[Air-L] CFP: IFIP WG 9.5 International Working Conference on Virtuality and Society: Massive Virtual Communities

[catherine middleton]

Posted on behalf of the conference organizers, this conference may be 
of interest to members of the AoIR community:

IFIP WG 9.5 International Working Conference on Virtuality and 
Society: Massive Virtual Communities

Organizers: Niki Panteli, Martin Warnke

Date: July 1st and 2nd, 2008

Place: Leuphana University of Lueneburg, Germany

Scope & Theme
Prominently within the gaming community, but also within other 
communities on the internet, very huge virtual communities begin to 
evolve. In games, an average number of people that is comparable to a 
smaller city is online at the same time, thus forming a proper 
society. People share their pictures and videos, they meet and date 
in virtual communities. In Second Life, even big companies start 
virtual branches to enhance customer relations. It is likely that 
this phenomenon will become even more significant in the near future 
for gaming, for business and private purposes, maybe even for 
administrative and political functions.

It is already obvious that those massive virtual communities will 
have a substantial impact on society, economics, art, and -last but 
not least -technology. The workshop will bring together experts of 
that field to collect insights on a emerging major subject.

Program committee
Wolfgang Coy (Humboldt University Berlin, D)
  Velvet Landingham (Kent State University Geauga, USA)
  Niki Panteli (University of Bath, UK)
  Claus Pias (University of Vienna, A)
  Bryan K. Temple (Glasgow Caledonian University, UK)
  Martin Warnke (Leuphana University Lueneburg, D)


The papers are published online as preprints. A book publication is intended.

Important dates
Deadline for full papers (previously unpublished material, not 
exceeding 12 pages single spaced, pdf format: January 15th, 2008, to 
be sent by e-mail to warnke at uni-lueneburg.de

Notification of acceptance: March 15th, 2008

Conference fee: 100 Euro including an evening program at the first 
day of the conference and coffee breaks

Venue
Lueneburg is a smaller city in northern Germany, near Hamburg. It has 
a lively university and a medieval city centre. The famous Lueneburg 
heath is not far away. There will be a limited number of hotel rooms 
at special rates when booked early.

Details on http://www.leuphana.de/ifip_mass_virt_comm/accommodation

Sponsored by IFIP 9.5 Working Group "Virtuality and Society" 
http://www.ifip95wg.org/
Co-sponsored by the Gesellschaft fuer Informatik e. V., Section 
Computers and Society, Working Group "Computers as Media"

Immediately afterwards, at July 3rd to 5th 2008, the Working Group 
"Computers as Media" will have its annual Workshop "HyperKult 17" at 
the same location.