The technology sector is increasingly aware of the effects of coronavirus. Companies close offices, shops, and factories in China, employees can no longer travel to the country. The closures are expected to continue until March 1st.

Affected companies include Apple, Samsung, Microsoft, Tesla, and Google. As many products are manufactured in China, experts warn that shortages in various product categories, such as smartphones, VR devices, cars, and other technological accessories, may occur. The closure of Foxconn and Pegatron’s factories in China, for example, is likely to delay the production of iPhones and Airpods.

Many short- and long-term effects are expected – from delayed events to companies that potentially miss their goal of launching holiday products due to closed production across the country. The Verge describes how coronavirus affects the industry.

Closed stores

Earlier this month, major technology companies announced that they would temporarily close all corporate offices, manufacturing factories and retail stores in China. These include Apple, Samsung, Microsoft, Tesla, and Google. Most of these closures were expected to continue until Sunday, February 9, although some companies did not specify when exactly the offices would reopen.

Apple’s HR Director Deirdre O’Brien wrote in a corporate email on February 7th that offices and malls are expected to open on the week of February 10th, while store openings are still being evaluated.

“Additional cleanup, health protocols and local restrictions around public spaces will all be factors in this decision”, she wrote. At the time, it was thought that this could have happened on Feb. 15 for many stores, according to Bloomberg. But that date has passed, and Apple is still paying attention to reopening stores. In a rare update to its forecasts, released on February 17, Apple said that “we are gradually reopening our retail stores and will continue to do so as steadily and safely as we can”. The company added that its corporate offices and centers in China are open.

Amazon has not yet announced the closure of offices in Beijing, Shenzhen, Shanghai or Guangzhou (there is no office in Wuhan where the virus originated), but requires staff to be approved for any travel to China. Employees traveling in and out of China are also advised to work from home for a period of 14 days before returning to the office.

Although Facebook has no offices in China, it also warned employees not to make minor trips to the country. LG and Razer have also issued similar prescriptions. Whether passengers can even get to China is another problem, as more than 50 airlines around the world have already stopped flights to and from the country.

Shortage of products and delay in sales

As many products are manufactured in China (or used by parts from Chinese suppliers), experts also warn customers to expect a shortage of a range of smartphones, VR glasses, cars, and other technology accessories. For example, the closures of Foxconn and Pegatron plants in China are expected to potentially delay the production of iPhone and AirPods, as plant workers are unable to resume work.

On Saturday, the Nikkei Asian Review reported that China was preventing Foxconn from reopening its factory in Shenzhen given the working and living conditions at that factory and that Foxconn had independently decided to leave its plant in Zhengzhou while awaiting a government review. The Zhengzhou factory, also known as the “iPhone Town”, is where most of the iPhones sold worldwide assemble. Bloomberg claims the Zhengzhou plant may have resumed limited production during the week of February 10, but with a small number of workers not traveling home for the New Year.

Facebook has also stopped taking new orders for its latest virtual reality gadget, Oculus Quest, citing the disease. “[Like] other companies, we expect a further impact on the production of our hardware due to the coronavirus. We take precautionary measures to ensure the safety of our employees, production partners, and customers and monitor the situation closely. We are working on restoring availability as soon as possible”, the company said in a statement to Android Central.

Quest could be ordered around the holiday season, but initially, the vendors said the glasses would be available again in early February, but the date was returned by March 10 for the 64GB version.

Asus also warned fans of the niche gamer ROG Phone II that the device would not be available again until further notice.

Due to factory closures, Tesla also delayed deliveries of Model 3, although the company said it expected a delay of “up to one and a half weeks”. It partially resumed production at the Shanghai plant on Monday, February 10.

Other Chinese brands expected to slow production are Oppo, Xiaomi, Lenovo, and Huawei.

Similarly, products in the technology sector that are expected to ship in early February are now being delayed due to the virus. These include the Nintendo Switch console, games and accessories, including the much-discussed Animal Crossing title, Ring Fit Adventure and The Outer Worlds.

In its February 17 investor update, Apple also warned that revenue would be lower than expected due to the impact of coronavirus on iPhone shipments and reduced retail traffic in China.

Bounce events

After a number of technology companies partially or completely withdrew from the World Mobile Congress (MWC) conference in Barcelona due to concerns about the coronavirus – including Sony, Amazon, Nvidia, LG Electronics, ZTE, and Ericsson – the GSM Association, which organizes MWC, has canceled the edition.

Some game developers also limit their trips to events. PlayStation, Oculus and Facebook Gaming have retired from the Game Developers Conference, and Sony has also announced it will skip Pax East.

Huawei, expected to host a developer conference in February, also postponed the event until late March. The second week of the big League of Legends tournament has also been delayed indefinitely since January 26, but the league has said it will host online competitions beginning on February 26.

Similarly, Blizzard announced that the Overwatch League matches were canceled in February and March, while the FIA ​​canceled plans for an upcoming Formula E race, due in late March. The April event for the PUBG Global Qualifying Games Competition to be held in Berlin has also been postponed until further notice.