The 21st Century Communications World Forum 2006 is a focused, education-centric conference where service providers, enterprise end users, and industry analysts will gather to examine the opportunities and challenges raised by the emergence of next-generation ICT services and applications, as well as the IP-based network architectures and technologies that will enable them.

The World Forum will analyze the business and technology requirements of making convergent IP communications a reality in today's world on a carrier scale. It will examine not only the technical challenges, such as transitioning legacy infrastructure and interoperability issues, but also business and economic considerations involved in making the transition to IP.

Special emphasis will be placed on bringing together the three key constituencies shaping the future of information communication technology:

1. Network operators, service providers, and application developers
2. Chief technology officers, enterprise chief information officers, and end-user professionals
3. Corporate strategists, industry analysts, system integrators, and technology thought leaders

The overall goal of the 21st Century Communications World Forum 2006 is to envision the future of the digital networked economy and its implications for customers and end users alike. Its aim is to look beyond the realization of the 21st century network to how ICT service innovation can be driven forward in a sustained fashion.

As network convergence begins to genuinely enable the fusion of communications and IT services, there is a need for a forum in which to visualize this convergence, examine its progress, evaluate its potential and results, and plan for future progress. This is the unique role and purpose of the 21st Century Communications World Forum.