The impact of the cancelled Leipzig Book Fair on publishers
Sabine Peschel als
March 6, 2020
The major spring meeting of the book industry in Leipzig is not taking place, and an alternative date is not in sight. It's a heavy blow for publishers, authors and the public — and not just a financial loss.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/J. Woitas
Advertisement
Germany's literary highlight of the spring, the Leipzig Book Fair, has been cancelled. That means that Manga-Comic-Con, Lesefest Leipzig and the 26th Leipzig Antiquarian Book Fair, for which around 50 exhibitors from Germany, Great Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, Austria and Poland had registered, will also not occur.
Instead, the Leipzig Book Fair, which was to run from March 12-15 and expected to draw 2,500 exhibitors and around 280,000 people, will have to reschedule. Thousands of trips and hotel rooms have to be cancelled. "The cancellation is bitter for us and for the entire book industry", said Oliver Zille, director of the Leipzig Book Fair.
All that is certain so far is that the next Leipzig Book Fair will not be held until March 2021. Unlike the world's biggest children's book fair in Bologna, which was initially postponed by six weeks, it didn't make sense to look for an alternative date in Leipzig.
Who pays for costs already incurred?
Hotel bookings, rail travel, stand fees: exhibitors at the Leipzig Book Fair had already ordered many services. Fees for the stands will be refunded, as the Leipzig Book Fair has been officially cancelled; entrance tickets will be refunded, and the railway company will also refund previously booked train tickets to Leipzig. The situation is different with commissioned forwarding agents, stand builders, and other service providers. "The exhibitor has to pay in full for work and services already carried out," as stated in the general terms and conditions of the Leipzig Book Fair.
15 nominated authors for the Leipzig Book Prize are wondering how one of them may end up actually grabbing hold of the awardImage: Tobias Bohm
Many exhibitors are at least relieved that the cancellation has not come at the last minute. "It is clear that many costs have already been incurred, but in this extraordinary situation, we will certainly not be squabbling over euros; we have to talk to each other now. The great imperative of the hour is goodwill — especially against the backdrop of the health hazard," said Britta Kierdorf, spokeswoman for the publishing house ArsEdition.
Economic damage due to lack of attention
"For the independent publishers, the cancellation is a disaster — even though we understand the necessity," said Britta Jürgs, chairwoman of the Kurt Wolff Foundation, which represents the interests of independent German publishers. "In Leipzig, we always have a very large forum and a very great deal of attention. The cancellation means economic losses."
But the fact that books will not be sold is not only the central matter. "It is above all the issue that our books and authors will not draw the attention they need. It's hard to make up for that and it means a big loss economically, too."
What to do with all the books? This was to be the first year when books were to be sold directly at the fair Image: picture-alliance/dpa/J. Woitas
Many book fans have already recognized this and have launched a campaign for smaller publishers on the internet. On Twitter, book lovers have eagerly been posting reading tips, particularly for books by independent publishers, under the hashtag #bücherhamstern — "book hamstering," in reference to the German term "hamsterkauf" used to describe some consumers' current behavior. The hashtag was spread by the Phantastik Autoren Netzwerk (PAN) since "small publishing houses normally make a considerable turnover at the Leipzig Book Fair," said PAN board chair Diana Menschig.
Events beyond the fair
For many smaller publishers, the main concern now is to rescue what they can. That is why other events are still scheduled to take place, such as the Kurt Wolff Foundation's major evening reading event on Saturday with 18 authors from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Further readings are also planned in cities such as Berlin, Munich and Cologne, where the major literature festival Lit.Cologne is still taking place as planned from March 10-21.
Publishers and authors on the net
Other publishers are moving some of their trade fair activities to online. Publishing house Carlsen Verlag, for example, is launching an online campaign on its website for the days during which the now cancelled trade fair was supposed to take place. Under the hashtag #LeidernichtLeipzig (unfortunately not Leipzig), readers get the chance "to meet some of the authors and explore subjects, at least virtually, that unfortunately cannot be experienced in Leipzig at the moment."
"Let us take the Leipzig Book Fair home to the readers," wrote author Karl-Ludwig von Wendt. Writing on Bookbytes, the digital blog of the book industry's specialist publication Börsenblatt, he suggests offering readings via live streams, which could include live chats. The author and entrepreneur can also envision a special edition of the magazine entitled Leipzig Book Fair at Home.
