Amazon drops out of SXSW due to coronavirus concerns
It's the latest high-profile company to pull out of the annual event.
Following Twitter and Facebook, Amazon has become the latest high-profile company to drop out of South by Southwest (SXSW) 2020 due to coronavirus-related concerns. The company's Amazon Studios subsidiary and employees won't attend the annual music, technology and entertainment festival, according to Variety.
Amazon had planned to screen the first two episodes of its upcoming Prime Original "Upload" at the festival. It was also going to showcase "Tales of the Loop," its upcoming sci-fi drama based on the paintings of Swedish artist Simon Stålenhag. In both instances, Amazon had planned to host Q&A panels dedicated to the shows, with cast and crew taking part. We've reached out to Amazon for more information about the move, and we'll update this article once we hear back.
At the moment, it appears SXSW's organizers plan to continue forward with the event -- though that could change in light of this most recent cancellation. As of earlier this week, a statement on the festival's website said officials planned on "proceeding with the 2020 event with the health and safety of our attendees, staff, and volunteers as our top priority." The festival is slated to start on March 13th.
