Author Topic: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?  (Read 63585 times)

Offline accelerate

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #540 on: April 02, 2020, 10:27:17 PM »
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The problem with that is that hotel booking for August has been open for 8 months already, so blocking off enough rooms for the hotel sale for August (or any other time this year) would be very difficult at this point.

That's just one of many difficulties. I've made this post before, but I'll re-iterate:

* The aforementioned hotels. You can already book now for any potential rescheduled week. CCI would have to get all the hotels to buy in to a new date and have all the remaining rooms blocked off simultaneously, all before word gets out that SDCC has been rescheduled. Because as soon as rumor leaks that CCI is being rescheduled, you can bet people will figure out what week, and then try to book hotels before they can be blocked off. And if one hotel blocks off rooms before the others, you can bet someone will notice, and word will spread like wildfire, and boom, rooms booked before full blockage can occur.

* Can you get all exhibitors and artists to commit to a new date, especially the major ones that long-time con-goers expect to be there (like Sideshow, Blizzard, Star Wars, Tokidoki, Nintendo, that major t-shirt vendor that has like three booths). Some may not feel safe enough to exhibit, some may have prior commitments, and some may be trying to reschedule dates with other cons. Also, what if Marvel or WB/DC or Dark Horse cannot commit? That's a lot of empty floor space.

* How do you deal with people with badges who don't want to go to the postponed SDCC, or can't go? Do they get to defer to next year, or will they only be offered straight refunds? If the latter, that's highly unfair considering those who get refunds won't be able to participate in Returning Registration. If they do get to defer, that means less badges available for 2021, which makes Registration a more heartbreaking process. And if people do get to defer, and those people only happened to get 1-2 days for 2020, that means they'll have an extra 2 chances to get all four days for 2021? Or perhaps maybe CCI will say, you get to refund for 2020, but you still get to participate in both Registrations for 2021?

* Even if we flatten the curve, the virus will be far from eliminated by August. So do you make people take their temperatures at the door? Do you do a light screen and forbid obviously sick people from entering? What if word gets out that someone who was in the Exhibit Hall has COVID-19? Do you shut it all down? Let's say this happened on Preview Night, meaning attendees are still getting into San Diego. You just screwed over a bunch of attendees who, maybe they could've deferred but chose not to. How do you deal with lines? Do you make people more spread out like they have in grocery stores now?

There's so many questions / problems that CCI would have to address for a postponed SDCC that I can't possibly see them making that decision to reschedule.

Offline chocolateshake

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #541 on: April 03, 2020, 12:02:23 PM »
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Still too early to tell. No one is saying that heat and humidity stops COVID completely, the hypothesis is that it’s a factor in slowing the spread.

Covid continues to spike in hot and humid countries.  In Guayaquil, Ecuador the morgues are full and bodies are being left on the street.  The head of the task force there says they pick up 30-150 bodies a day.  This while the official numbers are only 60 people dead of covid in Guayaquil.

The low official numbers where it's hot and humid are because they don't have the resources to test.  Covid doesn't seem to be bothered by the tropical weather.  The spread is happening even with an extreme lockdown.  In Ecuador it's being enforced by the military with a complete curfew between 7pm and 5am.  Which is reflected in the Google data.  People in Ecuador are staying home.

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #542 on: Today at 04:57:30 AM »

Offline sefton42

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #542 on: April 03, 2020, 12:24:17 PM »
Disney seems to think we’ll be back in movie theaters then — Mulan’s been rescheduled for July 24.

Offline NCDS

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #543 on: April 03, 2020, 02:46:54 PM »
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Disney seems to think we’ll be back in movie theaters then — Mulan’s been rescheduled for July 24.

That must be their release in China  ;D
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Offline sassafrass

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #544 on: April 04, 2020, 12:04:29 PM »
I know I haven't posted a lot , but I have to imagine comic con will be postponed pretty far out if not canceled completely this year,
There has to be a ton of prep that's hasn't been happening for the last couple of months which I'm sure put them behind then you have to look at the international Travelers and everyone across country, how many people are wanting to fly right now and how easy is it going to be to fly on top of how many people will be comfortable being around hundreds of thousands of people that close to this virus potentially passing , also how many actors and artists are going to want to put themselves at risk that close out, unfortunately I can't see Comic-Con actually happening this year and even if it does I'm not sure it could be at the level everyone would come to expect

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Offline accelerate

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #545 on: April 07, 2020, 01:28:00 PM »
Pipe dream / wishful thinking scenario:

In the event that SDCC is cancelled, CCI should still mail us badges, perhaps with the tag: "The con that wasn't". As an example, for this year's Wrestlemania, WWE made a special t-shirt for it:
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Of course, CCI would be hurting for cash, so this would never happen. Or maybe they could offer it in an online store along with commemorative t-shirts like what WWE has.

