The 27th Beijing International Book Fair (BIBF) will be held virtually for the first time in history. The event is going to take place on September 26.

As COVID-19 runs rampant across the world, many nations imposed strict lockdowns to curb the spread of the virus. A number of cultural activities have also faced the brunt of the coronavirus pandemic. Due to the current health crisis, The 27th Beijing International Book Fair (BIBF) will be held virtually for the first time in history. The event is going to take place on September 26, this year. As per reports, the first virtual book fair since the inaugural event back in 1986 will have an estimated of 400,000 books on display. Commenting on the event, the organizer of BIBF Lin Liying reportedly said that over 1000 exhibitors from 68 countries and places have registered online and uploaded nearly 23,000 copyrighted books. The BIBF organizer also added that among the exhibitors, 97 are new and 29 are from countries and areas along the Belt and Road. Nations like Uruguay, Cape Verde and Armenia will take part in the book fair for the first time. To make the event all the more interesting, new technologies like 5G, virtual reality and augmented reality will be used to display exhibitions and seminars.

Free registration to widen involvement in book fair

The fair will also provide all-weather online promotion, trade negotiation and other services for domestic and overseas publishers which will be available for a year. Registration will be free to widen the involvement with premium paid-for services also available to exhibitors to provide a full and rich BIBF experience. Cuba, this year’s Country of Honour, will host a series of events digitally like cultural exhibition, art exhibition, copyrighted books exhibition and reading event to promote cultural exchange and copyright trade between China and Cuba. A new ‘Smart Rights Link’ will provide an online matchmaking service, inviting exhibitors to upload their catalogues, display materials and clips, and offering recommendations with one-click invitations allowing visitors to create their own meetings schedule. This service will be free of charge until the end of this year. The virtual book fair is being co-hosted by the National Press and Publication Administration, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Beijing municipal government, the Publishers Association of China and China Writers Association. Reportedly, last year, over 2,600 publishers, representing 95 countries and regions, participated in the fair.