UNIVERSITE DU 7 NOVEMBRE A CARTHAGE

Faculté des Sciences Economiques et de Gestion de Nabeul

EXAMEN DE LA SESSION PRINCIPALE

MAI 2005

ANGLAIS DES AFFAIRES (BUSINESS ENGLISH)

Niveau : 3eme année Filières : Marketing

Durée : 2 heures Enseignant : Mr Messaoudi Makram

ANXIOUS PARENTS CREATE BOOM IN MOBILES

1. Busy parents who give mobile phones to their children as a "remote childminder" have caused
teenage mobile ownership to soar so that a quarter of 11 to 16- year- olds now have their own
phones. They have become so popular so quickly that marketing experts foresee a slump in sales
of magasines, computer games and soft drinks as teens spend their pocket money on top-up
cards for their pay-as-- you- go phones. Ownership of the phones rose from 4 per cent of
teeanagers in 1998 to 25 per cent last year. According to Childwise, a market research agency
that studies young customers, almos-t a million teeanagers now have their own mobile phone.

2. Even among youths who do not have their own mobile, the vast majority have access to one if
they need one. Among the 1,200 children questioned, 83 per cent came from households which
owned a mobile. Like digital television and connection to the internet, young families are among
the first to adopt mobile phones.

3. The research shows that while prents are getting the phones for safety reasons, teenagers
are using them for their own purposes. "When we asked why they had them , most said it was to
put their parents' minds at rest," said Rosemary Duff, research director of Childwise. Parents
can keep in touch with their kids. Mobile phones can also be used in emergencies but they are
often simply used by the children to say :"Hi, can you come and pick me up now?"

4. The kids are using them to communicate in the widest sense with their friends. they don't
have to wait to get home to start gossiping on the phone. A teen subculture is developing around
the use of mobiles where text messages, which aare cheaper than calls, are used heavily and the
phones are often used to make prank calls. Childwise questioned a group of 10-yrear-olds who
said they would prefer a mobile to having their own television or games console because they
would be able to make prank calls.

5. "The growth has only been possible because of the pay-as-yoy-go cards" Mrs Duff said. These
cards can now be used as way of controlling phone bills by making teenagers pay for their own
calls. Corner shops are now keen to stock phone cards because they think more and more
teenagers will spend their pocket money on phone cards.

Source : The Times Saturday, july 2, 1999 (adapted)

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 I. READING COMPREHENSION ( 13 pts )

1- Tick ( √ ) the correct alternative. (1 pt)

The writer of the article is:
For the idea of children having their own mobile phones.
Against the idea of children having their own mobile phones.
Neutral about the idea of children having their own mobile phones.

2- Complete with reference to the text. ( 4 pts )

Busy parents buy mobile phones for their children so that they can:
a- control them while they are away.
b-(paragraph3)).................................................................................................
c- ( paragraph 5 )...............................................................................................
Teenagers are using mobile phones so that they can:
a- ask their parents to pick them up.
b- ( paragraph 4 )……………………………………………………………………..
c- ( paragraph 4 ) ...............................................................................................

3- The following statements are FALSE. Correct them with reference to the text. ( 3 pts )
a- Almost half teenagers have their own mobiles phones.
...................................................................................................................................
b-Childwise is a company selling mobiles phones.
...................................................................................................................................

c- The increase in sales of mobile phones did not affect the other teenage-
oriented products.
...................................................................................................................................

4- Find out what the undelined words in the text refer to. ( 3 pts)
a- one ( paragraph 2) .......................................................
b- they ( paragraph 4 ).....................................................
c- we ( paragraph 3) ......................................................

5- Find put in the text words which nearly the same as the following. ( 2 pts )
a- to incrase quickly to a high level ( paragraph 1)....................................
b- a sudden fall in sales or profits ( paragraph 1 ) .....................................

II. LANGUAGE ( 39pts)

1- Put the bracketed verbs in the correct tense. ( 7 pts )

a- Would you mind ( tell ) ........................ me why you had such a pay rise ?
b- Would you like ( have).............................. a coffee?
c- Mobile phones’ prices ( fall ) .................................... in 2004.
d- At the moment we ( launch ) .................................... a new product.

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 e- Yesterday, Mr. Arnold Poom ( receive ) .............................. a radio set. He was
dissatisfied with the radio set he ( order ) ............................ from ABC Company.
f- Our sales ( rise ) ................................... by 10 % since October, 2004.

2- Put the bracketed words in the correct form. ( 7 pts )

a- he shTare price increased ( dramatic ) ....................................

b- ABC Company will start a big ( advertise ) ............................................ campaign.
c- Nokia’ s ( decision ) ......................................... are unwilling to restructure their
marketing strategy.
d- The ( consume) ..................................... of soft drinks has declined over the last 3
years.
e- Ferdinand Barbot is ABC’s ( product ) .......................... manager.
f- ABC agreed to increase pay if the ( employ ) ......................... raise their
productivity.
g- The main ( stock ) .................................. are in England and France.

3- Match a word from A with a word from B to get meaningful business expressions.
Write your answers in C. ( 10 pts)

A B C
1- purchasing a- sampling 1+…..
2- despatch b- brief 2+…..
3- cargo c- loyalty 3+…..
4- research d- curve 4+……
5- chief executive e- officer 5+…..
6- loss f- plane 6+…..
7- break even g- power 7+…..
8- quota h- point 8+….
9- demand i- rider 9+….
10- brand j-officer 10+…..

4- Supply the right phonetic transcription for the underlined sounds. (5pts)

a-hard sell /…../ g- America on line /…../

b- mail shot /…../ h- yesterday
c- image /…../ i- casual /…../
d- shelf /…../ j- these /…../

e- chief /…../ k- above-the-line /…../

5- Complete the following sentences with the appropriate prepositions. ( 5 pts)

a- Customers are always interested …… discounts.

b- The sales manager does not approve ……. cutting prices.
c- At Samco the choice of the working environment rests …… the workers.
d- The general manager said that the increase in wages depends …… the
workers’ productivity.
e- Mr. Christopher Cross works for ABC, he is responsible……. The company’s
public image.
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 6-Write the following numbers in letters ( 5pts)

The number The number in full letters The number feature

00 973 395 654 48 …………………………………… A telephone number
1963 In the............................................ An approximate date

2/3 ………………………………………. A fraction

3: 45 pm ………………………………. Time ( American English)

¥25 000 000 000 …………………………….. A large number

III. WRITING

Aida, as a public relations officer, was asked by her boss to write a promotional e-mail
( mail shot) on the occasion of launching the company’s new product to the public.
Write Aida’s promotional e-mail. The following hints may help you.
● company’s name
● kind of new product that the company offers
● date of launch / price
● features / functions
● customer benefits / product performance
● appearance ( size / weight / shape / colors )
● design and technical specifications
● availability / warranty
mind your e-mail layout