DigitalThink and Circuit City Ink Three-Year E-Learning Deal
San Francisco, March 19, 2002 – DigitalThink, Inc. (Nasdaq: DTHK), the leading
provider of e-learning business solutions to Global 2000 companies, announced
a three-year agreement with Circuit City Stores, Inc., a leading national retailer
of brand-name consumer electronics, personal computers and entertainment software.
This second expansion of the original, February 2000 contract between the two
companies highlights a trend towards enterprise-wide use of DigitalThink e-learning
solutions and towards add-on business with existing customers.
"DigitalThink e-learning is a key part of our strategy to increase sales
per sales counselor, decrease turnover and increase customer satisfaction,"
said Jeffrey S. Wells, senior vice president for human resources for Circuit
City Stores. "As we move rapidly to a learning culture, where learning
equals earning, our employee satisfaction is also increasing. DigitalThink has
allowed us to better arm our employees with knowledge and skills while cutting
the time they spend in training by more than 50 percent."
With this expansion, Circuit City is making an investment in the complete DigitalThink
e-learning solution, including catalog and custom courseware, e-briefings and
the DigitalThink E-Learning Platform.
"Circuit City is a model of well conceived, highly strategic, perfectly
executed e-learning," said Jon Madonna, president and CEO of DigitalThink.
"By leveraging the complete DigitalThink solution, Circuit City is able
to reach its employees with exactly the information they need, when they need
it, driving sales and improving customer satisfaction. DigitalThink is empowering
Circuit City to quantify and measure the business impact of e-learning."
DigitalThink allows Circuit City to deliver far more training at a much lower
cost, when compared to traditional classroom-based training. To date, 90,000
Circuit City employees have enrolled in more than 1.8 million DigitalThink courses,
far exceeding Circuit City’s expectations.
"In the two years since our strategic partnership with DigitalThink began,
we’ve collaboratively developed more than 110 online courses," said Wells.
"Our sales counselors find the e-learning extremely engaging. Completion
rates are very high, and in the month of December alone, our sales counselors
hit DigitalThink’s site more than six million times."
About DigitalThink
DigitalThink, Inc. is the leading provider of e-learning business solutions
to Global 2000 companies, delivering measurable business results through its
award-winning content and powerful E-Learning Platform. The company’s complete
array of e-learning solutions are tightly aligned with strategic business objectives,
provide a highly engaging learning environment and include powerful management
tools to measure learning effectiveness and return on investment (ROI). From
workforce development to sales force effectiveness to customer acquisition and
retention, DigitalThink e-learning has delivered business benefits to companies
such as Charles Schwab & Co., Circuit City, DaimlerChrysler, Deutsche Bank,
EDS, The Gallup Organization, GE Capital, KPMG Consulting, Mazda, McDonald’s,
and Northwest Airlines. More information can be found on the Web at www.digitalthink.com.
About Circuit City
With 604 Circuit City Superstores and 20 mall-based Circuit City Express stores,
Circuit City operates more consumer electronics specialty Superstores in more
markets than any other retailer. Circuit City’s online site, CircuitCity.com,
offers an integrated clicks-and-mortar experience with a comprehensive selection
of consumer electronics, personal computers, movies, music and games; extensive
product information; and Express Pick-up, which allows customers to order online
and pick up in store. Headquarters for Circuit City Stores, Inc. (NYSE: CC,
KMX) are located in Richmond, Va.; the company includes both the Circuit City
and CarMax retail stores.
"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act 1995:
The statements contained in this release that are not purely historical are
forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, including statements regarding DigitalThink’s expectations,
beliefs, hopes, intentions or strategies regarding the future. Forward-looking
statements include statements regarding future sales, beliefs about the applicability
of DigitalThink’s solutions, sales to existing customers, growth of future enrollments,
and the growth of the e-learning market. All forward-looking statements included
in this release are based upon information available to DigitalThink as of the
date hereof, and DigitalThink assumes no obligation to update any such forward-looking
statement. Actual results could differ materially from DigitalThink’s current
expectations. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include,
but are not limited to, our limited operating history, expected fluctuation
of our quarterly revenues, our ability to recognize revenues in accordance with
our expectations, successful hiring and retention of qualified staff, the continued
success of our alliance program, and other factors and risks discussed in DigitalThink’s
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 14, 2001 and
any other reports filed from time to time pursuant to the Securities and Exchange
Act of 1934.