access is through the established digital storefronts within the PRC ecosystem, supplemented by direct installation pathways. While specific distribution channel breakdowns by volume aren't public, the platform's operational structure confirms this reliance on mobile and desktop software distribution points. The platform consistently delivers premium content through the integration of livestreaming, video, graphics, and virtual communities with a primary focus on games, especially on eSports.

Limited international presence, focusing resources almost entirely on the domestic Chinese market. All reported financial metrics and operational commentary point to a singular focus on the Chinese user base. Resources are concentrated here, which is typical for platforms navigating the specific regulatory and content licensing environment of the PRC. This concentration allows for deep optimization of the domestic distribution network rather than spreading resources thinly across potentially less accessible international territories.

Strategic partnerships with telecom providers ensure optimal content delivery and access speeds. While specific partnership agreements aren't detailed in public filings, the company actively manages its delivery infrastructure to maintain quality. For instance, in Q1 2025, bandwidth costs decreased by 31.6% to RMB56.4 million (US$7.8 million) year-over-year, primarily due to bandwidth allocation advancement and a decrease in peak bandwidth usage. This suggests active management, likely involving agreements or optimized routing with local telecommunication infrastructure providers to ensure low-latency streaming, which is critical for live gaming content.

Here's a quick look at the latest platform usage and financial metrics that underpin this distribution strategy:

The platform's ability to reduce bandwidth costs while maintaining user access is a key indicator of efficient distribution management. The focus on in-market optimization is clear.

The primary access points for the DouYu International Holdings Limited ecosystem can be summarized as follows:

• Mobile application access via major Chinese app stores.
• Direct download and use via the PC web platform.
• Integration of livestreaming, video, and community features.
• Optimization efforts targeting bandwidth costs, showing infrastructure management.

If onboarding takes 14+ days, churn risk rises, but for a mature app like this, the risk is more about app store ranking and visibility.

Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.

DouYu International Holdings Limited (DOYU) - Marketing Mix: Promotion

DouYu International Holdings Limited's promotion strategy centers on high-impact visibility and streamer exclusivity, though recent financial reporting indicates a strategic reduction in overall marketing spend.

Heavy reliance on exclusive contracts with top-tier streamers (Key Opinion Leaders) to draw traffic is a core element, which is reflected in the content cost structure, though specific contract values are not publicly itemized within the general marketing expense line.

Sponsorship of major eSports tournaments and leagues, including the LPL and KPL, for brand visibility is a key tactic, which contributes to the overall Sales and Marketing expenses reported quarterly.

Targeted in-app promotions and virtual events to drive virtual gift purchases and user activity are managed dynamically; for instance, the decrease in both the number of total paying users and average revenue per paying user in the third quarter of 2025 was explicitly attributed to fewer promotional activities in the quarter and continued moderation in the operating environment.

Digital marketing campaigns across Chinese social media platforms like Weibo and WeChat are integrated into the overall promotional budget.

Co-promotion with game developers and publishers for new game launches is a component of the marketing mix, supporting revenue streams like Innovative business, advertising and other revenues, which reached RMB377.0 million (US$53.0 million) in the third quarter of 2025, a year-over-year increase of 21.2%.

The financial commitment to promotion, as part of the broader Sales and Marketing category, shows a clear trend of cost optimization across the first three quarters of 2025:

The reduction in Sales and Marketing expenses in the third quarter of 2025 to RMB52.3 million from RMB79.3 million in the third quarter of 2024 reflects this strategic adjustment.

For the second quarter of 2025, Sales and marketing expenses were RMB61.6 million (US$8.6 million), a decrease of 20.0% from RMB77.0 million in the same period of 2024, with the decrease mainly attributable to reductions in staff-related and promotion-related expenses.

The company noted that for the first quarter of 2025, the decline in quarterly average paying users stemmed partly from the scaling back of the platform's low-ROI operational activities.

• Voice-based social networking business average MAUs for Q3 2025 were 368,600.
• Voice-based social networking business monthly average paying users for Q3 2025 were 71,700.
• Livestreaming quarterly average paying users for Q3 2025 were 2.7 million.
• Livestreaming quarterly ARPPU for Q3 2025 was RMB205.

Finance: review Q4 2025 budget allocation against Q3 actuals by end of week.

DouYu International Holdings Limited (DOYU) - Marketing Mix: Price

Price for DouYu International Holdings Limited is fundamentally structured around virtual item transactions and advertising inventory. The core pricing mechanism relies on the perceived value users place on direct interaction and content consumption within the live-streaming ecosystem.

Revenue is primarily driven by virtual gifting, which historically has been the dominant source. For the third quarter of 2025, livestreaming revenues, which are heavily reliant on virtual gifting, accounted for RMB522.1 million out of total net revenues of RMB899.1 million, representing approximately 58.1% of total net revenues for the period. This contrasts with the cost structure, where revenue sharing fees and content cost represented 85.2% of total cost of revenues for the full year 2024.

The pricing model for the primary revenue stream is intrinsically linked to the revenue-share split with streamers. Revenue-sharing fees and content costs, a major operating cost reflecting these splits, totaled RMB727.3 million (US$101.5 million) in the second quarter of 2025.

Advertising services represent the second largest revenue stream, with revenues from this segment (classified as Innovative business, advertising and others) showing significant growth. In the first quarter of 2025, this segment generated RMB382.6 million (US$52.7 million), marking a 60.2% year-over-year increase. For the second quarter of 2025, advertising and other revenues reached RMB476.1 million, constituting 45.2% of total net revenues for that quarter.

User engagement metrics directly influence the pricing power for virtual items and advertising slots. The platform's user base shows fluctuation, which impacts the effective price realization. Here are the latest reported user statistics:

Based on the Q2 2025 figures, the paying user ratio for the livestreaming business was approximately 7.69% (2.8 million paying users / 36.4 million MAUs), which is above the projected 5.5% mentioned in the outline.

Subscription services provide a fixed-price option, though they represent a smaller component of the pricing strategy. Revenue from the voice-based social networking services includes sales from subscription-based membership services, alongside virtual gifts. Specific fixed-price tiers for premium features or ad-free viewing are not publicly detailed in recent financial disclosures, but this stream contributes to the 'Innovative business' revenue category.

Key pricing-related components include:

• Virtual Gift Revenue Share: Directly impacts streamer compensation and platform margin.
• Advertising Rates: Priced based on impression volume and placement effectiveness.
• Game Membership Fees: A fixed-price secondary revenue source within innovative business.
• Subscription Fees: Fixed-price option for premium features in voice services.

The Average Revenue Per Paying User (ARPPU) for livestreaming saw an increase from RMB216 in Q1 2025 to RMB255 in Q2 2025, indicating successful monetization efforts or a shift in user spending patterns. Finance: draft 13-week cash view by Friday.