Samantha Masunaga, Suhauna Hussain, and Emmanuel Morgan wrote a Los Angeles Times article titled Empty halls. No handshakes. What happens when coronavirus cancels conferences (March 5, 2020).
« As the coronavirus outbreak spreads… Many conventions and trade shows are proceeding, but many others have been canceled, postponed or refashioned into online-only events. »
« In Europe alone, at least 260 conferences have been canceled because of the coronavirus outbreak, said Sherrif Karamat, president and chief executive of PCMA, a trade association representing the business events industry. Most of those were in Italy, where more than 3,000 people have been diagnosed with the virus. »
« In the U.S., several major industry gatherings, ranging from Facebook’s F8 developer conference in San Jose to an oil-and-gas convention in Houston, have been canceled. Others were postponed after many scheduled attendees dropped out. »
« Major companies have clamped down on their workers’ travel for fear of exposure to the virus. And when key players don’t go to a conference, it’s often not worthwhile for anyone else either… “We spend so much money to go to a show,” said Jeffrey Ovadya, director of sales, support and marketing for motion-capture company Vicon Motion Systems. “If half the potential customers don’t show up … then is it worth the cost of going?” »
« In 2017, about $1 trillion was spent worldwide on business events, including funds to plan and produce the events and related travel, according to an Events Industry Council report. North America alone accounted for $381 billion. »
[ Corona virus, COVID-19 ]
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