Positive Technology Journal

Presence Research in Europe: Economic and Social
Prospects


PREP 05

March 17 - 18, 2005
Hanover, Germany

Virtual and Augmented Reality applications diffuse into more and
more realms of business, research, and every day life. To make
people feel "present" in mediated environments is the goal of
many new technologies. But do we exploit the capacities of those
"Presence" technologies to full extent? What do the R & D
departments know that has not been adopted in applied
contexts? What do businesses and governments expect from
future VR and AR research? PREP 05 is the forum to discuss
these questions at a European level.

PREP 05 brings together leading researchers, industry
representatives and policy makers who are working on
development, applications and knowledge dissemination in the
domain of Presence. The concept of Presence is one of the
major research topics in the VR and AR communities, and the
European Commission is very actively supporting international
projects on Presence. PREP 05 is the 6th biannual gathering of
those projects, which are organized under the "Future Emerging
Technologies" Section of the Directorate General "Information
Society".

PREP 05 addresses the visions of how to use "Presence"
technologies for commercial success and the public good.
Reflecting the broad range of domains in which Presence is of
major relevance, PREP 05 will feature expert presentations on
VR-based business communication, tele-medicine, e-learning,
and entertainment. Moreover, invited speakers will introduce
European political visions on the economic and social prospects
of Presence research.

Experts from media technology corporations, e-government
projects, applied research centers, academic institutions, and
organizations who actually use VR / AR systems are invited to
join PREP 05, to share their ideas on the future of the field, and
to learn about the visions of leading experts in the field. PREP 05
will take place immediately after CeBIT, the world's leading IT
exhibition, and provides an excellent environment for networking
and exchange of ideas.

We cordially invite you to join us for PREP 2005 and contribute
your expertise and visions to the fields of VR, AR, and
"Presence" technologies.

For further information, please visit www.prep2005.info
<http://www.prep2005.info/> .


Conference Chair

Professor Peter Vorderer, Ph. D.
Annenberg School for Communication
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, USA