Hosted by the Korea Information Processing Society (KIPS), one of the nation's top academic organizations in the field, 2011 IT 21 Global Conference is going to be held for two days from June 9, at the International Convention Center of the Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies, to present future IT and convergence technologies. The conference is already heating up with the attention from the industries and academia, as a venue to exchange and update IT-related technological information.
For the last 16 years the IT 21 Global Conference has showed a new theme each year. In 2011, for 'Smart Technologies for Borderless Life in Future,' the conference is expected to draw many visitors with more diverse and useful programs than ever before.
"This year, we will introduce the latest IT and convergence technologies, especially those that are at the center of the current IT revolution, such as smartphones, social networks, social commerce, and U-cloud," says Chung Tai-myung, president of KIPS and professor of Sungkyunkwan University. He emphasizes that, with so many changes in mobile dynamics caused by the rise of smartphones, the Korean software industry now needs to take advantage of this trend in order to move forward. "This year's conference will focus on the plans, strategies, and service methods prepared for the nation's IT development as well as other interesting topics for visitors," he added.
"Many small and medium businesses will introduce various products for smartphones in particular," President Chung explained, "And we wanted to provide an opportunity for participants and visitors to meet those who are actually involved in the development projects. This event will also promote high quality software products developed by Korean small and medium businesses."
"With different subjects such as 'Apps on the Web,' 'Smart Software,' and 'Social Service,' the conference will also help people understand the latest topics of the industry more profoundly," Mr. Jeong said. The discussion panel comprises of industry specialists including Lee Byeong-seon, a director of ETRI, Jang Man-ho, CEO of Inno Pia Tech, President of Korea Software Enterprise Association Lee Yeong-sang, who will exchange in-depth views.
From 1996, KIPS has made numerous efforts to reduce the technology gap between the academia and industry through IT 21 Global Conference. President Chung says, "The objective of this conference is to improve the industry's competitiveness by introducing the technologies and information that the industry needs." In fact, there are only four professors in this year's program and most of the participants are actually involved in the industry, such as small and medium business owners, researchers, and even journalists.
"IT 21 Global Conference represents KIPS who has tried to connect the academia and industry. We hope that this conference will become the central point for communication among the businesses and academics," President Chung concluded, adding that "normally, people say they 'attend' a conference, but I hope they will 'participate' in our conference as 'participants' rather than just 'listeners'."
IT 21 Global Conference Preview
Sponsored by government organizations such as the Ministry of Knowledge Economy and the National IT Industry Promotion Agency, this year's conference will begin with a guest lecture by Hwang Jung-yeon, the vice president of Korea Association for ICT Promotion, followed by the panel discussion for the topic 'strategies for the co-development of SW-SoC.'
Influential industry specialists participating in the event include Choi Jung-gyeong, Minister of Knoledge Economy; Oh Hae-seok, Special Advisor to the President of IT; Byun Jae-ill, Chairman of the Korean Education and Scientific Technology Committee of the National Assembly; Suh Jong-ryeol, CEO of Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA).
In addition, many global experts are invited as well, such as Dr. Mikko Sallinen, Vice President of VTT from Finland and Joel Cherkis, CTO, Public Sector of Microsoft Co. from the USA.
The conference will consist of six tracks and 24 sessions in total, introducing the latest technologies and trends - namely, Apps on the Web, Smart Software, Social Service, Security & Safety, Cloud & Green 2.0, and ICT Convergence - within Korea and elsewhere. Furthermore, nine software development companies were selected for the business session, a special event prepared for this year, where they will introduce their software products.
Showcasing future IT and convergence technologies, trends and suggesting a direction for the future development, this year's conference will contribute to the IT industry's growth by providing an opportunity for the businesses, researchers, and academics, to share new information with one another.
