NAB vendor pulls out of show, citing coronavirus fears
An exhibitor has opted to cancel its participation in next month’s National Association of Broadcasters 2020 trade show citing risks from COVID-19.
AJA Video Systems announced in a statement this week it would not participate in the annual NAB convention, which is being held April 19 through April 22 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
NAB 2020 is anticipated to bring in more than 90,000 attendees from 160 countries and over 1,600 exhibitors, according to the association.
AJA Video, a manufacturer of professional video and audio equipment, said any planned product announcements and demonstrations as well as in-person meetings would be switched to web-based video conferences.
“We have made this decision out of an abundance of caution for the health and safety of our employees and partners worldwide,” the company said in a statement. “AJA is a community-based company with a majority of our staff, product development and manufacturing located in Grass Valley, California and in light of the risks presented by Covid-19, having a physical presence at NAB posed too great of a risk.”
More than 60 of the company’s employees were planning to attend. AJA Video told the Review-Journal in an emailed statement it also expected to participate “on panels” and had “numerous partner, dealer and press meetings booked” and was to participate in user group events.
NAB said in a statement that an “overwhelming majority” of its exhibitors will still be attending the show and attendee registrations are on pace with what it normally sees each year. The association said it continues to follow the guidelines of global, federal and local health public officials and intends to remain in contact with health experts to ensure a safe conference enviornment.
The decision by AJA Video makes it one of a growing number of companies that have opted to cancel their in-person presence in Las Vegas.
NXT Global announced Wednesday it would cancel its summit in July and comes on the heels of software company Adobe, engineering company Aruba Networks, and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations cancelling their planned conferences.
Many other upcoming conferences in Las Vegas still are scheduled as planned.
Contact Subrina Hudson at shudson@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0340. Follow @SubrinaH on Twitter.