BEIJING, June 13 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- New Oriental Education & Technology Group Inc. (NYSE: EDU), the largest provider of private educational services in China, today announced that it has entered into an agreement with Coca-Cola (China) Beverages Ltd., a part of the world’s largest beverage company, to develop an e-learning platform offering vocational training to Coca-Cola system employees in China.
Under the agreement, New Oriental and Coca-Cola will jointly develop vocational training modules that will be delivered to the company and bottling partner employees through New Oriental’s Koolearn online platform ( http://www.koolearn.com ). The Koolearn online learning management system will allow Coca-Cola management and human resources professionals to evaluate employees’ knowledge in a specific subject area and assess their progress throughout the course. As part of Coca-Cola University’s program, the online curriculum will be complemented with classroom instruction upon completion of a designated number of hours online.
“We are pleased to cooperate with Coca-Cola (China) Beverages Ltd. in building this new online vocational training platform,” said Michael Yu, New Oriental’s chairman and chief executive officer. “Coca-Cola is one of the world’s most recognized brands and our Koolearn online learning platform is a great tool to help Coca-Cola University deliver targeted training to its employees. The agreement also represents our continued commitment to online corporate training, and is an important milestone for Koolearn.”
“Coca-Cola (China) Beverages Ltd. is dedicated to providing its employees with the practical skills, knowledge and experiences to be successful in the marketplace,” said Grant Mosey, vice president and director of Coca-Cola University in China. “Our virtual global university represents a one-stop shop for all learning and capability building activities across the system and New Oriental’s Koolearn online learning management system offers a powerful resource for us to deliver training to meet the needs of our company and bottling system employees here in China.”
About New Oriental
New Oriental is the largest provider of private educational services in China based on the number of program offerings, total student enrollments and geographic presence. New Oriental offers a wide range of educational programs, services and products consisting primarily of English and other foreign language training, test preparation courses for major admissions and assessment tests in the United States, the PRC and Commonwealth countries, primary and secondary school education, development and distribution of educational content, software and other technology, and online education. New Oriental’s ADSs, each of which represents four common shares, currently trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "EDU." For more information about New Oriental, please visit http://english.neworiental.org .
About The Coca-Cola Company
The Coca-Cola Company is the world’s largest beverage company. Along with Coca-Cola, recognized as the world’s most-valuable brand, the Company markets four of the world’s top five soft drink brands, including Diet Coke, Fanta and Sprite, and a wide range of other beverages, including diet and light soft drinks, waters, juices and juice drinks, teas, coffees and sports drinks. Through the world’s largest beverage distribution system, consumers in more than 200 countries enjoy the Company’s beverages at a rate exceeding 1.4 billion servings each day. For more information about The Coca-Cola Company, please visit http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com .
About Coca-Cola (China) Beverages Ltd.
Coca-Cola is one of the most prestigious international brands in China, and leads the soft drinks market with a series of most favored soft drinks in China. Since its return to China in 1979, Coca-Cola has invested more than USD 1.3 billion in China. Till 2007, Coca-Cola has established 35 bottling plants in the country. Currently, Coca-Cola China already has more than 30,000 employees in China, and 99 percent are local staff. As an active corporate citizen, Coca-Cola China has already donated more than RMB 60 million to charitable causes in China, and has supported various social responsibility projects.
Safe Harbor Statement
This announcement contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates" and similar statements. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about New Oriental’s beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward- looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Information regarding these risks and uncertainties is included in our registration statement on Form F-1 and other documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. New Oriental does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required under applicable law. All information provided in this press release is as of June 13, 2008, and New Oriental undertakes no duty to update such information, except as required under applicable law.
For more information, please contact:
In China:
Ms. Sisi Zhao
New Oriental Education and Technology Group Inc.
Tel: +86-10-6260-5566 x8203
Email: zhaosisi@staff.neworiental.org
Mr. Derek Mitchell
Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide
Tel: +86-10-8520-6284
Email: derek.mitchell@ogilvy.com
In the United States:
Mr. Thomas Smith
Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide
Tel: +1-212-880-5269
Email: thomas.smith@ogilvypr.com
