Sony closes offices in UK, Poland as Coronavirus concerns spread

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Sony has closed offices in the UK and Poland as concerns over the spread of Coronavirus grow.

The company has shuttered three of its buildings in Europe for the remainder of the week, with its London, Paris and Gdynia (Poland) offices affected.

Sony’s decision, first reported by UK trade Broadcast, is a precautionary measure taken after one of its London employees travelled to an affected area. None of its staff have tested positive for the virus, however.

All of Sony’s other office across Europe are open, while the company’s UK prodcos, which include Electric Ray and Fable Pictures, also remain unaffected.

In a memo to staff seen by TBI, Sony said: “The health and well-being of our employees is of the utmost importance. We thought it was important to share with you that one of our London employees may have been exposed to coronavirus COVID-19 given recent travels to an affected area.

“Out of an abundance of caution, the London, Paris and Gdynia offices will be closed for the remainder of the week, and employees should work from home.”

WarnerMedia and NBCUniversal have also introduced travel restrictions and yesterday, a European launch event for Disney+ was cancelled in light of the rapid spread of Coronavirus.

Elsewhere, MIPTV organiser Reed Midem continues to monitor developments after the Coronavirus outbreak spread in France, while Series Mania officials yesterday said their event in Lille will take place later this month as planned but unveiled a raft of “hygiene measures”.