Avid is taking the coronavirus seriously. The company has announced that it’s pulling out of all trade shows for at least the next 60 days, and has cancelled the Avid Connect conference, which was set to take place in April 2020.
Thankfully, there will still be events surrounding Avid Connect, but the main conference itself will not go ahead. Instead, the community will be able to participate in an online broadcast in April.
“While these were difficult decisions for Avid, and for me personally, we feel strongly that helping stop the spread and severity of the COVID-19 virus is not just the job of governments and healthcare providers, but the responsibility of every individual, organization and corporation around the globe,” said Jeff Rosica, CEO and President at Avid, in a statement. “We will take this opportunity to try new methods and experiment with different approaches to better engage with our clients, users and the community around the globe. Avid remains supportive of the NAB Show and looks forward to next year’s event.”
This isn’t the first major event to be cancelled due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus, and it likely won’t be the last. A number of events in the tech industry have been cancelled, along with events like SXSW, a series of concerts, and more. As of right now, the NAB Show, which is scheduled to start on April 18 and is one of the shows that Avid has pulled out of, is still going ahead. The organizers of the event argue that only 4 percent of exhibitors have pulled out, and 96 percent are still attending.
Other companies have pulled out from the NAB too, including the likes of Nikon, Ross Video, AJA, and more. We’ll have to wait and see if more companies pull out of the event, and if so it’s entirely possible that it will be cancelled altogether.
