<div style="direction: ltr;"><div class="ea"><span id="e_10de24399c344169_0"></span>The Wikimania jury has met and are pleased to announce that Wikimania<br></div><span class="q" id="q_10de24399c344169_0">2007 will be held in Taipei, Taiwan. Taipei had the winning
<br>combination of a dedicated and experienced bidding team, a great venue<br>with centralized accomodation and community areas, and strong<br>sponsorship opportunities. Taipei also provides the opportunity to<br>focus attention on the growing Asian language projects and the
<br>international aspect of the Wikimedia Foundation, as well as learning<br>about other free knowledge efforts and projects in the region.<br><br>This was a very difficult decision. Every one of the shortlisted bids<br>
this year were outstanding. The Turin bid came in a close second; their<br>team made a great effort to procure two strong locations and extensive<br>government support, and gathered the Italian community together to<br>develop an outstanding bid. Alexandria deserves recognition for
<br>bringing the Egyptian and Arabic-language community into the spotlight,<br>and for finding a remarkable venue partner in the Library of Alexandria.<br>London also produced a very strong bid, with a great venue, focus on
<br>educational outreach, the diversity of London, and the strong Wikimedia<br>UK team.<br><br>Thank you to all of the bidders, including those who did not make<br>the shortlist, for your time and energy in developing these bids.
<br>We hope this year's city teams will find ways to build on the contacts<br>and sponsors developed in the bid process for a 2008 bid or for hosting<br>a regional event.<br><br>We strongly encourage all who bid this year, and those of you wondering
<br>whether your city could have done the same, to consider preparing city<br>bids for Wikimania in 2008 or 2009. Unofficial bids for 2008 should be<br>started now, as the decision on that city will be made this winter<br>
(more details on 2008's bid process coming soon; watch<br><a onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)" href="http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania_2008/Bids" target="_blank">http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania_2008/Bids
</a><br>for updates).<br><br>Now the work for the winners will begin, as they develop plans for the<br></span></div><div style="direction: ltr;">conference next summer. We encourage the entire community to support<br>Taipei over the coming year in producing an outstanding conference.
<br></div><div class="ea"><span id="e_10de24399c344169_2"><br></span></div><span class="q" id="q_10de24399c344169_2">With thanks,<br>The 2007 Wikimania bid jury</span>