The National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE) market, which is held annually in Budapest, Hungary, has been postponed to June 2022, and organizers have also ruled out a virtual edition for this year.
“In the light of ongoing developments concerning the rise of the Delta Variant of COVID-19 and travel restrictions preventing travel into Hungary, as well as restrictions on large scale meetings for those there, we have come to the decision to postpone NATPE BudapestInternational until June 2022, when we can again meet in-person and properly serve the CEE and MENA region,” the organizers said in a statement on Monday.
“As the pandemic evolves and our focus shifts towards getting back together in-person, we have also decided to forgo a virtual edition of the event,” the statement added. “We look forward to seeing everyone together and face-to-face at NATPE Streaming Plus in Los Angeles on Sept. 14 and NATPE Miami in January 2022, where we expect participation from every corner of the world and every aspect of the content industry.”
The event was originally due to take place Aug. 30-Sept. 2 as an in-person event with virtual elements.
Hungary has closed its border to most foreign nationals due to the pandemic and air travel is restricted. From June 24, the country permitted unrestricted land entry from Austria, Croatia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and Slovenia.
The number of active infections in Hungary are 40,697. There are 132 new daily cases, with nine deaths, according to figures released by the Hungarian government.
Some 5.45 million people have received their first jabs, and 4.84 million have been fully vaccinated.
People who have received their first vaccine dose are issued with an Immunity Certificate by the government. Only Immunity Certificate-holding adults may visit leisure facilities including theaters and cinemas. People aged 16-18 can visit cinemas and theaters without adults if they have Immunity Certificates. Mask-wearing is not mandatory. Adult Immunity Certificate holders and their under-18 children can also attend sport and cultural events, where they are not required to wear a mask.
However, the maximum gathering size is 200, for weddings.