The Global Forum: Shaping the Future is an independent annual international event devoted to both business and policy issues that affect the successful evolution of the Information Society (IS). Therefore, the Global Forum facilitates businesses and governmental sectors of the IS to meet, work together and exchange knowledge with suppliers and service providers. Thanks to its approach and activities in the past 20 years, the Global Forum has become a high profile international think-tank event that tackles the issues of strategy, business, policies and civil society in the Information Society.

IS-practice as the Belgian representative of this year’s Global Forum: Shaping the Future is responsible for managing the logistical aspects of the event and ensuring its smooth implementation, organisation and deployment.

More information you can find at the conference website (http://www.items.fr/spip.php?rubrique110)

The gTLD Team aims at responding to the demand generated by both private and public sectors as a result of ICANN’s recent announcement on the new Internet extensions under the so-called ‘gTLD Programme’. In a nutshell, it allows companies and regions to apply and obtain their own and exclusive .brand domain.

According to a recent survey by Melbourne IT Digital Brand Services, around 92% of companies and organizations expressed their interest in applying for a new Top-Level Domain (TLD) and that preferred choice would be their core brand name. However, the rules and procedures for applying and obtaining a gTLD (Generic Top-Level Domain) is very long and extremely costly. On top of that, an application for a gTLD doesn’t guarantee that a company or an organization will actually receive it.

Therefore, by comprising top-level international experts with deep domain expertise, strong track-record in the introduction of new gTLDs and broad experience in the preparation of application, The gTLD Teamis able to assist companies in the whole process of applying for a gTLD and beyond and substantially increase their chances for generating a successful application. In detail, The gTLD Team can serve you with:

• Strategy and Business Planning
• Marketing and Communications
• Legal
• Technologic Architecture and Operation

IS-practice has been involved in the SSEDIC Project as the leader of 2 work packages: (1) Work Package 3 – Stakeholder Management and (2) Work Package 6 – Outcome Management. With its involvement in these work packages, IS-practice is able to utilize and provide the SSEDIC Project with its expertise in the domain of project management and knowledge in the Information Society.

The IS-practice together with other partners have the ambition of building a network of high-level European as well as international experts on eID. The network and knowledge aggregation is supported by multiple online and virtual workspaces and conferences.

To find out more about SSEDIC, visit www.eid-ssedic.eu and to find out more about what IS-practice can offer your institution or your project, contact Hugo Kerschot, Managing Director via email: hugo(dot)kerschot(at)is-practice(dot)eu or via phone: +32-496 574-360

The EPIC Project combines cloud computing with the ‘Future of the Internet’ technologies in order to provide European cities with tools and possibilities for the creation and sharing of efficient, effective and economic ‘smarter’ city services. In order to achieve the objectives, EPIC will deploy and utilize a number of trusted elements, including: EPIC test and development cloud computing, semantic and linguistic layer, future internet middleware, Smart Cities service catalogue and city applications, which all will serve in creating an ‘EPIC’ platform for Smart Cities.

The project with its 17 partners requires not only skilled and experienced project management office but also expertise in the domain of information society in order to effectively and efficiently implement its objectives. Therefore, IS-practice supports the EPIC’s coordinator and the project management office providing its expertise in the above-mentioned domains by performing a function of a project manager. To find out more about EPIC, the team behind it and its progress, visit www.epic-cities.eu .

To find out more about what IS-practice can offer your institution or your project, contact Hugo Kerschot, Managing Director via email: hugo(dot)kerschot(at)is-practice(dot)eu or via phone: +32-496 574-360

As the eParticipation Preparatory Action, an initiative of the European Parliament launched in 2006, reaches its conclusion, all projects co-funded by the EC under the eParticipation Preparatory Action are organising an eParticipation Conference, which will be held in Brussels on Tuesday, 15th of December 2009 at the European Parliament (Rue Wiertz 60, 1047 Brussels, Belgium, Room A.3E2).

The objective of the event is to demonstrate progress and results in the use of Information and Communication Technologies to enhance citizens’ participation in democratic decision-making. In parallel, there will be an exhibition of project results produced in the context of the Preparatory Action.

Register to the conference before 10 December 2009 at: http://eparticipation.eventbrite.com (registration password: momentum, also don’t forget to choose MOMENTUM from the drop-down list ‘Which project are you representing?’ during registration).

and
French ( http://www.datanews.be/fr)

Full information concerning the 18th edition of the Global Forum see www.globalforum.ro

After 3 years as a Managing Partner, Hugo Kerschot leaves on October the 1st Indigov and iVOX the Leuven based successful companies, in order to start-up his own company IS-practice, in Brussels.

IS-practice is a Program Management Office that delivers project management and high-level advice for major projects within the international and national public sector in the broader field of the Information Society. The goal is to bring together specialized parties for ambitious research and consultancy projects.

IS-practice is an initiative of Hugo Kerschot, whose years of experience in both the private and the public sector will be valuable for companies and organizations that wish to realize projects in a multidisciplinary setting within the framework of the European Information Society.

More than 20 years of experience in communication, IT, consultancy and project management plus an international network of expertise are at the disposal of potential clients to assist for developing innovative projects in the area of eGovernment, eParticipation, eHealth, eInclusion… and other initiatives that will put Europe on the map as the “Knowledge Society”.

IS-practice works together with both large consulting organizations such as Capgemini and Deloitte Consulting as with smaller, but highly specialized companies in the fields of research, technology and consultancy.

This way the IS-practice network covers a large scope of skills and guarantees geographical presence in several European countries.

“The added value is to bring together and to manage a mix of competences: the international scale of the big consultants, that will be enforced by the selected knowledge of domain experts in a specific region, or the high level competences of an academic research institute” quotes Hugo Kerschot.

Within these objectives, Indigov and iVOX will be privileged partners of IS-practice for many eGovernment and eParticipation projects and initiatives where extensive online research tools are needed.