mf3 sstatement (fwd)

[diana@uropax.contrib.de (Diana McCarty)]

	         	MetaForum III.
		      Under Construction
		Budapest    Content    Conference
			October 11-13, 1996
			 http://www.mrf.hu


The Media Research Foundation, in a cooperation with the Intermedia
Department of the Hungarian Fine Arts Academy, and the Autumn Festival,  is
pleased to announce  the upcoming MetaForum III Conference.  Following the
tradition of the MetaForum Conference Series, the three-day event will be
dedicated to the discussion of a crucial element of new media, content. The
title, Under Construction, refers to the all too common Internet user
experience of surfing the World Wide Web and clicking on what looks like a
very exciting Web site only to find a single page stating "Under
Construction".  These two simple words have come to represent the massive
invisible  construction taking place within the multimedia realm of the
Internet. The main building block of this construction is content which
fuels Internet growth, both nationally and abroad.   Content that provides
quality information can lead to a better understanding of contemporary
society and expand the possible roles of new media.

Progress in multimedia and new communication technology has been focused
largely on developing the technical aspects of these media. With the wide
scale popularization of the Internet, the focus and hype have quickly
shifted from hardware to content.  The growing interest surrounding
content, and its potential to shape the growth of new media, define content
as information which has been put in place with the specific goal of
attracting an audience. This focus on content, combined with the lowered
costs of Internet access suddenly allows mass culture to become content
providers. The increasing number of Internet users and access providers
producing content has resulted in an unexpected lack of quality
information, and with that, a need to question the role of content in new
communication technology.

While issues of access and hardware have yet to be resolved in Hungary,
content is no less important here than it is in the west. In bringing
together national and international content providers, MetaForum III will
encourage an in-depth discussion of content in an effort to raise and
answer these questions; how is quality content defined and created; how can
the different issues of content value be resolved; how does commerce evolve
on the net; can all users become potential content providers;  how does
content attract new users?

Like the first and second conferences, MetaForum III will take place at the
Hungarian Fine Arts Academy, 69-71 Andrassy ut, October 11-13th,
as a part of Budapest's Annual Autumn Festival of the Arts.

Invited lecturers
Inke Arns, Germany;  Heath Bunting, UK; Erik Davis, USA;
David Garcia, NL; Heiko Idensen, Germany; Attila Kotanyi,Hun;
Tetsuo Kogawa,Jp; Arther and Marie Louise Kroker, Can; Eveline Lubbers, NL;
Oliver Marchardt, Aus; Benjamin Perasovic, Croatia; Miklos Peternak, Hun; 
Pit Schultz,Germany; Alexei Shulgin, Russia; Mark Stahlman, USA; 
Katalin Timar, Hun; Toshia Ueno, Jp;

In addition to lectures, the conference will host several round table
discussions and a screening of selected historical, technology training
films.

Goals
1) To stimulate national and international interest in existing content
   generating projects within Hungary.
2) To increase public awareness of the importance of quality information in
   an information society.
3) To illustrate how the public can become content generators.
4) To provide Hungarians working in the field of content with the
   opportunity to meet and exchange ideas with national and international
   experts.

Audience

Given the wide spread media attention the Internet has received in Hungary,
we anticipate a large and diverse audience.  Our target group is primarily
students interested in technology and the Arts (future content providers),
and professionals already providing Internet access and Content.

Sponsors

At present, MetaForum III is made possible by the generous support of
Isys Hungary, the Dutch Embassy, the Budapest Technical University,  and
the Autumn Festival.

Press

In addition to the general Autumn Festival press conference, the Media
Research Foundation will host a MetaForum III press conference in the first
week of October. We anticipate coverage from the broadcast and print media
during the conference as well as several cooperative efforts prior to the
conference. These efforts will make texts and interviews with invited
lecturers available to the public via traditional media.

