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The Electronic Entertainment Expo, or E3, has canceled its 2023 event.
E3 was previously scheduled to take place June 13-16 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, in person for the first time since 2019. The gaming convention, once considered the industry’s most influential showcase, was canceled in 2020 and 2022 due to COVID-19 Concerns. The expo held a virtual edition in 2021.
The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) and show organizer ReedPop announced the cancellation of the physical and digital events with a joint statement.
“This was a difficult decision because of all the effort that we and our partners put into making this event happen, but we had to do what was right for the industry and what was right for E3,” said Kyle Marsden-Kish, ReedPop’s global VP of gaming. “We are grateful and understand that interested companies will not be preparing playable demos and due to the resourcing challenges that being at E3 this summer has become an insurmountable obstacle for them. For those committed to E3 2023, we’re sorry we couldn’t present the showcase you deserve and that you’ve come to expect from ReedPop’s event experiences.”
The cancellation comes after some of gaming’s biggest names — including Nintendo, PlayStation and Ubisoft — announced they would not be participating in E3 in any capacity. Microsoft announced that it will not be on the show floor but will co-stream its Xbox Games Showcase as part of E3 Digital.
IGN, which first broke the news, got a internal memo saying that while E3 “remains a beloved event and brand,” the 2023 version “just hasn’t garnered the sustained interest necessary to execute it in a way that reflects the size, strength, and impact of our industry.”