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E3, the annual video games convention in Los Angeles, has been cancelled due to \u201coverwhelming concerns\u201d about the spread of coronavirus, organizers have said.<\/p>\nE3, the annual video games convention in Los Angeles, has been cancelled due to \u201coverwhelming concerns\u201d about the spread of coronavirus, organizers have said.<\/p>\n
The convention, which had been due to take place in June, is one of the world\u2019s largest gaming trade shows \u2013 with more than 100,000 attendees visiting each year.<\/p>\n
High-profile industry names including Xbox, Nintendo, Ubisoft, and Sega were among those set to appear at the conference, which had been due to run from June 9-11.<\/p>\n
It comes as the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed 17 cases of Covid-19 as of March 10.<\/p>\n
The announcement also follows a number of other cancelled events within the technology sector, including Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona which was due to happen in February, as well as March\u2019s South by Southwest (SXSW) arts and technology festival in Texas.<\/p>\n
Google has also called off its annual developer conference, while Facebook had decided to pull the \u201cin-person component\u201d of its F8 developer convention and replace it with locally-hosted events and live streams.<\/p>\n
In a statement, E3 organizers the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) said: \u201cAfter careful consultation with our member companies regarding the health and safety of everyone in our industry \u2013 our fans, our employees, our exhibitors and our longtime E3 partners \u2013 we have made the difficult decision to cancel E3 2020, scheduled for June 9-11 in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n
\u201cFollowing increased and overwhelming concerns about the Covid-19 virus, we felt this was the best way to proceed during such an unprecedented global situation. We are very disappointed that we are unable to hold this event for our fans and supporters. But we know it\u2019s the right decision based on the information we have today.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur team will be reaching out directly to exhibitors and attendees with information about providing full refunds.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are also exploring options with our members to co-ordinate an online experience to showcase industry announcements and news in June 2020. Updates will be shared on E3expo.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe thank everyone who shared their views on reimagining E3 this year. We look forward to bringing you E3 2021 as a reimagined event that brings fans, media and the industry together in a showcase that celebrates the global video game industry.\u201d<\/p>\n E3 \u2013 also known as the Electronic Entertainment Expo \u2013 started in 1995, attracting thousands of people from across the gaming industry each year.<\/p>\n Sony, makers of the PlayStation console, had already confirmed it would not be attending the event for the second year in a row \u2013 although that decision was not linked to the outbreak of Covid-19.<\/p>\n The cancellation comes during an important year for the video games industry, with both PlayStation and Microsoft \u2013 makers of the Xbox \u2013 due to launch their next-generation consoles at the end of the year.<\/p>\nShare this:<\/h3>