Over the past several days, multiple companies and artists have pulled out of participating in SXSW 2020 due to concerns surrounding coronavirus. Now, SXSW 2020 has been canceled, Austin Mayor Steve Adler announced. “I’ve issued an order that effectively cancels South by Southwest,” Adler said during a press conference today (March 6). “There was no path forward that would mitigate the risk enough to protect our community.” The press conference also included officials from the city of Austin and the surrounding county. Find that below.
SXSW released an official statement to confirm the cancelation. “SXSW will faithfully follow the city’s directions. We are devastated to share this news with you,” it reads. “‘The show must go on’ is in our DNA, and this is the first time in 34 years that the March event will not take place.” Find the full statement below.
City of Austin Cancels SXSW March Events
The City of Austin has cancelled the March dates for SXSW and SXSW
EDU. SXSW will faithfully follow the City’s directions.We are devastated to share this news with you. “The show must go on”
is in our DNA, and this is the first time in 34 years that the March
event will not take place. We are now working through the
ramifications of this unprecedented situation.As recently as Wednesday, Austin Public Health stated that “there’s no
evidence that closing SXSW or any other gatherings will make the
community safer.” However, this situation evolved rapidly, and we
honor and respect the City of Austin’s decision. We are committed to
do our part to help protect our staff, attendees, and fellow
Austinites.We are exploring options to reschedule the event and are working to
provide a virtual SXSW online experience as soon as possible for 2020
participants, starting with SXSW EDU. For our registrants, clients,
and participants we will be in touch as soon as possible and will
publish an FAQ.We understand the gravity of the situation for all the creatives who
utilize SXSW to accelerate their careers; for the global businesses;
and for Austin and the hundreds of small businesses – venues,
theatres, vendors, production companies, service industry staff, and
other partners that rely so heavily on the increased business that
SXSW attracts.We will continue to work hard to bring you the unique events you love.
Though it’s true that our March 2020 event will no longer take place
in the way that we intended, we continue to strive toward our purpose
– helping creative people achieve their goals.