Adrian J Cotterill, Editor-in-Chief
2021 just like 2020 was a torrid time for event organisers. Here is a list of the cancellations and postponements, in date they would have happened order…
- #CES2021 which was due to take place January 6-9, 2021 has been cancelled as an in-person event. It will now be an all-digital experience connecting exhibitors, customers, thought leaders and media from around the world say the organisers.
- The three day Prolight & Sound Middle East event, which was due to take place January 24-26, 2021 in Dubai has been cancelled. It will now, not take place until late next year, in September 2022.
- Retail’s Big Show #NRF2021 which was scheduled for January 17-19, 2021 has been cancelled as an in-person event. It was replaced in January with a number of virtual events and ‘digital expos’ taking place January 12-14, January 19 and January 21-22, 2021. The planned in-person physical exposition and conference which was initially moved later in the year to June 6-8, 2021 has now also been cancelled.
- The Bett 2021 show in the UK, which was due to run January 20-22, 2021 has been cancelled and will be replaced by a virtual show. The next in-person Bett show will take place on 19-21 January 2022 at ExCeL London.
- #ISE2021 which was due to take place at Gran Via, part of the Fira de Barcelona exhibition complex in Spain, February 2-5, 2021 was postponed and scheduled to take place June 1-4, 2021. It has now been cancelled. It was to be replaced by events at Fira Barcelona, MAC Forum, Munich, RAI, Amsterdam and Evolution, Battersea but two of those have now also been cancelled:-
- June 1-2, 2021 Barcelona
- June 8-9, 2021 Munich
- June 15-16, 2021 Amsterdam
- June 23-24, 2021 London
- #MWC2021 scheduled for March in Barcelona has been moved to June 28-July 1, 2021
- Dx3 Canada, which was scheduled for March 2-5, 2021 in Toronto is now a virtual event.
- ISCVEx, the Institute of Sound, Communications and Visual Engineers cancelled its 2021 exhibition and seminar programme which was due to take place in March, with plans to resume the UK event next year March 22-23, 2022
- As SXSW was cancelled last year, it’s amazing to think that the event has physically not taken place since March 8-17, 2019. This year’s South by Southwest is also cancelled but will be held virtually, March 16-20, 2021
- The organisers of ITB Berlin and ITB Berlin Convention (also cancelled in 2020) have announced that the event planned for March 9-12, 2021 is also cancelled as in-person event. It will be held virtually.
- EuroCIS 2021 which was due to take place March 16-18, 2021 has been cancelled in its entirety.
- EI Live! which was due to take place at the Farnborough Exhibition Centre in March, 2021 (it was originally scheduled for April 2020, then moved to October 2020) has now been postponed until September 29-30, 2021. There has not been an actual event since October 2019.
- ISA Sign Expo 2021 which was due to take place April 7-9, 2021 has been cancelled. It is to be replaced with a virtual event.
- The 2021 NAB Show which was scheduled for April 11–14, 2021, then re-scheduled for October 9–13, 2021 was cancelled on September 15, 2021
- The April 12-15, 2021 Passenger Terminal Expo due to take place in Amsterdam, then re-scheduled for June 28, 29, 30 and July 1, 2021 has been cancelled. It will next take place April 5-7, 2022 in Paris
- The ‘Prolight + Sound 2021 Hybrid Edition’ which should have taken place in Frankfurt, April 13-16, 2021 has been cancelled
- Reed Exhibitions announced that RetailEXPO which was scheduled to take place in April, 2021 will not now happen. It was also cancelled in 2020
- CinemaCon 2021, originally scheduled for April 26-29 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, has been rescheduled for August 23-26, 2021
- The Media Production and Technology Show which was scheduled for May 11-12, 2021 at Olympia, London has been cancelled. It will not now take place until May 2022.
- PLASA Focus Leeds which was due to take place May 11-12, 2021 at the Royal Armouries Leeds has joined forces with the ABTT Theatre Show for a joint event September 5-7, 2021
- The World Out of Home Organization annual Congress, cancelled in 2020 and re-scheduled for 2021 at the same venue, the Sheraton Centre Toronto Hotel for May 12-14, 2021 has now also been cancelled. It is being replaced with a ‘world tour’; three events, two of which are hoped to be live, to be held in Europe, Africa and Asia Pacific in the second, third and fourth quarters of 2021
- The Society for Information Display (SID)’ Display Week which was due to run May 17-21, 2021 is, for the second year, in a row, 100% virtual.
- Reed Expositions and POPAI France’s 2021 edition of the Marketing Point de Vente show which was to take place in June has been postponed again. It is now hoped that it can be held October 5-7 in Pavilion 1 of Paris Expo Porte de Versailles.
- InfoComm 2021 which was scheduled to take place June 12-18 has now been postponed until October 23-29. It will still be held at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL.
- #INT2021 Integrate Expo, co-located with the Security Exhibition & Conference, which was to be held July 21-23, 2021 in Sydney has been postponed until November 17-19 2021
- #IFA2021 which was to take place September 3-9, 2021 at Messe Berlin has now been cancelled
- DMEXCO which was supposed to take place September 7-8 this year is now fully virtual
- IBC which was scheduled for September 10-13, 2021 at the RAI, Amsterdam was moved to December 3-6, 2021 but EVENTUALLY that too was cancelled
- Enterprise Connect which was supposed to take place September 27-29, 2021 in Orlando, FL. cancelled its in-person event and announced that it would be fully virtual
- Digital Signage Summit Europe which was to have taken place in Munich September 29 – 30, 2021 has been cancelled
You can see a full list of our industry events cancelled in 2020 here.
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