In a move that will shock very few people, IFA 2021 has officially been canceled for another year due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The announcement comes as pandemic vaccination schemes worldwide struggle to cope with demand and COVID-19 cases increase in multiple countries, many of whom would likely send delegations to Europe's largest tech event.
IFA 2021 Canceled Amid Rising COVID Cases
In an email published on May 21, IFA organizers Messe Berlin and gfu Consumer & Home Electronics GmbH confirmed that the massive tech expo "will not take place in September as a physical live event as originally planned."
The recent emergence of several new COVID-19 variants, some of which are more virulent than previously seen, have forced the organizers and public health officials to reconsider the decision to allow hundreds of thousands of people to flood into Berlin from the four corners of the globe.
Kai Hillebrandt, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of gfu Consumer & Home Electronics GmbH said:
Brands and manufacturers across the tech industry were very keen to come to IFA Berlin 2021. Unfortunately, the latest public health developments introduced too much risk into everybody's planning for the event. There simply are now too many uncertainties. Therefore, right now it has become near impossible for anyone to responsibly plan their participation in any trade show.
It is, without a doubt, a blow for tech companies looking to exhibit and show their latest innovations. However, the announcement comes months ahead of IFA's proposed dates in early September 2021, giving potential exhibitors plenty of time to prepare for another all-digital affair.
IFA 2020—last year's edition—was one of the first major tech events to take place amid COVID-19 lockdowns, with limited numbers attending a physical event while the majority of the action took place online.
Switching to an all-digital event is a disappointment but something most organizations are now entirely accustomed to, not to mention the lessons learned by the host organizations themselves to make exhibiting and connecting with clients easier than ever.
If Only Someone Could Have Predicted This
It didn't take a crystal ball to realize that IFA 2021's optimism for a physical event in Berlin might be a stretch. Back on April 15, 2021, when the organizers first announced that IFA 2021 would go ahead in person, it was met with huge amounts of skepticism.
Now, just over one month later, Messe Berlin and gfu Consumer & Home Electronics GmbH are making plans to go all-digital, with the prospect of a proper, in-person event for IFA 2022. Some will say the lack of foresight was apparent, but honestly, who could possibly have seen this coming?
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