Sony has confirmed that it will not be exhibiting at IBC 2021 in Amsterdam on 3-6 December, citing the continued uncertainty caused by Covid-19 as well as preparation time, but said it was working closely with IBC so that it can meet customers and partners in Amsterdam. IBC has clarified that the company wasn’t scheduled to exhibit at this year’s event, contrary to reports yesterday that it had “pulled out” or “withdrawn” from the event as an exhibitor.
In a statement provided to Installation‘s sister publication TVBEurope by a Sony representative yesterday afternoon, the company said: “Due to the current uncertainty around the worldwide pandemic and the lead time needed for design, Sony will not be having a physical booth at the upcoming IBC trade show. Sony will however continue to work closely with the IBC organisation as its valued partner and will use the opportunity to meet customers and partners in Amsterdam.
“We will be constantly monitoring the situation in the coming months and will adjust our plans accordingly, but are keen to participate, when safe and appropriate, in industry trade shows.”
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In a statement clarifying the company’s participation at the show, Steve Connolly, director at IBC, explained, “Sony continues to be a great supporter of IBC and, although they weren’t planning on exhibiting this year, it is great to see Sony confirm they want to be at IBC2021.
“With 700 exhibitors confirmed, visitors will see demos and hear industry insights from a huge array of major players including Amazon Web Services, Blackmagic Design, EVS, Grass Valley, Nagra, and Synamedia,” he continued. “We’ve seen a sharp increase in visitor registrations since the Dutch government announced the relaxation of Covid travel rules and are seeing strong support across major content owners, broadcasters and service providers planning on coming to the show. We are also putting more content than ever online this year, so the 250,000 strong IBC community will be able to see and enjoy more content than ever online through IBC Digital.”
The Netherlands government announced a relaxation in its Covid-19 social distancing measures in September which included allowing fully vaccinated travellers to enter the country without needing to quarantine. On the back of the announcement, IBC CEO Mike Crimp told a gathering of industry press that the show is “heading in the right direction” in terms of staging a physical show, and that it is “focusing on delivering an absolutely safe event.”
You can read about this year’s IBC Accelerator Media Innovation programme here.