MetaForum III Organizing Committee
Janos Sugar, Geert Lovink, Diana McCarty, and Noel Villers

Project Coordinator:            Diana McCarty (diana@dial.isys.hu)
Webmaster:                      Noel Villers (noel@dial.isys.hu)
Finance:                        Gabriella Szucs
Assistants: Anna Balint, Thomas Bass, Geza Foldesi, and Gabriella Barta

The MetaForum Conference Series

MetaForum III will be the final conference of the series which has played a
key role in generating interest in Hungary's growing field of new media
production. The first conference, MetaForum 94' was dedicated to multimedia
and took place in 1994, when local Internet access was limited primarily to
universities. MetaForum 94' introduced the first Hungarian public discourse
of the World Wide Web, which was then a new multimedia protocol of the
Internet. This led to MetaForum II, which called attention to the expansive
commercial and cultural implications of the Internet and compared the
issues of access in East Europe to those in the west. Presently in Hungary
there are 15 commercial Internet providers as well as limited public
access. MetaForum III will focus on content in an effort to encourage
interest in developing a high level of quality information.
A MetaForum CD-Rom which will include texts and interviews from the three
conferences will be available at the end of 1996. In addition to this, the
Media Research Foundation plans to publish a book containing a selection of
the texts presented during the MetaForum conference series.

MetaForum II:  No Borders

MetaForum II: No Borders was dedicated to networking and a discussion of
its future potential. Several key themes of the conference were: how
networking defines and transcends borders: geographic, political, and
commercial, and who controls and enforces these borders, and how society at
large is affected by these borders.  Speakers included; John Parry Barlow;
Konrad Becker; Heath Bunting; Matthew Fuller; Debra Guzman, Kristof Nyiri,
Gabor Kelemen; Kristof Nyiri; Pit Schultz; Marleen Stikker; and Peter
Lamborn Wilson,  as well as many others.  In addition to the lectures and
panel discussions, public access to Internet was available for the
audience.  MetaForum II was sponsored by  Westel 900, Isys Hungary, Es-Com,
Delta Airlines, Copy General, HVG,  the Dutch Embassy,  the SCCA-Hungary,
the Austrian Ministry of Culture, Pro Helvetia, and the Hungarian Ministry
of Culture. MetaForum II   took place in October of 1995, as a part of
Budapest's annual Autumn Festival of the Arts.

MetaForum 94'

The first MetaForum conference in 1994  was designed to stimulate growth
and interest in new interactive technology such as CD-ROM, Hypertext,
Internet and World Wide Web, as well as provide a platform for discussion.
The invited guests included; Heath Bunting; Mieke Gerritzen;  Gyorgy
Kabdebo;  George Legrady; Andras Nyiro; Salvatore Vanasco, and many others.
In addition to the lectures, workshops, and discussions conducted by the
guests, there was an on-site CD-ROM Library.  MetaForum 94'  was sponsored
by Apple, the  SCCA-Hungary, the British Council, The Goethe Institute, and
the Hungarian Ministry of Culture. MetaForum 94'  took place in October of
1994 as a part of Budapest's annual Autumn Festival of the Arts.


Media Research Foundation

The Media Research Foundation  was officially founded in 1990, by a group
of artists, historians, and theoreticians dedicated to art, culture,  and
new technology.  Since its founding, the MRF  has organized and
participated in various art events and conferences; The Media Are With
us-The role of television in the Romanian revolution, 1990; Linz Ars
Electronica Introduces Itself, 1993; Critical Art Ensemble:   Video
presentation and lecture, 1995.  The MRF has also actively supported
artists working with new media, and the Intermedia Department of the
Academy of Fine Arts, Budapest.  Cultural foundations that have provided
sponsorship of these events have included The British Council, The Dutch
Embassy, The French Institute, The Austrian Cultural Institute, The Goethe
Institute and the SCCA-Hungary.

Intermedia Department

The Intermedia Department, which has been active since the political
changes in 1990, gained official status as a department in 1992 at the 150
year old Academy of Fine Arts in Budapest.  Since its realization, the
department has encouraged students to explore new media and has provided a
number of  international lecturers and visiting professors.

Autumn Festival

Budapest's annual Autumn Festival of the Arts  presents national and
international contemporary Arts including; music, theater, dance,  fine
arts, film, literature, intermedial works, as well as a significant
selection of independent, alternative, and experimental works. The two week
festival begins in late September and ends in October.


Contact
For further information concerning Metaforum III,  please contact
Janos Sugar (sj@dial.isys.hu),  Geert Lovink (geert@xs4all.nl),
Diana McCarty (diana@dial.isys.hu) or Noel Villers (noel@dial.isys.hu)
fax: (361) 266 61 31 phone: (361) 266 60 90