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Coronavirus: Expo 2020 Postponement Likely

Expo 2020 Dubai is almost certain to be postponed. Organisers said they wanted to show “solidarity” with the participating countries now fighting coronavirus. The event is likely to be put back a year, but a final decision should be made in June. Expo 2020 was hoping to attract eleven million visitors. From Association Meetings International…

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Coronavirus: 42,869 Attend Hackathon

The German government has run a hackathon to brainstorm solutions to the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic. 42,869 took part online in #WirVsVirus (“us versus the virus”). The result was more than 800 ideas on topics like shopping, childcare and symptom monitoring. Some of them have now been selected for funding. From Euractiv…

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Coronavirus: German Expo Losses €3bn

German trade fairs have already been hit hard by COVID-19 crisis cancellations and postponements. Organisers and service providers are already suffering significant financial losses. AUMA, the Association of the German Trade Fair Industry, has now forecast a total loss to the German economy of around three billion euros. From UFI…

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Coronavirus: Olympic Games Postponed

No kind of event is immune from the devastation coronavirus is causing. After weeks of speculation and amid mounting criticism, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President of the IOC Thomas Bach both agreed to reschedule the 2020 Summer Olympics to 2021, the first break in four-year cycle since World War II. From Reuters…

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Coronavirus: AU$2.5bn Monthly Losses, BECA

Coronavirus event cancellations are wiping AU$2.5bn off the Australian economy every month. So say new figures from a major industry body. Shutting down large gatherings has effectively shut down the country’s meetings sector, with devastating results, according to the Business Events Council of Australia. From Association Meetings International…

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Coronavirus: €81.6bn Lost from Exhibitions

Iceberg partner UFI has updated its earlier economic impact assessment of international exhibitions and trade shows due to the coronavirus crisis. At least €134 billion ($145 billion) of contracts have not concluded with shows not taking place as planned through Q2. The industry economic output in total is down €81.6 billion ($88.2 billion). From UFI…

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Coronavirus: Industry Support by Commission

The European Exhibition Industry Alliance, representing nearly 400 European exhibition organisers and venue operators in Brussels to the European institutions and wider stakeholders, has welcomed recent economic support measures for the industry the European Commission has announced in the wake of COVID-19. From Exhibition World…

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Coronavirus: 350 Jobs Cut by Bella Owner

The owner of Scandinavia’s largest convention centre is making 350 people redundant due to “a brutal slowdown” caused by the COVID-19 crisis. BC Hospitality Group, which runs the Bella Center Copenhagen, as well as the Comwell Conference Center and several hotels, has not said where the cuts will fall. From Association Meetings International…

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Coronavirus: “Open” Campaign Launched

Iceberg partners AIPC (International Association of Convention Centres), ICCA (International Congress and Convention Association) and UFI (Global Association of the Exhibition Industry) are jointly now backing a campaign “This show is open for business” first launched by UFI and SISO (Society of Independent Show Organizers). From Association Meetings International…

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Coronavirus: €14.4bn Lost from Exhibitions

Iceberg partner UFI has released the first economic impact assessment on global exhibitions and trade shows of COVID-19. At least €23 billion ($26.3 billion) total worth of contracts have not concluded with shows not taking place as planned. The industry’s economic output in total is down €14.4 billion ($16.5 billion). From UFI…

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Convene Posts Annual Meetings Market Survey

What’s the number one challenge facing business events? When this question was posed in November 2019 by Convene as part of its 29th Annual Meetings Market Survey, just a few answers talked about dealing with the unknown. One respondent alone cited the management of risk, and specifically of epidemic risk, as a challenge. From PCMA…

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Coronavirus: Swiss Ban Cancels Motor Show

The Geneva International Motor Show has been cancelled days before opening after the Swiss government put an immediate ban on events involving more than 1,000 people to halt the spread of the new coronavirus. Planners called it a case of force majeure, or unpredictable circumstances that obviate liabilities in contracts. From Meetings & Conventions…

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Meetings Africa 2020 Runs in Johannesburg

The 15th Meetings Africa has just been hosted in Johannesburg at the Sandton Convention Centre. South Africa National Convention Bureau Chief Convention Bureau Officer, Amanda Kotze-Nhlapo (pictured), spoke at the opening address, and one keynote addressed Expo 2020 Dubai, at which all 54 of the African nations will be participating. From Exhibition World…

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Coronavirus: Meetings Bailout for Hong Kong

Hong Kong is to pump HK$1 billion (US$130 million) into its faltering events industry as political unrest and the coronavirus outbreak take their toll. Where at least half of all attendees are coming from outside Hong Kong, the government will pay the full venue rental costs of large exhibitions and conventions. From Association Meetings International…

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Association Events Help Brisbane Win AU$351m

Figures show that Brisbane hosted over 940 business events delivering an estimated AU$351 million to the local economy during financial year 2018-19, with association events playing a major role. Queensland’s capital has already confirmed ten major national and international association congresses for 2020. From Association Meetings International…

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Club Liverpool Event Marks Five Years

The ambassador programme Club Liverpool has marked five years with an event held at Liverpool Town Hall attended by some of the members who have helped attract £70 million of meetings to the city. The network of influential figures from academia, medicine and business now boasts 230 ambassadors. From Association Meetings International…

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Coronavirus: GSMA’s MWC 2020 Cancelled

Mobile World Congress, the huge smartphone conference, has been cancelled after significant exhibitors pulled out citing the coronavirus crisis. The association behind the event, GSMA, could have to foot the bill for the entire cost of cancellation unless Spain’s government declares the outbreak a health emergency. From Meetings & Incentive Travel…

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UFI Global CEO Summit Meets Pope Francis

On the occasion of the UFI Global CEO Summit in Rome, Pope Francis invited the meeting’s one hundred participants to a private audience in the Vatican’s Sala Clementina. His Holiness spoke and shook hands with every delegate, and told them their events would “contribute to a more just and humane global economy”. From UFI…

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