From television and radio to newspapers and magazines, from mobile phones and PDAs to books and journals -- the possibilities for new forms of mass communication are growing exponentially. Yet the initial forms that these possibilities have taken have often overwhelmed or simply confused the people for whom they are intended. Often they have been largely ignored (as was the case with WAP) and this is likely to be the case for many 3G-based services and portable devices. We need to find ways to link together different kinds of information delivered to different platforms, and particularly the Web. We need to find ways for people to be able to rate and validate information they receive. And we need to find new ways for them to manage information in ways that can enhance knowledge. While these possibilities have been created by information technology, their realisation will be facilitated by HCI. This will demand new thinking from publishers, and also new levels of cooperation with a view to pioneering the development and acceptance of new interfaces, and new standards.

Following the conference theme of New Horizons, we will focus on issues including:

• Linking together different kinds of information on different platforms
• Interfaces aimed at new audiences for interactive communication
• Abstracting design concepts so they can be applied to multiple platforms
• Ways to represent the recommendation, rating and validation of information
• Models for managing large bodies of information and enhance knowledge
• Connecting the virtual and the physical including the Web and print, soft and hard interfaces
• Identifying and developing interface patterns and possible areas for creating standards

For further discussion on the Development Consortium themes please go to: http://www.spy.co.uk/Events/Panels/CHI2003/DevCon/

The Consortium will be conducted in a workshop format. The Consortium will take place over the two days preceding the main conference: Sunday 6 and Monday 7 April.

Participants in the Consortium may receive partial reimbursement of travel expenses and hotel accommodation.

The CHI 2003 Development Consortium organizing committee will select participants based on the relevance of their submissions to the theme and their anticipated contribution to the Consortium goals.

CHI 2003 Mentors are not available for the Development Consortium. If you have any questions or require guidance on your submission, please contact the Development Consortium Chair at the earliest opportunity.

A Development Consortium submission has two parts: an extended abstract and a proposal. Prepare your submission as a single PDF file and send it by email to the Send To address shown. If you cannot prepare an electronic PDF file, please contact us at the Send To email address or phone number.

Extended abstract

A two-page position paper describing research and development concluded or in progress, focusing on HCI work in any area of one-to-many or one-to-one communication. Papers should be in the Conference Proceedings format, suitable for publication in the CHI 2003 Extended Abstracts.

Proposal

The proposal should provide additional information on your background and relevant experience with HCI and mass communication. This should include information about your specific HCI-related activities, as well as any additional information that demonstrates your potential contribution to the Consortium's objectives.

Confidentiality of Submissions

Confidentiality of submissions is maintained during the review process. All submitted materials will be kept confidential until the date of the conference.

Submission Requirements

Submissions from individuals working in any discipline or profession are welcome, but expertise and experience in mass communication are essential.

• Your submission must be in English.
• Fax submissions will not be accepted.
• Submissions arriving after the deadline will not be considered.
• Your submission should contain no proprietary or confidential material and should cite no proprietary or confidential publications.
• Responsibility for permissions to use video, audio, or pictures of identifiable people rests with you, not CHI 2003.
• You will receive email notification upon receipt of your submission.

To apply for the Development Consortium, email your attached files in PDF format to chi2003-dev@acm.org. The deadline for receipt of a complete submission is 3 January 2003, 5PM (17:00) at your local time.

All Consortium applicants will be notified of acceptance or rejection in late January 2003. Upon acceptance you must complete and return a copyright release form in order to be published. This form will be sent with the acceptance notice. You will also receive instructions on how to submit publication-ready copy. Only minor corrections to the original submission will be possible at this stage. Therefore, ensure that your original extended abstract is clearly written, carefully proofread, and correctly formatted.

The format for the Development Consortium is still under development! Please come back to this page in the near future to check for an update. If you have any specific questions now, you can email chi2003-dev@acm.org.