SXSW Canceled Amid Coronavirus Concerns

(Image credit: Future)

The City of Austin has canceled music and tech festival South by Southwest over coronavirus concerns, event organizers announced Friday.

"We are devastated to share this news with you," organizers said in a statement. "'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."

SXSW was slated to run in Austin from March 13-22. The festival had seen a number of companies pull out of the event, including Apple, Amazon, Netflix and Twitter, as fears over coronavirus have spread.

Coronavirus Cancellations: Everything You Need to Know

Officials said they are looking into possibly rescheduling and "are working to provide a virtual SXSW online experience as soon as possible for 2020 participants, starting with SXSW EDU."

SXSW is the latest in a string of event cancellations. Earlier this week, Fox News and Comcast's FreeWheel axed their upfront events. MIPTV and Mobile World Congress were also canceled.

Jessika Walsten

Jessika is an analyst for TVREV and Fabric Media. She previously served in various roles at Broadcasting + Cable, Multichannel News and NextTV, working with the brands since 2013. A graduate of USC Annenberg, Jessika has edited and reported on a variety of subjects in the media and entertainment space, including profiles on industry leaders and breaking news.