The real-life implications of coronavirus fears have started to creep into the entertainment industry in earnest, as Tuesday brought news that Disney+ will cancel an event promoting its European launch. The Hollywood Reporter broke the news on Tuesday, as the service that originally was set to roll out on March 31 will now start streaming overseas on March 24.
Disney+ is already active in five countries, including the United States and Canada. The European launch was set to cover the U.K., Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria, and Switzerland. According to THR, the media event to introduce the service’s UK expansion on Thursday will not take place.
“Due to a number of media attendee cancellations and increasing concerns at the prospect of traveling internationally at this time, we have decided to cancel our Disney+ launch events scheduled to take place on Thursday and Friday,” a spokesperson said, adding that the executive press briefing would now take place next week over webcast.
The report indicated that journalists in the UK will still get access to product demonstrations in the Disney+ lounge, and there will be “alternate means” to get actors involved in Disney+ shows to promote the launch.
Disney is far from the only company taking precautions amid the spread of coronavirus. Twitter and Facebook have already confirmed that they will not attend Austin’s SXSW festival, while some gaming companies like Sony skipped PAX East in Boston over the weekend amid coronavirus concerns.
