2011 Call for Submissions

The Game Developers Conference® Online is now soliciting lecture, roundtable and panel proposals from local and international speakers with deep industry expertise and a fresh and unique perspective on the state of the online games industry.

GDC Online focuses on development of connected games including social network titles, free-to-play web games, kid-friendly online titles, large-scale MMOs, and beyond. In its 9th year, this event is the international hub for industry professionals looking to take full advantage of the opportunities of connected gaming in one of America's most creative and independent cities — Austin, Texas.

Please take a few minutes to read the submission guidelines, track/summit descriptions, and what is expected from you if you are accepted as a GDC Online speaker. We are seeking submissions for the following conference tracks and summits for the 2011 event:

GDC Online Tracks
Business & Marketing
Customer Experience – New for 2011
Design
Production
Programming

GDC Online Summits
Game Narrative Summit
GDC Virtual Items Summit – New for 2011
Smartphone & Tablet Games Summit - New for 2011

Special Event:
Game Career Seminar

Speaker Expectations

Conference attendees expect excellence from our speakers. They will evaluate your class based on delivery, knowledge on the topic addressed, and the visuals presented. Please consider the following when proposing to speak:

• The proposed outline must match the talk you present at GDC Online.
• We suggest that you commit AT LEAST 20 HOURS to prepare for your session.
• You may be required to submit your presentation slides for review prior to acceptance.
• We strongly encourage that you rehearse the delivery of your session for it to be effective; preferably in front of your peers.
• Your presentation materials must be completed and submitted to us four weeks before the conference.
• Have adequate visual accompaniment to your speech.
• Allow GDC Online to record and distribute copies of your presentation.
• The submitter also agrees to be available to present his/her session during any day of the event October 10-13, 2011.

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Frequently Asked Questions

• What is the submission deadline?
• What makes a good submission?
• What do I need to provide in my submission?
• What are the session formats?
• How does the selection process work?
• Who will review my submission?
• What are the benefits of speaking?
• How do I propose a vendor-specific session?
• When will I be notified of the status of my submission?
• How should PR Reps submit for their clients?
• Who should I contact with additional questions?
• What topics are we looking for?

Q: What is the submission deadline?
A: Thursday, May 5, 2011 at 11:59pm PT

Q: What makes a good submission?

• Incomplete proposals or proposals that are commercial or marketing in nature will not be considered.
• Write your proposal so that it is easily understood. Concise, precise language and a discernable thesis will also help your chances in the review process.
• The advisors will read many submissions. 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?
• Please write in third person present tense. For example, "This lecture focuses on 3D graphics." Not, "I want to talk about 3D graphics."

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Q: What do I need to provide in my submission?
A: The submission form will require these key items. You may be asked to submit additional materials before a decision is made on your proposal.

1. Contact information
   Full contact information and a short biography are required.
2. Session Title
   A concise, descriptive title of no more than 8 words.
3. Presentation description
   A description of your presentation as you would have it appear in the conference program in 100 words or less.
4. Session takeaway
   In 40 words or less, describe what attendees will learn from your session.
5. Intended Audience
   In 50-words or less, describe your target audience and who will benefit from your presentation. Is prerequisite knowledge necessary for understanding the content of the session? If so, what are the prerequisites?
6. Extended abstract/outline
   In 500 words or less, provide a description of your presentation in greater detail.
7. Presentation Materials
   List the elements you will you use to illustrate your talk, i.e., code samples, demos, video clips, etc.
8. Screenshots or Videos
   The advisors would like to see demos, images, or any documentation that supports your submission.
9. Past Speaking Engagements
   If applicable, list the conferences, the title of the lecture, scores, and references. If you can provide references for these lectures, include a name and contact information.

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Q: What are the session formats?
A:  Submissions that appear to be advertisements for specific products or services will not be considered.  We are seeking sessions in the following categories:

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Q: How does the selection process work?
We will email you a confirmation when we receive your proposal. If you do not receive this confirmation, contact Jen Steele at jen.steele@ubm.com.

• Save the link to your proposal, you can revise your submission details until the deadline.
• The advisors will review all submissions in the coming months and score them on the criteria below.
• This composite rating along with past GDC session evaluation scores (when applicable) and advisor feedback will determine the status of every submission.
• Some submitters may be asked to provide a second round of information before a decision can be made. You will be notified if that is the case.
• You will receive notification in late July 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 room for innovative ideas and 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 presentation 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?

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Q: Who will review my proposal?
A: The GDC Online Advisors are distinguished industry professionals who volunteer their time to help develop the numerous sessions at GDC Online. They work to ensure that the quality of the content provided to attendees is high-level, relevant, and timely. The summits and main conference have unique advisory board members. Advisors to the specific program you select will review your proposal.

Click here to learn about the GDC Online Advisory Board.
Click here to learn about the Game Narrative Summit Advisors.

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

• Complimentary All Access Pass
• Extensive exposure: Your name and presentation featured in our conference program and web site
• The opportunity to influence your peers and community
• Invitation to the GDC Online Speaker Party

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 are 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.

