The National Association of Broadcasters will not host its annual convention in Las Vegas this year.
The association canceled its show — scheduled for early next month — over concerns about the delta variant of the coronavirus, according to a news release.
Chris Brown, the association’s executive vice president, called the variant an “unexpected and insurmountable” challenge for event planners.
“It has become apparent in the face of these challenges that we can no longer effectively host NAB Show or our co-located events, the Radio Show and Sales and Management Television Exchange, in person,” Brown said in a statement.
Show organizers plan to bring the event back to Las Vegas in April. The 2019 event attracted more than 91,000 attendees, an association spokesman said.
A spokeswoman for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority said the organization has not had any other cancelations for 2021 shows.
“We deeply value our three-decade long partnership with NAB and will greatly miss seeing their exhibitors and attendees this fall,” Steve Hill, president and CEO of the LVCVA, said in a statement. “We eagerly await the show’s return in April.”
The COVID-19 test positivity rate in Nevada is about 11%, state health officials reported.