On June 13, 2023, FLTRP and Oxford University Press (OUP) held a commemorative event in Beijing to celebrate their 40 years of collaboration. Wang Fang, President of FLTRP, Zhang Siying, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of FLTRP, Li Huiqin, Assistant President of FLTRP, Rui Ding, Managing Director of OUP China, Helen Sun, Chief Consultant of OUP China, Sirong Hao, Global Business Development Director of OUP China, Edward Zhang, Director of Education Resources and Services of OUP China, Franky Lau, Head of Dictionaries of OUP China, and other representatives from both parties attended the event.
FLTRP and OUP established their partnership in 1983 when they signed their first copyright trade agreement, introducing Practical English Usage and Oxford Elementary Learner’s Dictionary to China, which marked the beginning of FLTRP's international collaboration. At that time, China was 9 years away from officially joining the Universal Copyright Convention, and the partnership between FLTRP and OUP demonstrated the forward-thinking and creative attitude of Chinese publishing, as well as the strong desire to provide high-quality learning resources to Chinese readers through international cooperation.
During the commemorative event, President Wang Fang reviewed the 40 years of collaboration between FLTRP and OUP. She stated that internationalization is in the DNA of FLTRP. Over the past 40 years, FLTRP has been deeply involved in foreign language educational publishing through international cooperation, helping several generations of Chinese learners broaden their international perspectives. OUP has been a close partner of FLTRP on its internationalization path, and their collaboration has evolved from copyright trade to co-publishing, from print publishing to digital publishing, witnessing the vigorous development of English education in China. President Wang emphasized that digital transformation is an important carrier and direction for educational transformation worldwide, and FLTRP is accelerating its digitalization process by integrating online and offline business. The digital project of Oxford Bookworms Library newly signed by the parties this time will open up new opportunities for FLTRP and OUP's future collaboration. It is wished that the parties will further improve their digital cooperation, leading industry innovation and the development of the ecosystem of foreign language education.
Managing Director Rui Ding expressed that FLTRP is one of the earliest and most important partners of OUP in China. Over the past 40 years, both parties have joined hands to bring a vast number of high-quality learning resources to Chinese learners, which have been widely loved, thus witnessing and promoting the industry's development. Embracing digital transformation is a shared strategic direction for both OUP and FLTRP, and they look forward to exploring a smooth path for comprehensive digital collaboration in the future through the digital project of Oxford Bookworms Library, to provide English learners with comprehensive learning solutions and a friendly user experience.
At the commemorative event, the parties awarded the most outstanding projects during their 40-year collaboration. The projects include Oxford Bookworms Library, Songbirds Phonics, Over to You, Little Oxford English-Chinese Dictionary, Winnie and Wilbur, and Practical English Usage. In addition, the parties signed contracts for four new cooperative projects: digital project of Oxford Bookworms Library, Bookworms-Oxford English Classics Simplified Edition, Bookworms-Dominoes series and stage production for Winnie the Witch.
Both FLTRP and OUP expressed their commitment to continue working together, embracing the trends of foreign language education and the era of digitalization. They affirmed their strong belief in collaboration and pledged to innovate in their partnership. Their collective goal is to provide Chinese language learners with better educational services and experiences.
