We have audited the consolidated financial statements prepared by Bertelsmann SE & Co. KGaA, comprising the income statement and the statement of comprehensive income, balance sheet, cash flow statement, statement of changes in equity, and the notes to the consolidated financial statements, together with the group management report for the business year from January 1 to December 31, 2013. The preparation of the consolidated financial statements and the group management report in accordance with the IFRSs, as adopted by the EU and the additional requirements of German commercial law pursuant to § (Article) 315a Abs. (paragraph) 1 HGB (“Handelsgesetzbuch”: German Commercial Code) is the responsibility of the Executive Board of the personally liable partner Bertelsmann Management SE. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the consolidated financial statements and on the group management report based on our audit.
We conducted our audit of the consolidated financial statements in accordance with § 317 HGB and German generally accepted standards for the audit of financial statements promulgated by the Institut der Wirtschaftsprüfer (Institute of Public Auditors in Germany) (IDW). Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit such that misstatements materially affecting the presentation of the net assets, financial position, and results of operations in the consolidated financial statements in accordance with the applicable financial reporting framework and in the group management report are detected with reasonable assurance. Knowledge of the business activities and the economic and legal environment of the Group and expectations as to possible misstatements are taken into account in the determination of audit procedures. The effectiveness of the accounting-related internal control system and the evidence supporting the disclosures in the consolidated financial statements and the group management report are examined primarily on a test basis within the framework of the audit. The audit includes assessing the annual financial statements of those entities included in consolidation, the determination of the entities to be included in consolidation, the accounting and consolidation principles used, and significant estimates made by the Executive Board of the personally liable partner Bertelsmann Management SE, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the consolidated financial statements and the group management report. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.
Our audit has not led to any reservations.
In our opinion based on the findings of our audit, the consolidated financial statements comply with the IFRSs as adopted by the EU and the additional requirements of German commercial law pursuant to § 315a Abs. 1 HGB and give a true and fair view of the net assets, financial position, and results of operations of the Group in accordance with these requirements. The group management report is consistent with the consolidated financial statements and as a whole provides a suitable view of the Group’s position and suitably presents the opportunities and risks of future development.
Bielefeld, March 12, 2014
PricewaterhouseCoopers
Aktiengesellschaft
Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft
Werner Ballhaus
Wirtschaftsprüfer
(German Public Auditor)
Christoph Gruss
Wirtschaftsprüfer (German Public Auditor)
