The Mobile World Congress (MWC) is a major mobile trade show, but the year 2020 edition will have some notable absentees. LG and ZTE have both announced that it wont be there.
LG cites the safety of its employees, partners and customers as reasons why it is not participating in MWC 2020. Naturally, not travelling will mean not exposing the company’s staff to the virus. To make up for its absence, the company will announce its mobile products in separate events in the near future. With that being said, no date was provided as to when that will be.
It’s a slightly different story for ZTE’s withdrawal from MWC 2020. The Verge says the company cites secondary effects of the virus outbreak, such as travel and visa delays. No doubt the outbreak itself is still a major reason, as a spokesperson for the company said it doesn’t want “to make people uncomfortable”.
Despite two major absentees, MWC 2020 organiser GSMA says that there is minimal impact on the event. With that, the event will still proceed as planned, taking place from 24 to 27 February 2020.
In addition to pulling out of MWC 2020, other companies have reacted to the novel coronavirus outbreak in different ways. Apple has decided to close its stores in China, and its iPhone production has also taken a hit. The Taiwan Game Show 2020 has also been postponed indefinitely as a result. All understandable, as the novel coronavirus is now a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
