How the Corona Virus turned MWC 2020 into a nightmare

GSMA, the mobile industry association behind Mobile World Congress (or MWC 2020), has confirmed that it will continue to host important events that occur regularly each year. They are clearly feeling scared for the MWC 2020, which will take place on February 24, when the companies attending the event are suffering from the worldwide Corona virus pandemic. Is it really important for the gathering of more than 100,000 people, at a time when many are worried the event could become a new outbreak?

Many large companies have given the answer: No. And with that comes the decision to withdraw from MWC 2020. And GSMA has officially announced it will cancel the event today.

Who withdrew from MWC 2020 due to Corona virus?

  First, let's talk about the companies who decided not to go to Spain to attend the MWC 2020 anymore. LG is the first big name to cancel its plans to MWC 2020 for fear of Corona virus. Almost simultaneously with LG is ZTE, which decided to attend the event but will not hold any press conference previously announced. Next up is Ericsson - even though it doesn't make phones, they are always a big name at MWC and have a booth like any other; and in the context of 5G being a major focus of MWC 2020, Ericsson's announcement is indeed a big surprise.

On February 7, MWC sponsor Nvidia said it would not send any staff to this year's event. The reason for the company as well as others: ". considering the public health risks associated with the Corona virus, ensuring the safety of colleagues, partners, and customers is of utmost concern. ours".

On February 9, Amazon withdrew for the same reason. On February 10, Sony announced it would not be coming to MWC, shortly after TCL - like ZTE, which maintained a stall but canceled every press conference.

On February 11, the three new entrants to the MWC 2020 withdrawal list are Intel, Vivo, and NTT Docomo. There are also AT&T, Nokia and HMD Global, Facebook, MediaTek, and Sprint.

Not only MWC faces disaster. The Hong Kong Marathon in February was canceled; some companies canceled plans to attend Singapore Airshow; Swatch canceled the Time to Move event in Zurich; and even many K-Pop stars cancel many events in Asia because of Corona virus.

Is MWC 2020 putting everyone in danger?

As of February 10, 910 people have died from Corona virus, and more than 40,000 positive cases worldwide. Cities with millions of people in China's Hubei province, including Wuhan - the center of the plague - have been quarantined, and other major Chinese cities have issued travel bans and gather in public places. Airlines cancel all flights to and from China, yachts quarantined around the world, the number of people infected outside of China is increasing, plus many details related to the virus. This is still being explored - more than enough reason to be concerned.

All of this has put the companies attending MWC 2020 in an extremely difficult situation. Ray le Maistre, editor-in-chief of lightreading.com, wrote about Ericsson's withdrawal on the grounds of health and safety for its employees and visitors, as follows: " If companies do not share that view. , how will they risk their image? If a company says 'We're still going to MWC', what will the company employees think? "

Unfortunately, the number of deaths and infection rates are not the only numbers considered when making decisions related to MWC 2020. The other numbers here are the numbers in dollar characters. stand in front of them!

Money is what makes decisions at MWC 2020

Like any exhibition, MWC is a giant "milk cow". It is not just an opportunity for companies to improve their return through marketing, or an opportunity for companies to sign potential contracts. It is important to be there and to be called. Mobile analyst Ben Wood said: " For large companies, they obviously have to spend a lot of money to build booths, take care of their staff, pay for flights, and save places. , and many other things, but they can overcome financial problems more easily than small businesses, because of their large financial resources.For small companies, the impact can be much more significant, when which MWC is usually one of their biggest investments of the year ".

50% deposit is required by GSMA to attend MWC, and the money will not be refunded. If there is a good insurance policy, companies can get money back if they meet the condition called " infectious disease insurance". This condition is not always available, and it is not often included in standard policies. Therefore, companies are always in a dilemma.

MWC is also a particularly valuable event for GSMA and the city of Barcelona. This is one of the major events of GSMA, with a profit of about US $ 283 million per year for GSMA. The more MWC 2020 is affected by the Corona virus, the further the number decreases. According to estimates, only Ericsson's huge booth (now "vacant garden") has cost up to $ 6.5 million. Besides, money also rotates outside the scope of events. MWC 2019 brought in an estimated local economy of US $ 517 million and created 14,000 part-time jobs.

