E3, one of the world's biggest gaming events, is reportedly being canceled over coronavirus fears
- E3, one of the world's biggest gaming and computing events, is reportedly about to be canceled.
- According to an anonymous source who spoke to Bloomberg, the event's cancelation is set to be announced Wednesday, March 11.
- The event is the video game industry's flagship annual gathering and typically features major announcements about new consoles and games.
- E3's organizer, the Entertainment Software Association, is reported to be "exploring options for an online E3 event this summer," with the event having originally been penciled in for June.
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E3 is reportedly about to be canceled.
According to an anonymous source familiar with the matter who spoke to Bloomberg, the event's cancelation is set to be announced Wednesday, March 11 at 9:30 am Los Angeles time.
E3 is the video game industry's flagship annual gathering, and typically features major announcements about new consoles and games. Nintendo, Microsoft, and 2K were among the major names announcing titles at 2019's E3.
E3's organizer, the Entertainment Software Association, is reported to be "exploring options for an online E3 event this summer," with the event having originally been penciled in for June.
There were potentially reduced expectations for E3 2020 after PlayStation maker Sony declined to participate in the event back in January. Sony said E3 did not feel like "the right venue for what we are focused on this year," marking the second consecutive year it has shunned E3.
The event's cancelation continues a familiar pattern. Numerous major tech industry events have been canceled or postponed this year amid fears they could fuel the spread of COVID-19, including SXSW, Google's I/O developer conference, Facebook's F8 conference, and Mobile World Congress.
If E3 does become an online-only event, it will follow the likes of Snap, which has made its own conference an online-only affair amid coronavirus concerns.
The Entertainment Software Association did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.