The Kite Runner Inspires Gift Through One Laptop

The Kite Runner Inspires Gift Through One Laptop

Paramount Classics and DreamWorks Donate 500 XO Children's Laptops to Schools In Kabul

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- In advance of the December 14 release of the film The Kite Runner, Paramount Classics and DreamWorks Pictures are donating 500 XO laptops through One Laptop per Child (OLPC). The Afghan Relief Organization (ARO) will distribute the donated XO laptops, a learning tool created expressly for children in developing countries, to students attending its school in Kabul.

(Logo:

http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19991206/PARLOGO)

Best-selling author Khaled Hosseini said, "Education of the general population is critical to the transformation of Afghanistan's political and economic condition. On behalf of the novel, the film, Paramount Classics and DreamWorks, I'm delighted they chose to support the work of the Afghan Relief Organization by funding the delivery of laptop computers to the ARO schools in Kabul."

Masi Oka, star of NBC's hit ensemble series "Heroes" and global ambassador for OLPC said, "This generous donation through One Laptop per Child is a great example of the diverse organizations participating in our giving campaign to provide educational assistance to communities in need throughout the developing world."

Based on the best-selling novel by Khaled Hosseini, The Kite Runner is the story of two boys in Afghanistan set against a series of historical events from the fall of the monarchy through the Soviet invasion and the rise of the Taliban regime.

DreamWorks Pictures, Sidney Kimmel Entertainment and Participant Productions present The Kite Runner, a Sidney Kimmel Entertainment Production and Parkes/MacDonald Production released by Paramount Classics on December 14 in selected theaters.

About One Laptop per Child

One Laptop per Child (OLPC at http://www.laptop.org/) is a non-profit organization created by Nicholas Negroponte and others from the MIT Media Lab to design, manufacture and distribute laptop computers that are sufficiently inexpensive to provide every child in the world access to knowledge and modern forms of education. These XO laptops are rugged, open source, and so energy efficient that they can be powered by a child manually. Mesh networking gives many machines Internet access from one connection. The pricing goal is $100.

The XO laptops are sold to governments and issued to children by schools on a basis of one laptop per child. Starting November 12 and through December 31, individuals in the U.S. and Canada will be able to participate in the Give One Get One program and for US$399 get a laptop while giving one simultaneously to a child in a developing nation. For more information on the Give One Get One program, go to http://www.laptopgiving.org/.

About Afghan Relief Organization

The Afghan Relief Organization is a non-profit humanitarian organization that provides an education center for girls, boys, women and men in Kabul and delivers relief aid directly into the hands of those in need throughout Afghanistan.

About Paramount Classics

Paramount Classics is the specialty film division of Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment, and unit of Viacom (NYSE:VIA)(NYSE:VIA.B), a leading content company with prominent and respected film, television and digital entertainment brands. The company's labels include Paramount Pictures, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, MTV Films, Nickelodeon Movies and DreamWorks Studios. PPC operations also include Paramount Digital Entertainment, Paramount Home Entertainment, Paramount Pictures International, Paramount Licensing Inc., Paramount Studios, and Worldwide Television Distribution.

Paramount Classics Contact:
Alison Lehrer: 323-956-8790
Alison.lehrer@paramountvantage.com

OLPC Media Contacts:
George Snell: 781-487-4608
Jodi Petrie: 781-487-4692
press@racepointgroup.com

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:

Photo: NewsCom:

http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19991206/PARLOGO
AP Archive:

http://photoarchive.ap.org/
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Paramount Classics

CONTACT: Alison Lehrer of Paramount Classics, +1-323-956-8790,
Alison.lehrer@paramountvantage.com; or George Snell, +1-781-487-4608, or Jodi
Petrie, +1-781-487-4692, press@racepointgroup.com, both for OLPC

Web site:

http://www.laptop.org/
http://www.laptopgiving.org/

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