The Online Education Market in China

report| 15 November 2018

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Driven by the popularity of the Internet, especially the mobile Internet, and Chinese families’ increasing investment in education, China’s online education market is growing quickly. More government spending on education, favourable policies, and capital inflows will create more opportunities for the development of online education in China, which will be mirrored by an increasing number of consumers in this market.

Education services provided by the mobile Internet enable users to split learning into fragments so it can be done anywhere and at any time, which in turn maximises the time they spend learning, hence the continuing shift in online education from desktop computers to mobile devices.

As the Two-Child Policy begins to affect the birth rate in China, the number of children enrolled in K-12 education will steadily increase. At the same time, Chinese parents born in the 1980s and 1990s have high demands for their children’s education and are willing to pay to meet these demands. This suggests that the K-12 online education market will continue to grow in the future. Apart from K-12 online education, online foreign language training and online vocational and technical training will both also take up significant shares of the online education market, although as technology progresses and the number of users grows, more niche markets will emerge and become financially viable, some of which could present opportunities to European SMEs with knowledge of these industries.

China’s online education market has attracted the interest of both Chinese and international education companies, and that of big companies originally working in other Internet-related fields, such as Tencent and Baidu, both of which have invested in this market, increasing competition. In response to this, some companies may prefer to focus on third- and fourth-tier cities where, when compared to first-tier cities, there is more potential for expansion.

This report produced in partnership with the China-Britain Business Council (CBBC) will provide a very comprehensive and up-to-date overview of this market, identifying main opportunities for European SMEs and key players in the market.

Please note that the EU SME Centre’s free publications are only accessible for European SMEs and European intermediary organisations. If your organisation fits these types, please register or log in to download the guideline.

Key Contents Background

  • Spending on Education
  • Growing Affluence in China
  • The Increasing Popularity of Internet Usage in China
  • Online Activity is Going Mobile

Market Overview

  • Market Size, Growth, and Trends
  • Relevant Policies
  • The Opportunities and Challenges in China’s Online Education Industry

Online Education Apps Online Education Industry News in 2017 Case Studies

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