OREANDA-NEWS. Sumitomo Corporation and With Us Corporation have merged SRJ Co. Ltd. and Global Gate Institute (hereinafter referred to as "GGI"), a venture in which both companies had an investment. Sumitomo Corporation has also made an additional investment in SRJ.

SRJ, which provides educational teaching methods and services to prep schools, has over 2,000 customers, and has built up its know-how in learning enhancement services using the latest ICT (Information & Communication Technology), through programs such as "Speed Reading (Japanese)". SRJ has organized the "National Speed Reading Koushien," a nation-wide competition where over 1,750 classrooms compete against each other, for the past 10 years. Additionally, GGI, which was created in 2012 with the aim of offering global leadership guidance for students of all ages, has provided such services as the "Meet the World" online English language program with U.S.-based native teachers, and "eSpire," an e-learning TOEFL test preparation course. The merger of these two companies will create an integrated global education solution using the latest ICT.

Sumitomo are pleased to announce a new service, "Speed Read in English," which will be available from the "new SRJ." This service will combine the expertise of SRJ's "Speed Reading (Japanese)" program with GGI's English education know-how. (Speed reading is well known globally, as a method of improving reading speed and comprehension.)

The Japanese e-learning market is estimated to top 90 billion yen in FY2014, or double that of the previous year, and is expected to grow further as tablet PCs become more commonly used in education. In light of such rapid change, Sumitomo Corporation, through its subsidiary T-GAIA Corporation (Head Office: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan; President: Tetsuro Takeoka) plans to provide tablet PCs and related services to streamline the use of ICT.  

Through this new endeavor, With Us Corporation and Sumitomo Corporation aim to push forward the expansion of ICT-based learning enhancement, and support the training of global leadership skills.