Amid concerns about the global spread of the coronavirus, many conferences and exhibitions in the gaming industry have been postponed or cancelled altogether. However, organizers of the HTC Vive Ecosystem Conference (VEC), usually held in Shenzhen, China, took a slightly different approach.

Renamed the Virtual Vive Ecosystem Conference (V2EC), the event will take place on March 19 and will be held within Engage, a virtual reality training platform developed by Immersive VR Education The event will take place within Engage, a virtual reality training platform developed by Immersive VR Education. Participants will participate remotely, either by using a VR headset or by watching a live stream on a monitor.

Despite the unfortunate circumstances behind the change in venue, Alvin Wang Graylin, HTC's President for China, was quick to point out that attendance restrictions for keynotes may be lifted and that attendees will have the option to replay live sessions they missed, among other new He is quick to point out the unique advantages of the arrangement.

This practical demonstration of the utility of Vive technology to help maintain global communication, especially now that physical travel is unusually difficult, may pave the way for other industry events to transition to virtual reality in the future.

Official online registration for the conference opens March 10 and closes March 17.