An article from NPR stated that Google is the most recent company to postpone a large event and prevent employee travel. This is in response to the alarming spread of the coronavirus outbreak.

The Decision to Cancel

The large tech company had canceled its conference with flagship developers called I/O. The event was supposed to occur in May in Mountain View, California. Last year, its three-day event attracted 7,000 participants.

According to Google, the decision to cancel the event is due to the increasing concern regarding the threats of the COVID-19. Their decision was also from the health advice provided by WHO, CDC, and other health authorities. It also announced that it will give 100% refunds to those who had already bought tickets to the event. 

Evolving the Event to Virtual Platforms

According to the tech giant, it will be looking for other methods to "evolve" the event. They are suggesting the possibilities of streaming live the event or conducting remote sessions. 

Other companies like the IMF and World Banks had announced that it will conduct conferences and other gatherings through virtual means.

Preventing Employees' International Travels

Google had also announced that it will halt international employee travels. Google reported that one of its employees in its office in Zurich had tested positive for the deadly coronavirus. 

Other Companies Doing Similar Precautionary Measures

Different businesses from various sectors are also restricting travel policies. Additionally, they are also avoiding conferences and other occasions. 

Other companies, for example, Twitter, is asking its employees to work from home.

It is perceived that the restrictions being imposed by these companies will greatly impact the travel sector of the country. Also, the restrictions will affect the country's economy and local vendors in the places where the canceled events occur. 

Here are some of the companies planning to cancel events and travel:

  • Adobe had canceled its yearly summit in Las Vegas. They will transform the event into an online experience. 
  • Amazon is prohibiting all its non-essential staff to travel. The travel ban includes within the United States of America.
  • Apple had also prohibited its employees from traveling to Italy, South Korea, and China.
  • Facebook had canceled its biggest event for the year. The F8 developers' conference in May is halted. It will be replaced by live-stream content and other local-scale events.
  • JPMorgan is also prohibiting is non-essential employees to travel. 
  • Microsoft had canceled its MVP Summit. It shared that it will transform the event into a virtual one.
  • Salesforce is not allowing international travel. It had also set restrictions to "all but the most critical" domestic travel. It is also in the process of converting events for its customers to digital means.
  • Square, a payments company from San Francisco is encouraging its staff to work from home. It had also stopped non-essential business travel abroad and within the United States.
  • Twitter is requesting its employees to work from home. The company's workers from South Korea, Japan, and Hong Kong are being required by the company to work from home. It had stopped all non-critical business events and travels.