Major damage for the book industry
Even the large publishing houses have worked long and hard, now for nothing due to the cancellation. They have to reorient themselves. "We were in the middle of discussing whether to go to the fair when the official cancellation came," company spokeswoman Rebecca Klöber for publishing group Random House told DW. "We think the decision was the right one, but of course we think it's a great, great pity that it had to happen." The costs of the cancellation cannot yet be predicted. The various Random House publishers are still discussing alternative events with the authors originally invited.
It'll be all quiet at the Leipzig Book Fair location from March 12-15Image: picture-alliance/dpa/hwo
The damage is not so dramatic for long-established Reclam publishing house, said marketing and sales manager Karl-Heinz Fallbacher. "Overall, however, I believe the damage to the book industry is great." Leipzig has always been a trade fair that provided great advertising for books and reading. "It's a great pity that we can't take advantage of this this year."
The main negative economic impact is the personnel costs for months of preparation, but the real loss is the lack of interaction with customers, and in Reclam's case, with pupils, students or teachers.
Wanted: A framework for the awarding of prizes
Among the highlights of the book fair are the many awards, the most important of which is the Leipzig Book Prize for European Understanding, normally presented at the opening ceremony. This year, the Hungarian essayist, art theorist, literary critic and translator Laszlo Foldenyi will be honored for his book Melancholy.
On Friday, organizers of the Leipzig Book Fair Prize, an award endowed with €60,000 ($67,800), said that the winners will be revealed during a radio program by public broadcaster Deutschlandfunk Kultur. It is the first time that the ceremony for the award created in 2005 is not held publicly.
This article, first published on March 5, was updated on March 6.
The Bayreuth Festival canceled
Concerts, exhibitions and festivals worldwide have been called off due to the corona crisis. Now the Bayreuth Festival 2020 has been canceled as well.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/D. Karmann
All quiet on the Wagnerian front
An older audience packed in close quarters in a sweltering theater: for virus transmission, a horrific scenario. The Bayreuth Festival 2020 has been called off, for the first time in its 144-year history due to an epidemic. Rehearsals for the new production of the opera cycle "The Ring of the Nibelung" were to begin on April 1 - but now, the "Ring" can only premiere in 2022 at the earliest.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/D. Karmann
Berlin's major events
A day after Berlin announced that performances in major state-owned venues were to be canceled until April 19, city authorities have banned all events with more than 1,000 participants as well. "The coronavirus continues to spread. In such a phase, public life must be restricted," Berlin's local Health Minister Dilek Kalayci said.
Image: picture-alliance/imageBROKER/P. Seyfferth
Madonna and other concerts
Many major concerts have been canceled, including Madonna's last two dates of her "Madame X" tour in Paris. France has banned on Sunday public gatherings of more than 1,000 people. The Paris Opera has also canceled its performances.
Image: Getty Images/M. Campanella
St. Patrick's Day in Ireland
All Irish St. Patrick's Day parades, including Dublin's main celebration that draws around
500,000 revelers from all over the world each year, are canceled because of fears over the spread of COVID-19, state broadcaster RTE reported on Monday. Ireland's famous March 17 parades were also previously canceled in 2001 during an outbreak of foot and mouth disease.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/P. Morrison
Vatican museums
With quarantine measures in place in northern Italy, soccer matches occurring without spectators, and Italian Prime Minister Guiseppe Conte's order to close museums, theaters and cinemas, it should come as no surprise that the Vatican has closed the doors to its museums, including the Sistine Chapel (above), until probably April 3. In the Vatican itself, five people are currently in quarantine.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Stache
South by Southwest (SXSW)
This annual music, film and tech festival held in Austin, Texas, usually attracts more than 400,000 visitors. But less than a week before its March 12, 2020 start date, organizers decided to cancel in a bid to prevent the spreading of the coronavirus. There's a silver lining though: it may only be postponed and not canceled altogether.
The International Film Academy has announced that it would be postponing its awards ceremony, also known as Bollywood's Oscars, due to fears over the coronavirus outbreak. According to official numbers, India has been until now relatively unscathed by the epidemic. Actor Shah Rukh Khan (photo) was one the stars expected at the event planned for March 27; a new date has not been decided yet.
