COVID-19 concerns: Samsung not to join MWC 2021 physically

South Korean electronics giant Samsung will skip in-person exhibitions at the upcoming Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2021 in Barcelona due to COVID-19 concerns. The company, however, plans to participate in the event online.

As per reports, Samsung will not showcase its products and technologies offline at MWC, which is said to be one of the top three tech events in the world, along with the Consumer Electronics Show in the United States and IFA in Germany. The event will be held between June 28 and July 1 in Barcelona, Spain.

Samsung, in a statement, said, “The health and safety of our employees, partners and customers is our number one priority, so we have made the decision to withdraw from exhibiting in-person at this year’s MWC.”

“We look forward to participating virtually and continuing to work with GSMA and industry partners to advance new mobile experiences,” it added.

The mega tech event, focussed on mobile technologies, has been held in Barcelona usually between February-end and early-March each year, but it was cancelled last year due to the global pandemic, and this year, it was pushed back to June.

Other tech majors such as Sony, Nokia and Ericsson, have already announced their withdrawals from the event due to the novel coronavirus concerns, according to reports.

Another Korean electronics behemoth LG is unlikely to join the event, as it recently decided to pull out from the smartphone business.