VLDB is the premier international conference on database technology, organized every year by the VLDB Endowment.VLDB 2003 is held in Berlin, the capital of Germany in the center of Europe, where East meets West.13 years after reunification and 25 years after VLDB was held in Berlin for the first time, we welcome you again to a place that currently transforms itself into one of the most exciting centers in Europe and the World. We hope you will enjoy the conference, at the same time exploring the cultural and historical diversity of Berlin.