The Mobile World Congress canceled due to the coronavirus. Who will be next?

These past few days, the number of major exhibitors announcing their withdrawal from Mobile World Congress 2020 hasn't stopped. With less than a month to go, more than 40 major exhibitors had announced they wouldn't be attending the Barcelona event. Just today, Nokia, Rakuten, and British Telecom announced they wouldn't be going due to the coronavirus. This leaves one question unanswered: what now?

What's clear is that we won't have an edition of the event in Barcelona this year , so everything will have to wait until next year. But many questions remain regarding other major technology and non-technology events. It's clear that China is completely paralyzed, and there are no large-scale events of any kind there, nor will there be.

Coronavirus is causing a lot of problems

Several sporting events based in China have been canceled or postponed. The Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix has been postponed . A women's football competition was also postponed, and even the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games are in jeopardy . Furthermore, due to the coronavirus, China has suspended its Chinese New Year celebrations.

A cascade of sporting cancellations is now spreading to the tech sector. CES 2020 narrowly escaped cancellation, as the coronavirus outbreak began to emerge shortly after it concluded. Barcelona was the first city affected, and the Mobile World Congress the first major event to be canceled, but more are to come.

It is planned that between April 20 and April 24 of this year, CeBIT, a very important technology fair, will be held as every year in Hannover, Germany. Shortly after, between June 2 and June 6, Computex is held in Taipei, Taiwan.

These are the two major technology trade shows remaining in 2020, and they will likely be canceled as well. Computex 2020 will almost certainly not take place if the situation doesn't improve, due to its proximity to China. We don't know what will happen with CeBIT, but if there isn't a decrease in coronavirus infections, it seems likely that it will not be held.

How will it affect the tech world in general?

This is just the tip of the iceberg, really. Foxconn's plants in China have been shut down for about two weeks now. They lack sufficient personnel due to isolation and quarantines, and that's a problem. Foxconn primarily produces for Apple, but also manufactures controllers, sound chips for motherboards, and semiconductors in general.

A shortage of motherboards, smartphone or other components seems unlikely, but the increase in price could be a reality. Not only because of the closure of some semiconductor factories, but also because of the closure of ports and borders. It is difficult to get in and out of China right now, as a precaution. Even Russia, a great ally of China, has closed its borders that limit that country to avoid contagion.

There are even fears that the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X will be delayed . Some of the components are manufactured or assembled in China, which is a problem. If there isn't enough stock for launch, it could be delayed until 2021.

Will the coronavirus take its toll on video games?

But this isn't just about smartphones or hardware; it could also affect video games. It's worth noting that E3 is scheduled to take place in Los Angeles from June 9th to 11th. If the situation continues as it is, this major video game event may not be held either.

And esports events, such as major international tournaments, may be canceled . However, these have the advantage of being able to be held remotely if necessary. What seems unlikely is the participation of Chinese or Asian teams in in-person esports tournaments due to safety concerns.

Additionally, Gamescom, scheduled to take place in Cologne, Germany, from August 25-29 of this year, could also be canceled. PAX, to be held in Seattle from August 30 to September 2 , could also be affected.

Other events, such as prestigious international LAN parties like DreamHack, could also be canceled for safety reasons. However, all of this will depend on how the coronavirus situation evolves.

Are we getting carried away by hysteria?

Well, to some extent we are still getting carried away by hysteria. Yes, there are deaths from the coronavirus, yes there are many infected and it is obviously a major health problem. But cancer or the common flu are more lethal than this disease. The problem with the coronavirus above all is that it is unknown how it works and there is no cure, because it is a strange viral mutation.

It is true that the coronavirus is dangerous, but how much more than the pathologies mentioned above? Of the deaths due to the disease, no data is given regarding how many had previous pathologies that could aggravate the problem.

A person with asthma or heart disease, for example, is more likely to die from the flu than a healthy person. Healthy eating and living, such as playing sports, also make the immune system stronger. There are studies that indicate that people who play sports are more immune to the flu or their symptoms are less.

Conclusion

The world does not end due to the cancellation of the Mobile World Congress and nothing is lost. The hotels, bars and restaurants will continue to function normally, they will only be left without a one-off extra. Yes, you can see the loss of this additional income, but it is not the end of the world either.

The truth is that this cancellation creates an interesting precedent that can lead to the cancellation of other events. If the situation does not improve in the coming weeks and the number of new infections does not fall to zero and the curve is reversed, possibly more international events will fall. Above you have a long list of events that may not be held due to the coronavirus.

If the extent of the pathology continues to increase, all kinds of events and meetings may be canceled. But for now we are at a point where anything can happen. There is excess hysteria and fear, but we must not panic, we must be cautious. Prudence always before hysteria.