Frankfurt in 2020 will now be entirely a “digital book fair.”
Catching up with PW's Andrew Albanese
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On Tuesday, Frankfurt Book Fair organizers announced that the world’s largest publishing industry trade show would not hold any in-person events.
Since the COVID-19 crisis first emerged late last winter, book fair executives maintained that at least a limited on-site program would take place in October. Instead, Frankfurt in 2020 will now be entirely a “digital book fair.” Registrations for this year and all programs affiliated with the fair will be free through June 2021.
The move comes a month before the annual event and surprised almost no one, says Andrew Albanese, Publishers Weekly senior writer.
“Most of the publishing world did not expect that Frankfurt Book Fair would pull off a physical fair as usual,” he tells CCC’s Chris Kenneally.
“Americans were already not going – all the major US houses had backed out,” Albanese notes. “In an online interview following the announcement, Frankfurt Book Fair director Juergen Boos spoke of how new pandemic-related restrictions around the world, including in Europe as COVID-19 cases begin to tick up, meant that travel for people and for freight is just not feasible.”
Every Friday, CCC’s “Beyond the Book” speaks with the editors and reporters of “Publishers Weekly” for an early look at the news that publishers, editors, authors, agents and librarians will be talking about when they return to work on Monday.
