E3's Future Uncertain As More Publishers Pull Out: Sega, Tencent and Ubisoft Latest To Drop

There is growing concern over the future of E3, the largest video game conference and trade show in the world, as more publishers pull out behind Nintendo ADR (OTC: NTDOY), Microsoft Corp.'s (NASDAQ: MSFT) Xbox, Sony Group Corp (NYSE: SONY) and Ubisoft Entertainment SS (OTC: UBSFF).

E3, which stands for Electronic Entertainment Expo, is supposed to have an epic comeback this year after the COVID-19 pandemic, offering a live event for the first time since 2019.

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As per IGN, rumors suggest that the event might not materialize as expected as both Sega and Tencent Holdings ADR (OTC: TCEHY) have also decided to miss E3 2023.

"After careful consideration, we have decided not to participate in E3 2023 as an exhibitor. We look forward to sharing more information on announced and unannounced projects in the future," Sega told IGN in a statement.

A spokesperson from Tencent confirmed that Level Infinite, the video game developer and a subsidiary of the Chinese tech giant, will not be attending E3 2023. Nevertheless, the spokesperson addressed Tencent's presence in Play Days 2022, and said that it had "found it to be an ideal experience for showcasing our games to the media."

Meanwhile, Ubisoft, the only major publisher to have publicly committed, reversed its decision to attend E3 2023 and will instead hold a separate event on June 12.

Ubisoft told VCG: "While we initially intended to have an official E3 presence, we’ve made the subsequent decision to move in a different direction, and will be holding a Ubisoft Forward Live event on 12th June in Los Angeles. We look forward to sharing more details with our players very soon."

Although the E3 is just two months away, several individuals in publishing and PR have expressed concern to IGN about the status of the event with some stating that they haven't heard of anyone else who was planning to attend for sure. The lack of information and clear communication from the event's organizers has left many publishers feeling uneasy, with budgets reportedly in limbo.

The Absence Of The "Big Three"

This year's edition will be the first time in the exposition’s history, which was first held in 1995 in Los Angeles, California, that not one of the "Big Three" (Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo) will attend.

This trend of leaving E3 aside has been going on for some time now: Nintendo stopped holding major press conferences at E3 a decade ago and was only present on the showroom floor in 2019.

Furthermore, Microsoft and Bethesda, a video game publisher, have switched to hosting their own events during E3, and Sony has been absent from E3 events for several years.

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