ISMAR - Call for Bids to Host IEEE ISMAR 2026, 2027 and 2028

Important Dates:

• October 1, 2024 - Bids due

• At or around ISMAR 2024 - Decision of ISMAR Steering Committee on acceptance

• Applicants who wish to receive feedback on a draft proposal should submit this no later than August 15, 2024

• They will then receive feedback on how to improve their proposal by September 1, 2024

Bid Content:

The following questions should be answered for the official bid (both draft and final proposals). Please stick to the proposed structure as best as possible.

1. Proposed Chairs/Organizational Team

1.1. Who are the proposed General Conference Chairs (provide names and 200-word bios)?

1.2. What experience have the proposed General Conference Chairs with organizing previous ISMAR conferences, or other academic conferences (in particular IEEE sponsored conferences)?

1.3. What other local people will help them with the conference organization? Can you already designate specific people for specific tasks?

Note: The organizers (General Chairs) are responsible and may appoint Chairs for the various tasks at their discretion. They may also propose Program Chairs, but these ultimately will be appointed by the ISMAR Steering Committee.

1. Proposed Chairs/Organizational Team

1.1. Who are the proposed General Conference Chairs (provide 2 names and 200-word bios for each)?

1.2. What experience have the proposed General Conference Chairs with organizing previous ISMAR conferences, or other academic conferences (in particular IEEE sponsored conferences)?

1.3. What other people will help them with the conference organization? Can you already designate specific people for specific tasks? Which local people will be involved?

Note: Please note that the General Chairs will typically be complemented by General Chairs from the previous and following conferences. The organizers (General Chairs) are responsible and may appoint chairs for the various tasks other than the technical program at their discretion. They may also nominate candidates for Program Chairs, but these are always ultimately appointed by the ISMAR Steering Committee.

2. Proposed Conference Location/Facilities

2.1. Which city or metropolitan area is proposed for the conference location?

2.2. Describe key local attractions in the conference city / area.

2.3. Describe briefly the conference site (e.g., convention center, university rooms, etc.).

2.4. Which conference rooms are available? (at least four large rooms to allow for parallel sessions, further rooms/space for posters, demos, exhibition, workshops, tutorials, meetings, etc.).

2.5. What audio-visual and WiFi facilities are available?

2.6. What catering facilities are part of the conference facility? What is the availability of local restaurants?

Note: ISMAR conference fees typically include lunch, coffee breaks, a social conference dinner, and a welcome reception.

3. Conference Dates and Schedule

3.1. What dates do you plan for the ISMAR conference?

3.2. How many days will the conference run?

3.3. What is the rough plan for the conference schedule for each of the days (sessions, workshops, tutorials, events, etc.)?

Note: Traditionally, ISMAR has been structured according to a scheme of 3 days for the main conference + 2 days for workshops and tutorials (either before or after the main conference). Instead of further increasing the number of parallel tracks, a 4 + 2 scheme could also be considered. In selecting the conference dates, you should take into account conflicts with related conferences (e.g., conference data for ACM UIST, ACM VRST, ACM SUI and submission deadlines for IEEE VR), national and religious holidays, and university teaching periods.

4. Conference Travel

4.1. Which is the nearest (international) airport?

4.2. Please give price quotes for the cheapest round-trip airfare to the conference location from Frankfurt, New York, San Francisco, Beijing, Tokyo and Sydney.

4.3. What transportation options are available from the airport to the hotels/conference venue?

4.4. Which visa regulations apply for participants (in particular from Europe, North America, Asia, ANZ, etc.)?

5. Accommodation

5.1. What is the approximate room rate for local hotels? Is breakfast included? Provide a range of hotels, including budget student accommodation.

5.2. Where are hotels located relative to the conference site? How long does it typically take to reach the conference site?

5.3. Have you already made any arrangements for special room rates / secured a certain number of rooms?

5.4. What kind of transport is available between those hotels and the conference site?

6. Sponsorship and Local Support

6.1. What are your plans for government and industry sponsorship? To which associations / companies / institutions do you plan to apply for financial assistance? What do you realistically expect to receive from them?

6.2. What support can your university or industry department give for the organization of the conference (e.g., free secretarial assistance, facilities for on-line payment, etc.)

6.3. What support can your department give during the conference (e.g., free secretarial assistance, computers at the conference site, etc.)?

7. Safety

7.1. Are there any safety issues with respect to the country, city, region, conference site, etc. that might actually prevent people from participating?

7.2. Are there any vaccinations required / recommended for visitors from other countries?

8. Support for Students

8.1. What measures will you take to make the conference more affordable for students?

8.2. What budget accommodation is available for students?

8.3. What opportunities will students have to participate in the conference? (e.g., as student volunteer)

9. Publicity

9.1. What are your plans for publicizing the conference?

9.2. How do you plan to attract additional conference attendees?

10. Hybrid Conference / Virtuality

10.1. What is your approach to allow for a shared experience in a hybrid conference?

10.2. How will you cope with a situation where the conference has to be purely virtual?

Note: In contrast to some other conferences, we generally consider the option of remote participation to be useful. However, this does not necessarily mean that this option has to offer participants a similar experience. We do not expect a situation where the conference has to be purely virtual. However, plans for a backup option should always be included in the proposals, as pandemics or international conflicts and crises cannot be foreseen or planned for.h

11. Other

11.1. What new activities would you like to include compared to previous ISMAR conferences?

11.2. Any other aspects that you may find relevant for the evaluation of your proposal.

12. Proposed Budget (IMPORTANT!) Here you can find the number of participants and key figures of the ISMAR conferences of the previous 3 years. We have observed an increase in submissions of around 20% per year. As can be seen in the table, this increase is not necessarily directly reflected in the respective number of participants due to the accessibility of the respective venue, but should give you an impression of how the number of participants is generally developing.

Title

Year	Location	Participants total	On site	Online	Thereof students	Talks	Parallel sessions
2022	Singapore	679	461	218	305	165	2
2023	Sydney	598	448	150	288	177	3
2024	Seattle	tbd	tbd	tbd	tbd	180*	4

Please also refer to the statistics about ISMAR in the past. https://ismar.net/statistics/

Costs that will have to be covered as part of the budget include

• committee expenses

  • clerical costs

  • program committee meetings

  • dinner/lunch for ISMAR steering committee meeting

• rental costs

  • conference space (talks, demos, posters, etc.)

  • meeting rooms

  • AV equipment

• coffee breaks and possibly lunch

  • registration desk/technical helpers (e.g., student volunteers)

  • invited speakers (travel and accommodation)

  • tutorials, workshops

  • producing the proceedings (IEEExplore)

  • conference poster and advertising

  • social dinner

  • welcome reception

Make sure to add 18% to your total budget for IEEE contribution and contingency fund

Please make sure to provide an overview of the anticipated numbers of attendees and related conference fees as used for the budget calculation. Please note that the proposed registration fees must not depend on the number of participants! * early / late registration

• IEEE member / no member

• student / regular attendee

• Online / physical participation

The ISMAR steering committee can provide a sample budget from previous years if needed, as an example.

We are looking forward to your applications.

On behalf of the ISMAR Steering Committee,

Hideo Saito, Conference Location Officer