Google CANCELS one if its biggest annual events amid fears over the spread of coronavirus
- Google cancelled an in-person event for its annual developers conference
- The I/O Conference is one of Google’s biggest annual events
- It will still search for an alternative format for the conference
Google is the latest tech company to scrap major event plans as fears over the spread of novel coronavirus escalate.
The company announced that its annual in-person I/O conference, which showcases its latest software advances, is being cancelled more than two months before it’s slated to take place.
‘Due to concerns around the coronavirus (COVID-19), and in accordance with health guidance from the CDC, WHO, and other health authorities, we have decided to cancel the physical Google I/O event at Shoreline Amphitheatre,’ wrote the company in a statement.
The company is reportedly looking into an ‘alternative format’ for the conference.
Google has cancelled one of its biggest annual conferences, the I/0 conference, due to the threat of coronavirus (stock)
Google says that those who purchased tickets for the event, which was slated to take place between May 12th to the 14th, will be refunded by March 13 at the latest.
The conference is among the biggest events for Google every year and usual ushers in the company’s latest software features with implications on Google-made hardware and devices that run its operating system, Android.
The news of the I/O conferences cancellation follows the decision to call off other high-profile events including one from fellow tech giant, Facebook.
The convention, it’s F8 developer’s conference which had been due to take place in San Jose, California, in early May, attracted around 5,000 visitors last year.
At the time of its cancellation this month, Facebook’s Konstantinos Papamiltiadis said ‘growing concerns’ around the virus, meant the tech giant decided to cancel the ‘in-person component’ of the conference.
‘This was a tough call to make – F8 is an incredibly important event for Facebook and it’s one of our favourite ways to celebrate all of you from around the world – but we need to prioritise the health and safety of our developer partners, employees and everyone who helps put F8 on,’ he said in a statement.
People attend the Facebook F8 Conference at McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, California last year. The event normally features a keynote speech by CEO Mark Zuckerberg
In place of an in-person event, Facebook said it would stage a range of ‘locally hosted events, videos and live-streamed content.’
Likewise, last month brought the cancellation of the Mobile World Congress, one of the biggest conferences focusing on mobile hardware.
Leading up the the event’s cancellation, major companies like Nokia and LG has both pulled out amid fears of coronavirus.