South by Southwest (SXSW) has been canceled due to growing coronavirus concerns.
The City of Austin declared a State of Disaster during a press conference Friday.
The festival issued a statement, saying they are devastated to share the news. The group announced they are now working through the ramifications of this "unprecedented situation."
An Update on SXSW 2020. Please read our full statement here: https://t.co/P56nF8KFmE pic.twitter.com/ouJPKM9GNy
— SXSW (@sxsw) March 6, 2020
Several big names had already pulled out of the festival, including Facebook and Amazon.
A petition on Change.org to cancel SXSW garnered over 55,000 signatures.
SXSW was founded in Austin in 1987. The inaugural festival included 177 artists and 15 stages. In 2019, the festival had almost 2,000 showcasing artists and 94 venues and stages.
KVUE reported Austin's 2019 SXSW Festival brought in $355 million to the city.