The golden time to cancel has passed

Luckily for those who have bet on MWC, including Barcelona and GSMA, it is too late for many other big names to cancel the plan. One (unnamed) leader who regularly held the organizing stage at MWC said the cost involved, and the time frame for making the decision to delay was no longer available.

" I think they (the participating companies) have no choice but to attend," and the main reason is logistics. Weeks before the event, companies can cancel and only charge space for rent at MWC, but as the day progresses, things are no longer so simple.

" A small spot can cost half a million dollars," a source said, adding that it is only one-third of the total cost of attendance.

" Even if you don't get any money back, you can save money on shipping products, hotels, and airplanes." For companies that have started shipping, canceling is not a good financial option. " Maybe they should wear a mask and come to the end."

Will anyone leave MWC 2020?

If big companies have gone too far into preparing for MWC, both logistic and financial, does that mean that no one will withdraw from now until the start of the event? Some decisions will not be attended for reasons unrelated to the Corona virus. For example, Asus said that it would not set up a booth at MWC 2020, but that decision was not directly related to viral health and safety issues. Company executives can simply decide not to attend without having to remove their name from the MWC list. That seems to be the solution Samsung has chosen.

What about Chinese companies planning to go to MWC? Huawei is expected to quarantine all employees attending MWC in the 14 days before the event, and do so outside of China, to minimize the possibility of spreading the disease. And it can still pull out at the last minute. PR and marketing expert Sean Upton-McLaughlin, who works with Chinese companies and is currently in Shenzhen, China's technology hub, said: " I think many of the decisions are made to attend. Chinese companies are likely to be launched this week at the latest, if they have not made a final decision yet. Among Chinese tech companies there is usually a lot of work done together, everything often very rushed or made at the last minute. I wouldn't be surprised if they still want to wait and see how many attendees before making a final decision. "

China's extended Lunar New Year holiday ended on February 9, which means that many companies are returning to their regular jobs, and new announcements related to MWC 2020 will be coming out within a few days soon. next.

Are concerns about the Corona virus at MWC 2020 justified?

It is difficult to answer. A large amount of media information about the Corona virus now comes from untrusted sources, and many believe that the officially published data is inaccurate. Other information provided by tabloid newspapers, which may be published by the newspaper itself, or may be reproduced by other persons. In addition to the financial issues related to MWC as mentioned above, you will have the perfect formula to explain anxiety.

What about reality? Doctors said the event would be " no threat", that there would be medical checkpoints at airports, the virus would require very close contact to spread, and handwashing would be the way. the most effective defense against things. Sounds quite reassuring! However, on Feb. 8, Chinese state-run Xinhua said that " ways of spreading the virus include transmission through secretions and particles from the respiratory tract". At the press conference announcing this, it was recommended that public gatherings should be canceled, and that windows should be opened regularly to maintain air circulation. Good luck on your journey in the private lobby of MWC!

GSMA takes this very seriously. On February 9, GSMA CEO John Hoffman sent an email to all participating companies, saying that the event would continue as intended, and listing any disease prevention solutions, including not allowing any who is from Hubei province to visit, and every Chinese visitor needs to show evidence they have been out of China for 14 days, plus temperature monitoring with everyone, and health care facilities right here venue of the event. The mayor of Barcelona said that we should listen to scientific advice from experts, and that MWC 2020 " can happen with confidence".

What about WHO? Their advice is simple: don't go to Hubei province, and only go to the rest of China if necessary. The State Department recommends not going to China. What about going to Spain? The UK Office of Foreign and Commonwealth " does not recommend visiting other countries or territories because of the risk of Corona virus".

Unless you come to China, you can generally worry about the Corona virus. But how does that change with an event like MWC?

MWC, and every other major event, is different

This is an event with more than 100,000 people from around the world attending, standing in a closed area, for nearly a week. Anyone who has ever been to MWC knows how high the chance of getting a cold or flu is here. A single case of Corona virus infection will cause panic at MWC 2020, and everyone in the exhibition area of ​​the event will spill out at insane speeds that no door can stand.

No one wants to get the Corona virus. No company wants to be held responsible when an employee becomes infected with Corona virus. GSMA does not want its event to be the center of the Corona virus epidemic in Spain, and so do the citizens of Barcelona. Everything will be done to ensure MWC 2020 is a safe event. So it's best to let it stop.