The Seoul Digital Forum 2005, which was held at the Shilla Hotel in Seoul, Korea from May 18-20, finished as a huge success and showed the world that Korea leads the way in digital technology in the Ubiquitous Era. The event, which was sponsored by Seoul Broadcasting Corporation (SBS), was established to bring together many of the global information technology (IT) industry leaders to focus and dedicate their efforts to chart a new digital world. While last year's event focused primarily on the issue of "convergence" and ways to strengthen the competitiveness of digital technology, this year's forum highlighted future technological advancements in ubiquitous computing. The focus now is in the convergence and integration of all systems and activities that would allow for higher quality services to be provided at any place at any time. This year's event also served as a platform for global industry and government leaders to discuss and analyze the future of digital technology and Korea's digital experience. Korea was often billed as an outstanding arena for the development and advancement of cutting-edge technology and a window to the future of digital society. Korea has shown such advancements as a leader in the development of wireless broadband (WiBro), digital multimedia broadcasting (DMB) and in the Korean government's "vision for the next decade," a strategy called IT839. This strategy, developed by the Ministry of Information and Communication (MIC), is an aggressive plan to develop the infrastructure and integrate it with the telecommunication services, equipment, software and contents to create vertical and horizontal value chains in the IT industry. To achieve this strategy, massive investment is planned to create synergistic effects within the IT industry through the convergence and integration of voice/data, communication/broadcasting and wired/ wireless. This will allow for the introduction of a wide range of new products including Telematics (IT motor), Home Networks (IT construction and home electronics), and electronic finance (IT finance), which cut across the boundary of all industries. Another major area of interest at the forum among the participants was the "Future of 3G and Mobile Telephony" and its relationship to DMB. SK Telecom has a planned satellite DMB service that will allow customers to view multimedia broadcasting programs through their mobile phones. This technology is considered the wave of the future as it uses telecommunications and broadcasting convergence that provides customers with new high-quality ease-of-use multimedia products. While Korea has made many strides and advancements in digital technology, many of the IT industry foreign experts expressed concerns over whether these technologies will be accepted and implemented on a global basis. One of the main concerns was that Korea has a small population base and lacks in certain areas such as infrastructure development and international marketing activities. The overall consensus was that Korea may have a difficult time exporting and marketing these new technologies in larger markets such as the United States and Europe that already have welldeveloped IT infrastructures and technologies. The advice given at the forum was to continue building strong international alliances and implement aggressive marketing campaigns to license their technologies and gain global acceptance. The Seoul Digital Forum 2005 included many important IT industry players such as Chin Dae-je, Minister of Information and Communication, Korea; Irwin M. Jacobs, Chairman and CEO of Qualcomm Incorporated; George Colony, Chairman and CEO of Forrester Research, Yoo Hyun-oh, President and CEO of SK Communications; Lee Yong-kyung, President and CEO of KT Corporation; John Giere, Chief Marketing Officer of Lucent Technologies; and Michael Powell, former Chairman of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The event also included two very important dignitaries: Republic of Korea President Roh Moo-hyun and former Vice President Al Gore of the U.S. Together with Ahn Kug-jung, President and CEO of SBS, they officially kicked off the opening ceremony, which was titled "Quo Vadis, Ubiquitous: Charting a New Digital Society." The primary focus of the opening ceremony provided a general overview regarding the future of digital society. That technological innovation has led to changes in traditional lifestyles and because of rapid development of new digital technologies, people will experience what is dubbed "the Ubiquitous Revolution." Another interesting session that the participants enjoyed was "The Paradox of Ubiquitous Computing: Addressing Opportunities and Hidden Threats." The session stressed that the continuously changing computing environment will provide business, governments and individuals with new services and opportunities. These benefits may come with a cost, however, as there will be major challenges regarding privacy and security of personal information. The main question that arose was as more information is gathered and evaluated, what steps will be taken to protect the privacy of consumers and the security of personal information. On Day 3 of the forum, Michael Powell, former FCC Chairman, gave a special address titled "Changing Regulation for the Future: Technology and Public Policy." His speech underscored the importance of government within the IT industry and how both business and regulators must work together to further technological advancements and not hinder growth. As he noted in his speech, "The government has a major role to play in the digital revolution and they need to be a partner of change and not an impediment to it." He indicated that because of ongoing rapid development in the IT industry, the government has failed to catch up. The most important factor is for the government to create telecommunications policy that meets the demands of the IT industry, but while always protecting the consumer. In the end, he stated that revamping outdated policy is the key challenge for regulators in the Information Age. The Seoul Digital Forum 2005 provided a platform for global IT industry leaders to come together to debate issues, form relationships and gain pertinent knowledge to drive forward the new digital world of the future. With Korea leading the way in digital IT, one can only imagine the new, innovative and exciting technologies that will be discussed at next year's forum.