The National Association of Broadcasters cancelled its in-person show in Las Vegas due to concerns about COVID-19 surges amid the Delta variant. Those anxieties led major exhibitors — Sony, Canon, Panasonic and Ross Video — to recently pull out of the live event.
The NAB Show, scheduled for October 9-13, was to be co-located with the Radio Show for the first time in Vegas, along with the Sales and Management Television Exchange. It intends to offer online content. Last year’s NAB Show was also virtual.
Sony and Canon also pulled out of the audio-visual show InfoComm in Orlando in October due to the same concerns, according to Broadcasting and Cable. In explaining its decision, Ross Video cited “the challenges posed by the fluctuating public health situation in Nevada and elsewhere, travel restrictions into the USA, logistics and general uncertainty among exhibitors and potential attendees.”
The NAB circulated a message about the change to attendees from Chris Brown, Executive Vice President and Managing Director of Global Connections and Events, on Wednesday. “For more than a year we have worked tirelessly to bring our industry together safely in Las Vegas at NAB Show. Unfortunately, the pandemic and surge of the Delta variant has presented unexpected and insurmountable challenges for our global community,” he stated.
“As we have always kept the best interest and safety of the industry as our priority, it has become apparent in the face of these challenges that we can no longer effectively host NAB Show or our co-located events in person,” Brown added.
The association has scheduled its 2022 television show for next April 23-27, in Vegas. The broadcast lobbying organization plans to release more details soon concerning its virtual options for accessing select 2021 NAB Show content through NAB Amplify.
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