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A fortnight from the MWC in Barcelona, the fear of the coronavirus is leading more and more manufacturers, such as LG and ZTE, to cancel their conferences, or even to impose upstream a quarantine on their emissaries, like Huawei.
Are we headed for a Mobile World Congress deserted by its Asian representatives? While the Barcelona fair is due to open on February 24, the coronavirus epidemic currently raging in China has clouded the prelude to the event. Indeed, some manufacturers have decided to cancel their conferences and even to simply withdraw from the Spanish meeting.
So the South Korean giant LG, through a press release, announced that his teams would not be present in Barcelona: “Given the safety of its employees, partners and customers, LG has decided to withdraw from the exhibition and participation in MWC 2020 later this month in Barcelona”. To compensate for this absence, the Seoul firm will organize several events during 2020 to present its new products.
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MWC in 2012. © feradz – iStock
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The Chinese manufacturer ZTE has also canceled its conference, but does not remove its stands and will present well to the press and onlookers its latest devices. ZTE, Huawei and Xiaomi have also decided to send their emissaries two weeks in advance, then quarantine them to prevent an infected person from transmitting the virus. These companies also intend to rely heavily on their employees already present in Europe. As recalled Le Figaro, this decision suggests a heavy logistics operation for Huawei, since the Shenzhen company displaces around 4,000 people at the MWC, but maintains all of its commitments. Still to avoid large gatherings, Xiaomi, which was to hold a conference in China on February 11, decided to only make a presentation in camera broadcast on video.
To reassure those who would still travel, the GSMA, the organization at the head of the MWC, has implemented a protocol to prevent possible spread of the virus. An intensive and regular cleaning program has been established, means of protection and disinfection will be freely available to the public. Awareness campaigns will also be launched and the medical staff will see their staff increase. At least 100,000 visitors were expected to crowd the aisles of the MWC; between the withdrawal of some manufacturers and the surge of anxiety about a potential pandemic, it is not sure that the show will know its best attendance in 2020.
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