Austin Officials Cancel SXSW Festival Over Coronavirus Concerns
Austin's mayor declares a local disaster and officially cancels the 34-year-old SXSW festival due to coronavirus fears. Major tech companies had already pulled out of the event as global cases surpass 100,000.
South by Southwest officially faces cancellation as Austin Mayor Steve Adler declares a local disaster and issues an order to shut down the festival. Organizers express deep devastation over the decision, noting that this marks the first time in 34 years the March event does not take place. The conference faithfully follows the city's directions despite having no confirmed COVID-19 cases in the local Travis County area.
Major tech companies including Facebook, Intel, Twitter, and TikTok already pull out of the festival prior to the official cancellation as they limit employee travel. A public petition calling the event irresponsible gathers over 40,000 signatures from concerned citizens. The conference typically draws a massive crowd, bringing in nearly 74,000 attendees in 2019, including thousands of international visitors.
SXSW joins a growing list of major events that face cancellation or postponement due to the rapidly spreading outbreak. Other scrapped gatherings include Google I/O, the Geneva International Motor Show, Mobile World Congress, and Facebook’s F8 developers conference. Organizers currently work through the ramifications of this unprecedented situation and do not yet provide details regarding refunds for badges that cost up to $1,725.