Leadership / 02.13.20

Coronavirus, Brexit & Empty Theaters: An Update on the Global Venue Landscape

Access Staff

Pollstar (02/06/20) Gottfried, Gideon

Panelists at the Pollstar Live! 2020 conference shared their views on the global venue industry, touching on the coronavirus outbreak and other key issues. Some panelists felt show cancellations are likely, as many artists touring Asia stop in China, which is the epicenter of the outbreak. On the subject of Brexit, the general feeling was that Britain's divorce from the European Union has not impacted the venue industry, although it remains too early to make any firm predictions. There was consensus that U.K. artists will have a tougher time touring mainland Europe, especially up-and-coming acts that cannot afford to add an extra tour day overseas just to cross borders. The Oak View Group's Brian Kabatznick highlighted venue market newcomers like the Madison Square Garden Sphere projects in Las Vegas and London, whose tripartite business model includes programming during the day with content they own, touring, and product launches/corporate events. AEG and SMG's merger into ASM Global also was a hot topic, with panelists debating whether the U.K. venue market is oversaturated. BookMyShow CEO Ashish Hemrajani predicted that India's economics of hosting live entertainment will be transformed by an emerging middle class, with his company planning to construct seven state-of-the art "cirque-type arenas on steroids" in some of India's largest cities.

Read the full story from Pollstar. 

Tags: News , Venues