The annual New Year's Eve bell-ringing ceremony at the Bosingak Pavilion in central Seoul, which was cancelled for the first time in 67 years due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic, will be held virtually.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government on Tuesday, pre-recorded footage of the Bosingak bell and previous bell-ringing events will be broadcast on KBS, Arirang TV, TBS and the city government's SNS platforms.

The city government will also provide a virtual reality(VR) service of the bell-ringing event on its website in cooperation with SK Telecom.

Back-to-back messages of encouragement from members of the general public, including small business owners and young job-seekers who are struggling amid the pandemic, will be broadcast, as well as messages of hope from celebrities.

The city government plans to operate a safety team near the pavilion on New Year's Eve, as a quarantine measure to prevent a large gathering of people.