ChinaNet Online Partners With Baidu to Launch New Business Service Program Connecting Businesses and Potential Entrepreneurs

BEIJING, Aug. 19, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ChinaNet Online Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CNET) ("ChinaNet" or the "Company"), a leading B2B (business to business) Internet technology company providing online-to-offline (O2O) sales expansion services for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and entrepreneurial management and networking services for entrepreneurs in the People's Republic of China, today announced it has launched a new service, "The GOOD Business of China", along with Baidu and its Tieba division, the largest forum posting platform in China owned by Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU), to connect domestic and global businesses with potential and qualified entrepreneurs in China.

"The GOOD Business of China" is the first O2O (online-to-offline) brand and sales lead generation service in the industry and provides online marketing and data exchange and search and roadshow features, as well as other valuable combined O2O entrepreneurial services such as business advisory, due diligence trips and angel investor networking to selected vendors. It is also part of the implementation of ChinaNet's Business Direct 3.0 service with Baidu, as the Company continues to extend its data exchange service through various Baidu portals. With the new service, ChinaNet's served businesses will have more live sales leads information to help expand sales more effectively.

Within a week after launch in early August, forty-five businesses had been carefully selected by ChinaNet out of thousands of domestic and global franchising brands which cater to Chinese consumer growing demands for food, entertainment and services, with over 100 businesses waiting to be added. These selected businesses have collectively pledged up to RMB100 million (US$16 million) funding support to qualified entrepreneurs via fee rebates and O20 marketing budgets through Baidu Direct.

The 45 businesses include a number of well-known brands, including Ice Monster (www.ice-monster.com), selected in 2013 by CNN as one of the best dessert places around the world, and bbq Chicken (www.bbq.co.kr), the largest quick service restaurant chain in Korea. With the new service, business clients such as these can now monitor their brand image and popularity scale using comprehensive analytical information through ChinaNet's big data service combined with Baidu traffic monitoring. They will also receive more live sales leads to help build sales more effectively and efficiently throughout China.

As a key partner of the new service, Baidu, China's largest search engine company, will initially promote the program on Baidu Tieba on a number of selected business forums focusing on start-up business topics and business sectors. Internet users can also learn and research detailed information about the featured business opportunities via other powerful Baidu offerings such as keyword search, Baidu Encyclopedia, Baidu Know and Baidu Library, to discover the best businesses in the hope of finding the next Chinese premiere business.

"Our partnership with Baidu continues to strengthen with this new service offering the first O2O brand and sales lead generation service in the industry," said George Chu, Chief Operating Officer of ChinaNet Online Holdings. "Through the initial three month period, we anticipate potential revenues of up to $0.5 million generated from the 45 selected businesses, with more businesses potentially being added. If successful, we plan to launch the service to all of our existing and potential customers to further drive revenue growth. In the future, we plan to expand the service with various online payment systems so that our business customers can monitor O2O (online to offline) sales results in real time."

The new service was launched on August 8, 2015, at a live ceremony in Zhongguancun along with Baidu, ChinaNet, and the most popular entrepreneurial community, Heima (www.iheima.com). More information about The GOOD Business of China can be viewed at www.hxm888.com.

About ChinaNet Online Holdings, Inc.

The Company, a parent company of ChinaNet Online Media Group Ltd., incorporated in the BVI ("ChinaNet"), is a leading digital B2B (business to business) Internet technology company focusing on providing O2O sales channel expansion service for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and entrepreneurial management and networking service for entrepreneurs in China. The Company, through certain contractual arrangements with operating companies in the PRC, provides Internet advertising and other services for Chinese SMEs via its portal websites, 28.com, Liansuo.com and Chuangye.com, TV commercials and program production via China-Net TV, and in-house LCD advertising on banking kiosks targeting Chinese banking patrons. Website: http://www.chinanet-online.com.

Safe Harbor

This release contains certain "forward-looking statements" relating to the business of ChinaNet Online Holdings, Inc., which can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "estimates" or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, including business uncertainties relating to government regulation of our industry, market demand, and reliance on key personnel, future capital requirements, and competition in general and other factors that may cause actual results to be materially different from those described herein as anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. Certain of these risks and uncertainties are or will be described in greater detail in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements are based on ChinaNet's current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on the Company. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting ChinaNet will be those anticipated by ChinaNet. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties (some of which are beyond the control of the Company) or other assumptions that may cause actual results or performance to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. ChinaNet undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.

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