Disney's plans to celebrate the European launch for the company's streaming service Disney+ have been canceled out of COVID-19 coronavirus worries.
According to Deadline, the European Disney+ launch event was scheduled to take place on March 5 at the Exhibition London venue and was said to include presentations from Disney creatives and executives. Hundreds were expected for the press party, but out of fear of the rapidly-spreading coronavirus and its unknown factors, the party was canceled. Instead, Disney will hold a showcase for select journalists on Friday and online means to promote the launch of the service in Europe.
"Due to a number of media attendee cancellations and increasing concerns at the prospect of traveling internationally at this time, we have decided to cancel our Disney+ launch events scheduled to take place on Thursday and Friday," Disney explained.
While the extravagant launch party was canceled, Disney+ is still set to launch on March 24 in France, the U.K., Spain, France, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Ireland and Germany. Meanwhile, Disney+ will be available to Belgium, Portugal and other Western European markets in summer 2020. Monthly subscriptions rates are priced at £5.99/€6.99, while annual subscriptions are £59.99/€69.99.
Disney+ saw the debut of exclusive content such as The Mandalorian and High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, both of which have already begun production on their respective second seasons.