The Frankfurt Book Fair has canceled even the limited live attendance at the fairgrounds and made it a totally virtual event. It will be an online fair with some events in the city of Frankfurt but without the traditional exhibition which has been deemed unfeasible due to the travel restrictions stemming from the Covid-19 pandemic.
The FBF from 14 to 18 October 2020 will have an extensive digital program for publishing professionals, exciting online events at BOOKFEST digital for an international readership, as well as live events in Frankfurt on the ARD Book Fair Stage in the Festhalle and some 80 events as part of BOOKFEST city. The book fair’s traditional on-site exhibition is being canceled this year due to the corona pandemic since current travel restrictions would prevent numerous country stands from being realized as planned. In addition, the quarantine requirements that will be enforced on 1 October 2020 make it nearly impossible for European exhibitors and trade visitors to participate.
“Frankfurter Buchmesse is not only the world’s largest book fair, it is also a constantly evolving enterprise. Lively, agile and adaptable. Given the current situation, this means a fair without an on-site exhibition in 2020 because of the more stringent corona restrictions being imposed once again. However, events in Frankfurt am Main and other cities will allow people to experience the thrill books can provide – live in Frankfurt, as well as through livestreams and recordings accessible at the viewer’s convenience,” says Karin Schmidt-Friderichs, chairwoman of the German Publishers & Booksellers Association (Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels). “We would like to thank the German federal and state governments, especially Federal Culture Commissioner Monika Grütters, Hessian Minister President Volker Bouffier and Hessian Minister of Economics Tarek Al-Wazir, for their continued support.”
“Frankfurter Buchmesse thrives on international exchange. We would like to thank all exhibitors for their confidence and willingness to help realize a physical version of Frankfurter Buchmesse 2020,” says Juergen Boos, Director of Frankfurter Buchmesse. “Now the focus will be on our digital offerings. We have expanded our numerous existing services in recent months into a detailed offer of digital services and online events. That means international publishing professionals will be able to use known and new digital venues to drive their business forward, even in times of corona. And the reading public will have the opportunity to express its enthusiasm for books in two ways: online and at events in Frankfurt.”
Frankfurt Rights
Frankfurt Rights is Frankfurter Buchmesse’s new platform for the international rights and license trade – for acquiring (audio-)book licenses, selling translation rights, and discovering suitable material for film productions. It brings together all the players in the rights and licenses trade. New business contacts can be made, publisher’s profiles and catalogs can be browsed and personal favorite lists of titles can be created. Furthermore, sample chapters or other preview materials can be shared and messages from colleagues and business partners can be sent and received. Frankfurt Rights will be available online at www.buchmesse.de from 1 October 2020.
