Michael Dell (CEO - Dell Technologies)
Dell Technologies World 2020 will run as a virtual event in response to rising coronavirus concerns across local, regional and global markets.
Set for 4-7 May in Las Vegas, the flagship conference plays host to industry executives from Dell Technologies and VMware, in addition to customers and channel partners from around the world.
“Because nothing is more important than the health and safety of our team members, customers, partners and suppliers, we have decided to make Dell Technologies World 2020 a virtual event,” a company statement read. “This decision was not made lightly. As we learn more about the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak, we know this is the right thing to do, given the global nature of Dell Technologies World.”
The embracing of a virtual event as opposed to outright cancellation mirrors a similar approach by Google Cloud, who recently switched its annual partner and customer event, Google Next ‘20, to an entirely digital affair.
“The core of what we set out to accomplish together is still important, which is why we will deliver keynotes, select breakout sessions and live chats with experts as a virtual experience,” a statement from Dell Technologies added. “Thank you to the customers and partners who had planned to join us in Las Vegas.”
For customers and partners that booked a reservation at the Venetian or Palazzo as part of the Dell Technologies World room block, the vendor said such rooms will be automatically cancelled; "please do not contact the hotel directly. We will be following up with you shortly and will post more details here.”
As reported by Channel Asia, major collaboration and video conferencing software vendors are now offering products to users at no extra cost in response to the spread of coronavirus.
Concerns about the Covid-19 virus have led to a boom in remote working, as organisations encourage employees to stay home and a growing number of conferences are cancelled.
While many companies have seen their stock prices take a battering because of the disruption caused by the virus, software vendors that enable remote work such as video conference software provider Zoom have seen stock prices climb dramatically.
During the past week, Microsoft, Google and Cisco have started to offer some services for free to those who need remote collaboration capabilities.
