BEIJING, May 28 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- New Oriental Education and Technology Group Inc. (NYSE: EDU), the largest provider of private educational services in China, today announced that it has entered into an agreement with Nokia, the world's largest mobile phone manufacturer, to launch a mobile learning initiative that will give students access to select New Oriental course content via their mobile phones.
"We are excited to be tapping into the Chinese mobile market with Nokia, the industry leader," said Michael Yu, New Oriental's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "The demand for education in China is increasing, and this program allows us to reach more students through more creative means."
Under the one-year agreement, New Oriental will provide specially designed English language and test preparation course content for download on both the Mobiledu.cn website and New Oriental's online learning site Koolearn.com. Mobile learning content will be available in selected new Nokia mobile phones with the educational programs pre-installed. Course content will be formatted as short sound bytes that users can listen to at their convenience. New Oriental and Nokia along with other parties will jointly promote the educational offering in the China market.
"As the world leader in mobile communications, Nokia's goal is to continuously bring new innovative applications to the market," said Mr. Marko Vanska, Director of Nokia Emerging Business Unit, China. "We have seen a big growth potential for mobile learning market in China. By working together with New Oriental, the leading education service provider in China, Nokia strives to enrich consumers' learning experiences anytime, anywhere in a most convenient way with their mobile phone."
"With peoples' lives getting busier, we want to lead the market in providing flexible learning alternatives," Michael Yu remarked. "Our cities are expanding and we're spending more of our lives on the road, on subways, on planes and in traffic. The idea of mobile learning is that it will allow students of all ages to access course material through a mobile phone, maximizing time by providing learning on-the-go."
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 .
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 May 28, 2007, 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. Rory Macpherson
Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide
Tel: +86-10-8520-6553
Email: rory.macpherson@ogilvy.com
In the United States:
Mr. Thomas Smith
Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide
Tel: +1-212-880-5269
Email: thomas.smith@ogilvypr.com
