Swedish telecoms giant Ericsson is the latest company to pull out of MWC in Barcelona later this month over coronavirus fears. Ericsson said that as one of the largest exhibitors, Ericsson expects thousands of visitors to visit the hall every day. Even if the risk is low, the company cannot guarantee the health and safety of employees and exhibition visitors.
“The health and safety of our employees, customers, and other stakeholders are our highest priority,” said President and CEO of Ericsson Börje Ekholm in a statement. “We were looking forward to showcasing our latest innovations at MWC in Barcelona. It is very unfortunate, but we strongly believe the most responsible business decision is to withdraw our participation from this year’s event.”
ZTE also said that it’s taking precautions in light of the coronavirus outbreak including quarantining all staff from mainland China for two weeks ahead of the Barcelona conference. Senior executives involved in high-level meetings will spend those two weeks of isolation in Europe, while the rest will be quarantined before traveling.
LG told the media that it will withdraw from the MWC 2020 Mobile World Congress at the end of this month and will choose a suitable time to hold an event in the future to release its 2020 mobile phone products.