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Call for Papers
VIRTUAL COMMUNITIES IN TRAVEL AND TOURISM
Special Issue, Journal on Information Technology & Tourism (IT&T)
http://itt.ec3.at/

Submission Deadline: 30 September 2007

Guest Editors: Prof. Dieter Merkl ([log in to unmask]),
Institute of Software Technology and Interactive Systems, Vienna
University of Technology; and Prof. Arno Scharl ([log in to unmask]),
Know-Center and Knowledge Management Institute, Graz University of
Technology.

We are currently witnessing a fundamental transition in the role of
Internet users from mere consumers of information towards active providers
of electronic content. The set of interactive Web technologies often
referred to as the "Web 2.0" accelerates this transition by bringing
together users of similar interests, browsing behavior, or geographic
location.

User-generated content and social networks are of particular interest to
the travel and tourism community. User-generated content engages tourists
and enriches their online experience. For the analyst, it yields important
information to support decision making, and helps improve the accuracy of
targeted marketing campaigns. By effectively using social software,
tourism organizations can attract a critical mass of participants to their
virtual communities and ensure rich, self-sustaining community
interaction.

Theoretical and applied papers are invited from academics and
practitioners that investigate the role of virtual communities and
user-generated content in the travel and tourism industry. Topics of
interest include (but are not limited to):

* Classifications of user-generated content and low-overhead forms of
individual publishing (tourism blogs, Wiki articles on destinations, etc.)
* Credibility, relevance and trustworthiness of user-generated content
* Impact of user-generated content on the decision making process
* Recommendation systems based on user-generated content
* User-generated travel and tourism taxonomies (folksonomies)
* Travellers' willingness to share information
* Virtual communities based on common interests
* Destination marketing through virtual communities
* Analyzing virtual communities by means of semantic technologies
* Community-building through geospatial technology
* Mobile and location-based services for travel and tourism communities
* Three-dimensional Internet applications in travel and tourism
* Related legal and privacy issues

Time Schedule

Submission: 30 September 2007
Notification: 30 November 2007
Publication: Summer 2008

Evaluation

IT&T is a refereed journal. All manuscripts are evaluated by at least
three referees from different disciplines. The evaluation of the paper is
a double-blind and anonymous process; neither referees nor the authors are
aware of each other's identities.

Electronic Manuscript Submissions

Please follow the formatting and style guidelines at
http://itt.ec3.at/subm.htm, e-mail the cover page with author details to
both guest editors ([log in to unmask], [log in to unmask]),
and upload the ANONYMOUS manuscript in either MS Word or PDF format at:

http://www.know-center.at/chairhelper/jitt/submission

Best regards,
Dieter Merkl and Arno Scharl
(Guest Editors of Special Issue)

---------------------------------------------
Prof. Arno Scharl
Know-Center & Graz University of Technology
Inffeldgasse 21a, A-8010 Graz, Austria
(e) [log in to unmask]
(w) http://www.know-center.at/
(w) http://kmi.tugraz.at/
(w) http://www.geospatialweb.com/
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