Entertainment Software Association (ESA) Cancels E3 2023 Event due to Lack of Industry Support

The decision was made following the withdrawal of several high-profile companies in the gaming and entertainment industries. It would have been the first in-person E3 event in four years, with the last in-person event being in 2019.

The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) has announced the cancellation of E3 2023, which was scheduled to be held in June at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Following the announcements of Ubisoft, Nintendo, Xbox, and Microsoft withdrawing from E3 2023, more prominent companies in the gaming industry are following suit. Recent reports confirm that SEGA and Tencent have decided not to officially participate in the upcoming event. It seems that other significant players in the industry will also opt-out due to concerns about the event's structure. The decision comes after the organizers of this year's edition, the ESA and ReedPop, failed to communicate effectively with the participants, leading to mounting apprehension about the event's planning and execution.

ESA stated in an email to its members that the event did not receive sufficient sustained interest to showcase the size, strength, and impact of the industry. The email did not mention the future of the event. Kyle Marsden-Kish, Global VP of Gaming, issued an official public statement expressing regret for the cancellation and assuring continued collaboration between ReedPop and ESA for future events.

The cancellation of E3 2023 comes after two years of cancellations and uncertainty surrounding the event, with some industry partners opting to host their own online or hybrid events. It remains unclear what the future of E3 will look like.

This was a difficult decision because of all the effort we and our partners put toward making this event happen, but we had to do what's right for the industry and what's right for E3. We appreciate and understand that interested companies wouldn't have playable demos ready and that resourcing challenges made being at E3 this summer an obstacle they couldn't overcome. For those who did commit to E3 2023, we're sorry we can't put on the showcase you deserve and that you've come to expect from ReedPop's event experiences.