14 DAY TRIAL // Tech giants Microsoft and Google have both decided to cancel two of their upcoming conferences due to the coronavirus outbreak, instead moving to online-only events that will take place during the same dates.
Microsoft’s MVP Summit was scheduled for March 16-20, and in an email sent to its Most Valuable Professional program members, the company says the whole thing will happen online.
“In light of recent developments globally and the growing concerns around the spread of the COVID-19 virus, Microsoft has made the decision that this year’s MVP/Regional Director Summit will be an online-only / virtual event. It will be scheduled for the same week (Mar 16-20),” the email that Microsoft sends to MVPs reads.
Google’s Cloud Next in San Francisco is also moving online due to the same reason, with the company explaining in an announcement that full refunds to cover the ticket and the hotel costs will be offered to attendees. Cloud Next will take place between April 6 and April 8.
“We are transforming the event into Google Cloud Next ’20: Digital Connect, a free, global, digital-first, multi-day event connecting our attendees to Next ’20 content and each other through streamed keynotes, breakout sessions, interactive learning and digital ‘ask an expert’ sessions with Google teams,” Google says.
More events being canceled
The announcements come only a couple of months before both Google and Microsoft hold their biggest annual tech conferences. Microsoft’s Build and Google’s I/O are scheduled for May, and there are already rumors that the software giant is looking into canceling the event due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Several other events have already been canceled, including the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain and the Geneva Motor Show. Neither Microsoft nor Google made any announcements regarding their May events.