Subject: Open Cultures Conference (info commons, etc.). Vienna, June 5-6, 2003. http://opencultures.t0.or.at/oc/conference Today's infosphere allows a quick and easy exchange of digitized information. The tools of creation and the means of distribution are becoming more affordable by the month, thus continuously expanding the range of creators and users. Yet, not everyone is happy with this. A coalition of large media conglomerates calls for Draconian measures to stop this free flow of information. New restrictive technologies and new oppressive laws are being developed right now, in an attempt to create scarcity out of the digital abundance. The current security fears are manipulated to equate openness with danger in a cynical effort to protect the assets of large industries against the forces of innovation. Against this backdrop, a counter movement is taking shape that is guided by the idea of 'the commons': resources accessible to all. Rather than expanding the means of control to catch up with the ease of data processing, this movement takes the free availability of information as its starting point. It recognizes that a free society needs free flows of information, that the attempt to control information quickly leads to controlling people. Creativity - commercial, scientific and artistic - requires the ability to easily and freely built upon what others have created. The Open Cultures conference will survey the new territory of the commons by bringing together leading thinkers and practitioners from different corners of this vast field. We will talk about access to scientific information, free software, patents and other forms of knowledge monopolies, wireless community networks, open distribution channels, about the economics and the aesthetics of the commons. We want to strengthen the understanding of the shared visions and goals, learn from the different experiences and approaches and send a signal that, yes, openness is possible, indeed, it's the only direction to move forward. The conference will focus on the following topics: Information Commons Open Access Journals and other institutional initiatives to build a infrastructure for free access to information Media of the Commons Grassroots publishing, peer-to-peer, free distribution, freenet Wireless Community Networks Rather than buying bandwidth from global telecom giants rebuilding information flows locally, from the ground up. One wireless cell at a time. Politics Of the Commons International treaties and international governing bodies. What are the possibilities of using them to advance openness and access? Culture of the Common What culture and art is emerging in the commons? The conference will include workshops of streaming technologies and on wireless networks as well as exhibition of media installations who explore the ideas of openness and free access.