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Frankfurt reveals virtual program details

The organisers of the Frankfurt Book Fair, which will run from 12–18 October, have revealed the details of the fair’s virtual program, reports the Bookseller.

As previously reported, in May the fair announced plans to run a virtual program alongside a reduced physical event. Major publishers including HarperCollins, Bonnier Books UK and Pan Macmillan UK, as well as Simon & Schuster and Macmillan US, announced in June they would not attend the physical fair.

The digital program—which will be available for free thanks to German government funding—will be hosted on the Frankfurter Buchmesse’s website, offering streamed events and magazine-style content with clickable ads. It will offer an online conference program themed by day, covering academic and scholarly publishing, rights and licensing, publishing insights and audio. The virtual fair will also include Bookfest, a 16-hour live streamed events program aimed at the general public on 17 October.

The Frankfurt Rights platform will enable companies to create a rights catalogue presenting their titles and company. The platform, which launches mid-September, also allows publishers to contact rights holders directly.

Fair director Juergen Boos said they are still expecting European publishers and agents to attend in-person, but expect many exhibitors to make the decision to attend or not at the last minute.

 

Category: International news