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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 late July 2011. If you do not hear from us, please contact Jen Steele at jen.steele@ubm.com.

Q: How should PR Reps submit for their clients?
A: If you are a PR representative submitting on behalf of a client, please list your information first and add all speaker details on the second page. Without full speaker details, the submission will be considered incomplete and will not be reviewed.

Q: Who should I contact with additional questions?
A: Please contact Jen Steele at jen.steele@ubm.com with any additional questions.

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Q: What session topics are we looking for?
A: We are seeking submissions in five tracks for the main conference dedicated to online game development. We are also seeking submissions to three Summit programs in specific emerging areas of the game industry and the Game Career Seminar.

GDC Online Tracks

• Business & Marketing
  The Business and Marketing track will focus on best practices for successful online game promotion, monetization and merchandising, emerging distribution models, minimizing fraud, hacking, and gold farming. A global view of evolving publishing models and emerging platforms for online games will also be explored.
  
  Topics of interest include:
  - Internationalization / Localization
  - Leveraging analytics
  - Platforms: Are we facing platform overload? How do we select and bet on platforms? Is transmedia important or overhyped?
  
  
• Customer Experience Track - NEW
  New for 2011, the customer experience track will discuss successful strategies to attract, retain and effectively monetize your players. Industry shifts in the last few years have led to a wide array of new techniques and technologies that can help increase profitability and retention by increasing player satisfaction and engagement. Topics in this track will include metrics-driven post-launch development, design patterns for expansion content, building and managing communities, policing user-generated content and managing community channels, valuable tools, scale management approaches, anti-fraud tactics, security safeguarding and more.
  
  
• Design
  The surge in the popularity of connected gaming has changed the player profile and their game play preferences. This track will uncover best practices for creating sticky game designs with better reward systems, increasing monetization possibilities, addressing the needs for multi-generational game play, understanding your audience, integrating social graphs into game design, blurring of distinction between casual and deep games and more.
  
  
• Production
  Regardless of your platform or approach, the 2011 production track will provide you with tools and insights for managing your team in the demanding feedback oriented world of social and online game development. Sessions in this track will address strategies for developing games with rapid timelines for launch, content additions, scalability for startup teams, metrics driven design, creating sustainable games as a service while working with teams spread across the globe and keeping your teams engaged in the product long term.
  
  Whether you are someone thinking about making the leap to manage on an online game, or an experienced veteran with many titles launched, you'll take away specifics on the latest techniques to make your teams more efficient and make yourself more marketable in the rapidly evolving and growing online games market.
  
  
• Programming
  In online game development, the programmers are the unsung heroes that determine whether a game is a smashing success or a dismal failure. The programming track at GDC Online will provide a comprehensive review of the technologies and skills necessary to deliver a successful online gaming experience. In 2011, the programming track will include in-depth technical talks on scalability for social games, integration tools and strategies, development engine comparisons, graphics and rendering, microtransactions, online security, and more.

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GDC Online Summits

• Game Narrative Summit
  Click here for additional Game Narrative submission details.
  The Game Narrative Summit is the most prestigious global event for state-of-the-art storytelling in videogames. This summit covers interactive narrative in all its forms, from AAA blockbusters to casual gaming. The event features an all-star lineup of speakers from every aspect of the field, with sessions ranging from the advanced and theoretical to hands-on workshops for writers, designers and others seeking to hone their narrative and gamewriting skills. Now in its 6th consecutive year at the GDC Online in Austin, the Game Narrative Summit attracts attendees from all over the world with a passionate interest in how interactive storytelling is evolving as a driving force in the future of entertainment.
  
  
• GDC Virtual Items Summit - NEW
  As online games evolve, the need for a diverse offering of virtual items is becoming a key factor in maximizing ROI. The new GDC Virtual Items Summit is dedicated to offering a deep-dive exploration on the best design and monetization techniques for virtual goods in leading online games. What are players buying, and how can you design your game's economy to make your players happy and make you money? Leading developers will share real data on their successes stories, pitfalls, and best practices on this vital subject.
  
  
• Smartphone & Tablet Games Summit - NEW
  The new Smartphone & Table Games Summit at GDC Online brings together top game developers from around the world to share ideas, introduce best practices and discuss the future of gaming on established and emerging smartphone and tablet platforms, including the iPhone, iPad, Android OS phones, tablets and an abundance of similar new handheld devices.
  
  This two day program will highlight the nuts and bolts of great game design and reveal successful business strategies behind this new breed of popular smartphones and tablets, exploring emerging business models, what it takes to break through App Store clutter on any given platform, community and marketing tips to succeed in the market, and design tips and tricks for handheld-length play sessions and touchscreens.
  

Special Event

• Game Career Seminar
  The Game Career Seminar at GDC Online, is a one-day program designed for students and individuals interested in learning how to build a career in the video game industry. Attendees will experience interactive sessions, network with industry professionals, and hear HR representatives, top game developers and industry experts share their perspective and insights.

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