Coronavirus: Dublin Tech Summit, Comic Con and charity walk among casualties

A number of major tech-focused conferences due to take place in Dublin in the coming months have been postponed due to the spread of the coronavirus.

The Dublin Tech Summit (DTS), due to take place next month, has been postponed until September 9th and 10th. The event typically attracts up to 10,000 attendees to the RDS.

“Based on the information provided by leading health organisations and the outlook on Covid-19, we have made the decision to reschedule Dublin Tech Summit from our planned April date,” a spokeswoman said.

FutureScope, a one-day event run by the Dublin Business Innovation Centre, was due to take place on April 1st at the Convention Centre Dublin but had been postponed until a date to be confirmed in the fourth quater of the year.

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Dublin’s Comic Con which was due to take place on Saturday and Sunday at the Convention Centre Dublin has been postponed until August.

The organisers stated: “This has been a very hard decision for us to make. We are fans, first and foremost, and DCC is a big part of who we are. These shows are a labour of love and it is not a decision taken lightly.

“Along with the venue and guests, we have done all we can to keep the show going in a safe manner and give people something positive to be excited for, an escape from reality for a few hours during what are very trying times.”

Online-only

The organisers of the Web Summit last week said its sister conference, Collision, which was to be held in Toronto in June, will now be an online-only event due to the spread of the coronavirus, also known as Covid-19.

Separately, mental health charity Aware and Dublin Port Company have cancelled their annual St Patrick's Day Harbour2Harbour fundraising walk. The walk last year attracted more than 1,800 participants and is to be rescheduled on a date in the autumn.

The Cork Lifelong Learning Festival, due to start on March 29th, has also been cancelled after considering expert advice on the coronavirus.

“It is with a heavy heart that we need to postpone this year’s Cork Lifelong Learning Festival, however, the welfare of attendees, hosts and participants is our primary concern,” said festival co-ordinator Siubhán McCarthy.

“We would like to take this opportunity to thank all our funders, sponsors, hosts and friends for their preparation, planning and support over the past few months. We look forward to working with you in the future”.