Worlds In Motion Summit

2009 Call for Submissions Guidelines

Worlds In Motion Submissions is now closed!

* What is the submission deadline?
* What makes a good submission?
* What topics are we looking for?
* What do I need to provide in my submission?
* What are the session formats?
* What does the Worlds in Motion Summit expect from speakers?
* What is the selection process for speaking proposals?
* What are the benefits to speaking?
* How do I propose a vendor-specific session?
* When will I be notified of the status of my submission?

Q: What is the submission deadline?
A: Thursday, October 30, 2008

Q: What makes a good submission?
A: To have your proposal reviewed by the Advisory Board, complete the form and include a syllabus/extended abstract. Incomplete submissions that are commercial or marketing in nature will NOT be considered. Only concrete examples of best practices and lessons learned will be accepted.

Write your abstract so that it is easily understood. Get to your point as quickly as possible. Consider what the proposal is about. Why is it interesting? How is it important to game development? What will game developers get out of the session?

Concise language goes a long way. Use of conventional writing standards such as topic and supporting sentences also helps. Please write in third person present tense. For example, "This lecture focuses on 3D graphics." Not, "I want to talk about 3D graphics."

Q: What topics are we looking for?

The Worlds in Motion Summit at GDC is a definitive event tailored for the growing number of industry professionals and Fortune 500 companies developing interactive online spaces for both entertainment and commercial purposes. Discussion forums will delve into online worlds, social gaming and media and player created activity, providing insight for developers of all backgrounds into how the game industry is collectively building socialization into games and integrating personalization and player-generated content into gameplay—while widely accessible Web and networking tools are looking to the game industry for their way forward.

The Summit's producers will be seeking submissions that can showcase any one or more of the following topics:

* Choosing a technology for your online world – Flash vs. browser plugins vs. downloadable tech.
* Using licensed media (brands) in online worlds - why, how, and what works?
* Retention in online worlds - what makes people hang around and keep playing games? Is there an endgame?
* Social networking sites and games - what works on Facebook and elsewhere and why?
* Games and virtual Worlds for enterprise reasons - training, doing business, distance collaboration, etc.
* How do you acquire users for your online world successfully and practically?
* Concrete, useful information on launched products
* Social Networking: business focused advice from distributors and designers
* Successful design elements for virtual spaces
* Monetization success stories
* Survey of current business models
* Tools for creating virtual worlds

Q: What do I need to provide in my submission?
A: The submission form will ask you for these five key items:

1. Contact information
Please provide full contact information and include a short biography.

2. Concise presentation description
A description of your presentation as you would have it appear in the conference program in 100 words or less.

3. Intended audience and prerequisites
In 40 words or less, describe what section of our audience would best benefit from this session. Is prerequisite knowledge necessary for understanding the content of the session?

4. Session takeaway
In 40 words or less, describe what attendees will learn from your session.

5. Extended abstract
Provide a description of your presentation in greater detail, no proposal will be considered without it. You can either enter your extended abstract in the provided text box, or upload a text file (in .txt format). For submissions using the input box, please limit your expanded description to 500 words. For submissions using the file upload, limit your expanded description to one to two pages.

6. Software Screenshots or Videos REQUIRED
For talks that will feature discussions of design or other visual material you can submit screenshots or a 30 second or better video. Simply provide web links to these materials in your abstract submission or upload them during the submission process.

Session Formats

Q: What are the session formats?
A: There are two different conference session formats. They are:

Session	Duration	Description
Lecture	20-60 minutes	Lectures are issue-oriented, provide concrete examples, and contain both practical and theoretical information. Please specify the length of your lecture.
Case Study	20-60 minutes	Case Studies provide concrete examples and detailed analysis of factors that contributed to the success of a launched or finished product. Please specify the length of your case study.

Speaker Expectations

Q: What does the Worlds in Motion Summit expect from speakers?
A: When you agree to speak at WiMS at GDC, you are making a commitment to deliver a well prepared talk and to speak on the topic you have proposed.

We expect our speakers to submit a presentation for the online conference archives.

The submitter also agrees to be available to present his/her session during any day of the Worlds in Motion Summit March 23-24, 2009.

Q: What is the selection process for submissions?
A: We will email you a confirmation when we receive your proposal. If you do not receive this confirmation, contact Jennifer Steele. The Advisory Board will review submissions in the coming months and you will receive a notification in December as to the status of your proposal.

* Concept: This is the basic idea of your proposal. Is it interesting? Is it relevant? Will it be beneficial for game development professionals to hear? There's plenty of room for innovative ideas and also the tried and true.
* Depth: Has the idea in your proposal been well considered and fleshed out? To what extent will the audience gain insight? The more in-depth, the better.
* Organization: Are your ideas organized in a fashion conducive to present in front of an audience? Will the Advisory Board "follow" what you are trying to say? Organization helps.
* Credentials: How do your credentials qualify you to speak on the topic you've proposed?

A composite rating is then drawn from these four categories and then the decisions are made from them.

Q: What are the benefits to speaking?
A: The benefits to being a speaker include:

* Complimentary registration
- Includes breakfast and lunch
* Extensive exposure
- Your name and presentation featured in our conference program and web site
* The opportunity to influence your peers and community

Q: How do I propose a vendor-specific session?
A: We want our talks to be opportunities for professional game developers to share their ideas and experiences. Proposals that are commercial or marketing in nature will not be considered. In general, content specific to proprietary products and technologies is considered sponsored material. The Advisory Board and conference management reserve the right to exercise their editorial discretion. If you would like to publicize a product, please contact our sales team for information on exhibiting and other vendor opportunities, including sponsored sessions.

Q: When will I be notified of the status of my submission?
A: You will receive an automated email response once your submission is received. We will notify you of the status of your submission in December 2008. If you do not hear from us, please contact Jennifer Steele.