NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 04: A cosplayer dressed as Judge Dredd during New York Comic Con 2018 at ... [+]
Updated 8/11/20, 1:40 pm ET.
ReedPOP, the division of Reed Exhibitions that organizes New York Comic Con and other fan-oriented events, just announced that the 2020 edition of NYCC will not run in person this year due to ongoing concerns about COVID-19.
The show was scheduled for the Javits Center in New York City on October 8-11 but has been suspended due to guidelines issued by the facility in accordance with New York City and State restrictions on holding large gatherings. Instead, organizers announced an official partnership with YouTube to exclusively stream panels and programming, premiers, announcements, fan contests and other content.
Last year organizers say the event sold over 250,000 tickets over four days and included a week of activities, sponsored events, pop-ups and more throughout New York, making it one of the largest fan gatherings in the world.
According to the announcement, the NYCC YouTube channel will exclusively stream panels from Starz (American Gods), CBS All Access (Star Trek), Dreamworks, Hulu and FX, with additional programming to be announced closer to the event. Panels will be a mix of pre-recorded and livestreamed. The company says YouTube will bring its experience moving events online to NYCC this fall.
Unlike the recent Comic-Con @Home event, which featured exclusively pre-recorded content, NYCC will have a live component. According to the announcement, fans will “be able to participate in talent Q&A’s during panels, turn every panel into a watch party and geek out with other fans using YouTube’s Community and Live Chat features.”
“We are thoroughly disappointed that we can’t gather together, in-person for the New York Comic Con we love to build and our fans love to revel in. We look forward to this weekend all year long, just like you, and with this being our 15th edition, we were particularly excited. I will miss walking up and down artist alley and seeing friends that I’ve made since we were in the basement at the Javits Center,” said Lance Fensterman, President of ReedPop. “While this year will definitely be a different experience, we are going to look to bring the best and most engaging event to our fans, exhibitors, and studios through our partnership with YouTube.”
Several large convention organizers, including ReedPOP, have moved their conventions online, providing a mix of pre-recorded panels, live events, and paid online celebrity meet-and-greets. The company announced that it will host a “Metaverse” event August 13-16 with online celebrity experiences, in addition to new releases, exclusive merchandise and an online marketplace.
NYCC is usually seen as the bookend to the big fan convention season that starts in March with ReedPOP’s Emerald City Comic Con and C2E2 shows in Seattle and Chicago, respectively. Over the past decade, fan conventions have grown to become events with a multi-billion dollar economic impact worldwide, bringing millions of fans together to celebrate their love for comics, science fiction, fantasy, horror and related genres. This year, the coronavirus pandemic wiped out every major event on the schedule except C2E2, which took place in late February-early March just prior to the national shutdowns.
For fans, the virtual events represent a way to replicate at least some of the excitement and immersion of real-world conventions, albeit without the in-person social elements or the cosplay component. They have also proven a boon for celebrities who can benefit from revenues from meet-and-greets without leaving home. However, the virtualization of physical shows has put a lot of specialized exhibitors and artists - who can derive as much as 50% of their annual revenue from convention sales - under increasing economic pressure. They also don’t provide the kind of intense media spotlight for announcements of new projects, or the opportunity to delight fans with immersive experiences, activations and pop-ups.
NYCC’s announcement comes a day after Newsweek ran a story saying NYCC had “no plans to cancel” this year’s event, which likely prompted some concern among New York state and local officials, who have been diligent about regulating large-scale gatherings during the pandemic. According to ReedPOP, “We have been in ongoing, close communication with the New York Convention Center Operating Corporation (NYCCOC), which operates the Javits Center, and following the protocols set forth in their Guide to Reopening the Javits Center, which at this time, does not provide a date for holding consumer events given the continued restrictions on large gatherings put in place by New York State and New York City.”
Note: This story has been updated with information about ReedPOP’s compliance with Javits Center protocols for holding large events.
