Yes there is more collaboration, but most if it is idle chit chat or trivial. It is incredibly hard to focus and it hurts my productivity. There is one guy in my office that works over 50 yards away from me, but his high-pitched, obnoxious laugh cuts through my noise cancelling head phones and is the bane of my existence.

For the love of everything that is holy, do everything you can to give people peace and privacy. The only justification for the open office is to cram as many people as possible into as small a space as possible.