The purpose of the conference is to gather a wide range of IST experts, including innovative thinkers, policy decision makers, research managers in industry and socio-economists to debate current and coming developments that will set the trend for future IST policy and research in Europe.
A number of IST themes shall be discussed in parallel sessions. Results from FISTERA will be presented and discussed together with invited contributions of external experts. The sessions aim to elaborate on the following questions:
IST Visions and Economic Prospects (Session 1 & 2)
How far has Europe progressed towards the Information Society? Is it really moving towards a Knowledge Society? What are the visions for Europe's future? How will IST contribute?
Technology Futures (Session 3 & 4)
What are the general ICT trends? What emerging technologies can be identified? Where will the next paradigm shifts occur? What technologies will be needed to support industrial change? What type of applications will European citizens demand?
IST Policies and Strategies around the World (Session 5 & 6)
What are the successful national IST strategies around the world? How can Europe learn from these? How can Europe improve its competitive edge whilst maintaining cultural diversity and national specificities? What are the prospects of the European Knowledge-based Society in a globalised society?
