GSMA, organizers of the world's largest exhibition of mobile technologies Mobile World Congress ( MWC), announced earlier this year that they plan to make this year's MWC Barcelona a personal event. Following its announcement, some exhibitors and partners said they would not be attending the event, which starts on June 28th. This list has now expanded to include Google.
The tech giant made a statement that it will not be attending MWC this year due to current travel restrictions and COVID-19 protocols. The official announcement says that it (Google) will continue to work alongside the GSMA and support its partners with virtual opportunities. Google added that it will be attending the 2022 event.
Google's ad came a few weeks after Sony Mobile and Oracle, as well as telecommunications giants - Nokia и Ericsson announced that they would not be participating in MWC Barcelona 2021. We would not be surprised if more exhibitors are chosen as the event approaches.
It seems that the measures of the organizers of the event do not satisfy the exhibitors, so they would prefer not to take risks. GSMA measures include reducing visitor numbers from 100000 to 50000, requiring participants to test negative for COVID-19 72 hours prior to their arrival, a contactless check-in process, mandatory masks, and regular disinfection of booths, product samples and audiovisual equipment.
MWC Barcelona 2021 will run from June 28 to July 1.
