Following recent conferences in Hamburg and Vienna, some of you will undoubtedly have asked themselves “... where is Pforzheim?” But you have made your way here and we are delighted to see you. Pforzheim, at the periphery of the Black Forest is not only known as the home of German goldsmith artisans (approximately 80% of jewellery made in Germany is exported from here). It is also home to a university, where market research has a prominent place, and where the next generation of researchers is trained. A large variety of market researchers have studied here. The concept of Market and Communication Research is unique in Germany. The symbiosis of theory and practice is essential at Pforzheim University. This dualism is also reflected in the structure of GOR conferences. Online Research has gained in importance and momentum in recent years. The increased frequency of accessing and utilising data online is the a process that has been growing since the middle of the 90s. This holds also true for the variety of innovative applications and methods originating from the Association of Online Researchers. This development is taking place against the background of the continued importance and growth of the internet in the modern information society and the resulting consequences for groups and individuals. These topics extend beyond the borders of German-speaking countries. Acknowledging this trend, English, first used in 2009, will again be conference language. Here in Pforzheim, you can look forward to a comprehensive program of two days, containing individual contributions and presentations from the wide spectrum of online research. Another novelty for the conference is the introduction of a three track, parallel, coherent presentation: Track 1 Online Research Methodology and Internet Surveys Track 2 Applied Online Market Research Track 3 Internet, Communication, and Society Within the framework of the conference, we will for the third time confer the award for the “Best Practice in Commercial Online Market Research”. The “Best Research Thesis Award”, sponsored for the second time by the German Society for Online Research, has already been conferred. In the evening of the first conference day, the now well-established, fun event, the legendary GOR party will take place in the Como Club.