Offline taka

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #546 on: April 07, 2020, 01:35:36 PM »
Speaking of cash, how likely is the scenario where they cancel, refund all badges because they need to increment the cost of the badges for 2021? even a few extra dollars could make a diference to them cuz being nonprofit right?

Offline stl_ben

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #547 on: April 07, 2020, 02:35:56 PM »
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Speaking of cash, how likely is the scenario where they cancel, refund all badges because they need to increment the cost of the badges for 2021? even a few extra dollars could make a diference to them cuz being nonprofit right?
anything is possible. They could cancel and not allow any refunds. That’s what sxsw did. Just gave the option to roll over the pass to a future year.

Offline sefton42

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #548 on: April 07, 2020, 03:12:53 PM »
SXSW did that because they had a strict no refund policy anyway.  SDCC obviously allows refunds, so they can’t do that.

Offline MickeyJack

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #549 on: April 07, 2020, 04:53:54 PM »
From my point of view, CCI handled the cancellation of WonderCon very well. I got a no-hassle refund for the convention and from OnPeak for the hotel without having to do a thing. I have every confidence that they will treat SDCC with the same professionalism and class.


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Offline Miclpea

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #550 on: April 07, 2020, 05:20:18 PM »
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From my point of view, CCI handled the cancellation of WonderCon very well. I got a no-hassle refund for the convention and from OnPeak for the hotel without having to do a thing. I have every confidence that they will treat SDCC with the same professionalism and class.


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Agreed!


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Offline stl_ben

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #551 on: April 07, 2020, 08:43:42 PM »
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SXSW did that because they had a strict no refund policy anyway.  SDCC obviously allows refunds, so they can’t do that.
unless it’s decided after the no refund date.....

Offline AzT

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #552 on: April 10, 2020, 10:11:39 AM »
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San Diego’s single biggest convention — Comic-Con International, which fills hotel rooms to capacity every July — has yet to cancel, but it’s unlikely it will be able to hold its gathering of 135,000 given the kind of social distancing requirements that may well still be in place this summer, said Tourism Authority CEO Joe Terzi.

“They are evaluating any financial liability they might have with a cancellation, and once they determine that, they’ll make a decision,” Terzi said. “Based on our knowledge of the event, it will be very difficult for them to have that event in July. With other events you could do things to keep people separate, but Comic-Con is a whole different animal, it’s a massive sea of people.”

In an email sent earlier this month to the more than 50 hotels that are part of the convention room block for Comic-Con, the Tourism Authority pointed out that organizers are having to consider canceling the show and needed assurances from the hotels, should the gathering be called off, that “any cancellation fees or penalties for this year’s event be waived as we work through this challenging process. Comic-Con continues to be a loyal partner and important economic generator for the City of San Diego and has been for over 50 years.”

So far, a majority of hotels have agreed to the request, and the Tourism Authority, which oversees the booking of larger citywide meetings at the convention center, is awaiting the responses from the rest of the properties, Terzi said.

Comic-Con said Thursday it is still weighing its options and hopes to make an announcement soon. It is also exploring the possibility of an “online component” should the convention not take place, said spokesman David Glanzer.

“We understand that many stakeholders rely upon our conventions as a major portion of their yearly income and livelihood, but we are truly in uncharted territory,” Glanzer said. “We do not want to disappoint the people who have saved, planned, and are looking forward to the show this summer, but the primary concern, what is chief among all our concerns, is the health and safety of not only our attendees, but the public as well.”

Offline daudino

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #553 on: April 10, 2020, 10:38:33 AM »
Not San Diego, but this what our Governor in Illinois said about big summer events in Chicago like the Taste of Chicago (July) and Lollapalooza (July into August) which also feature tons of people densely packed in together, albeit outdoors.

“I think everybody needs to think seriously about canceling large summer events,” the governor said.

He says he knows this is not the news people want to hear, but it may be our reality.

“I do not see how we are going to have large gatherings of people, again, until we have a vaccine, which is months and months away,” Pritzker said.

Offline DaveG

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Re: Could CCI cancel SDCC 2020 due to the Coronavirus?
« Reply #554 on: April 10, 2020, 11:08:39 AM »
Also not San Diego, but today another of our major festivals in Milwaukee (German Fest) scheduled for July 24-26 was cancelled.  I think just about all gatherings through the end of July in our city have now been either postponed or cancelled.

Also, noted that the article on San Diego focuses on cancellation and says nothing about the possibility of postponement.  That leads me to believe postponement may not be a viable option.