Image: AFP/Getty Images/S. Jaiswal
'No Time to Die'
James Bond perhaps has a little more time on his hands than the title of the upcoming film in the franchise suggests: "No Time to Die" producers have decided to push back the release of the movie to November. Daniel Craig's last outing as 007 was initially planned for April. It's the first Hollywood blockbuster to shift its release schedule in reaction to the coronavirus outbreak.
Image: Imago Images/Zuma Press/MGM
Venice Architecture Biennale
The start of the world's most prestigious architecture biennale has also been delayed. Instead of opening in May, it will run from August 29 to November 29 — three months later than planned. The theme of the event takes on a new meaning amid current developments: "How do we live together?"
Image: picture-alliance/S. Lubenow
London Book Fair
Due to take place March 10-12, the book fair was canceled "with reluctance," said organizers, after several major publishers such as HarperCollins and Penguin Random House pulled out of the event to avoid exposing their staff to the virus. The London Book Fair usually draws more than 25,000 authors and book industry insiders.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/C. De Souza
Musikmesse Frankfurt
Europe's biggest trade fair for the music industry also announced that it was postponing the event, which was set to celebrate its 40th anniversary on April 2-4. While it was deemed to be "the only responsible and right decision to take," the cancellation is bound to affect many small businesses in the music industry, said Christian Höppner, secretary general of the German Music Council.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F. Sommer
Leipzig Book Fair
Change of plans for book fans: The Leipzig Book Fair, scheduled to be held March 12-15, was canceled due to the spread of the new coronavirus, a spokesperson for the fair announced on March 3. The second-largest book fair in Germany expected to draw 2,500 exhibitors from 51 countries.
Image: Stiftung Buchkunst/Carolin Blöink
ITB Travel Trade Show Berlin
Preparations for the world's largest travel fair were already in full swing when the organizers canceled it at the last minute. Due to the ongoing virus threat, participants to the Berlin fair had to prove they had not been to one of the defined risk areas. With 170,000 visitors from all over the world, this proved to be an impossible task and the fair couldn't open on March 4 as planned.
Image: Imago/V. Hohlfeld
Milan Design Week
Each April, thousands of design professionals, artists and companies visit Milan to check out the latest in furniture and interior design. This year, however, organizers have announced it will be moved to June due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Milan is the capital of the Lombardy region, which has seen the lion's share of Italian coronivirus cases. Some airlines have even suspended their flights.
Image: Phillip K. Smith
La Scala opera house
There is perhaps no venue more symbolic of Italy's rich operatic tradition than the La Scala opera house in Milan. Now, its seats will remain empty until March 8. Italy's Prime Minister called for the suspension of cultural events and the venue is sticking to the rules. At the time of writing, Italy has more cases of the new coronavirus than any country outside of Asia.
Image: AP
K-pop concerts
The reigning K-pop boy band BTS does big business with each concert, but in the wake of the virus in South Korea, the group canceled four April dates at the Seoul Olympic Stadium, which seats 69,950 people. "It's impossible to predict the scale of the outbreak," said the group's management. On Tuesday, cases in South Korea reached 5,100 with the majority of infections in the city of Daegu.
Image: Facebook/BTS Official
'Mission Impossible'
No, we aren't describing the task of containing the new coronavirus, but rather the new movie starring Tom Cruise which was supposed to have a three-week shoot in Venice. The film has been postponed, movie studio Paramount Pictures said Monday. Venice's cultural events have been hard hit by the outbreak. The final two days of lagoon city's annual Carnival festival were also canceled.
On February 28, the Swiss government imposed a ban on events of more than 1,000 people until March 15, making it the first European country to do so as a preemptive measure to fight against the spread of the illness. As a result, many concerts and events were called off, including concerts by Carlos Santana (pictured) and Alice Cooper at the 15,000-person Hellenstadion in Zürich.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
The Hamburg Ballet
The Hamburg Ballet John Neumeier canceled guest performances in Macau and Singapore due to the coronavirus outbreak. On the program were "The Lady of the Camellias," which tells the story of a famous Parisian courtesan and "Nijinsky." Whether the tour will take place at another point in time is still in the air. In spring 2021 the Hamburg Ballet plans to tour in Japan.
