Cannes Lions Health has officially moved its annual June conference and awards to October. The decision to postpone the entire Cannes Lions advertising festival comes amid many global event postponements and cancellations due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The tentative new dates for the Lions in Cannes, France, is October 26-30. Cannes organizers sent an email to attendees just one week ago to flag the possibility of a move and promised a definitive answer by mid-April.
RELATED: AACR joins list of medical conferences to get axed, postponed amid coronavirus spread
Cannes organizers noted the decision was made in consultation with public health officials, as well as local Cannes and French authorities. The event, begun in the 1950s, draws more than 10,000 people from ad agencies and brand marketers from 90 countries around the world to the south of France for a week. Lions Health, the pharma and healthcare track established in 2014, runs for the first two days of the event.
“Our community is facing unprecedented challenges and collaboration has never been more important. We are focused now on planning the festival—and our beating heart, the Lions—to ensure our community is able to recognise the extraordinary work it contributes to business, organizations and society,” Simon Cook, managing director of Cannes Lions, said in a news release.
