BBC News By David Silverberg Thomas Capone enjoys attending conferences where he can meet other tech-savvy entrepreneurs face-to-face. The boss of the New York Distance Learning Association always takes advantage of the opportunity to expand his network of contacts. "To bond with other people in your space, that's always great," he says. "Conferences are a rich environment to connect with people." But when lockdowns rippled across the world in 2020, conferences, trade shows and conventions were forced to shut down their physical events and either cancel them outright or provide an online version where attendees could view talks and panel discussions.