South By Southwest was recently canceled for the first time in 34 years due to the coronavirus pandemic. But despite its cancelation, the annual Austin-based music event won’t be issuing any refunds.
A letter sent to badge holders said 2020 registrants “can opt to defer their registration to 2021, 2022, or 2023” and cited the public refund policy.
“Any and all payments made to SXSW are not refundable for any reason, including, without limitation, failure to use Credentials due to illness, acts of God, travel-related problems, acts of terrorism, loss of employment and/or duplicate purchases.”
SXSW co-founder Roland Swenson told the American-Statesman the festival didn’t have an insurance policy that provides it with cancelation coverage because of “bacterial infections, communicable diseases, viruses and pandemics.”
On Monday (March 9), SXSW laid off roughly a third of its 175 year-round employees, explaining to American-Statesman they’d been “rigorously reviewing our operations, and we are in the unimaginable position of reducing our workforce. We are planning for the future and this was a necessary, but heartbreaking, step.”
The move to cancel came shortly after Beastie Boys, Ozzy Osbourne and Trent Reznor pulled out.
I get the insurance policy point and it sucks that all of those employees had to be cut but it’s not the ticketholders’ faults that you put everything into a venture that’s not even two weeks long. Yeah your just adhering to policy but this is just gonna piss a shitload of people off, word will get around, and this will for sure have a negative impact on turnout and overall profits next year
You should be happy they are offering to give you tickets for not only next years event but, if you’d prefer, for 2022, or 2023. Youre right cancellation due to Coronavirus isnt the ticketholders fault but its not theirs either. Also, im sure if they did host it and 50% of the people got sick, theyd have worse lawsuits than they might face (and be able to win) by canceling. People will get over the ‘negative impact’ quickly…
Thats foul as fuck
That’s fkn scum. Hope the ppl in charge fall on hard times.
Refund all the money now or prepare for a class action lawsuit from paying customers. This is grounds for boycott of future festivals.
ugh oh! are you going to cancel culture them?! im sure theyre so scared! lol!!! also, they have in their terms and conditions that they dont have to give a refund due to acts of god, so a lawsuit wont do shit. they’re cancelling it so a deadly disease doesnt spread– a judge would look like the biggest asshole for punishing them for that PLUS theyre offering to exchange the tickets for future years tickets, which they don’t need to do by any means.
You repeated the last 2 dumb ass comments that apparently like to be ripped off for there money fuck the shit ass festival very bad for buisness let the people who pay you decide if they want to re pay or not not just cash out in millions and bounce shit ass music all mainstream garbage anyway
Uhhh, bullshit lol. No refunds means no refunds. Especially when it’s beyond their control, like a worldwide health emergency being declared by the World Health Organization. If you buy tickets to Disney Worlds water parks and there is lightning, you lose the day. Or it’s too cold. Or a hurricane. Under all 3 circumstances, you are not entitled to any form of a refund, and you agree to all of those conditions when you purchase that ticket. Does it suck? If course it does. But if your stupid enough to think a class action lawsuit could win, then you are just plain fucking retarded.
Grounds for boycott? They literally offered to exchange tickets for future events. It’s clear as day that ACTS OF GOD are not covered for refunds. Acts of God? Hurricanes, tornados, ice storms, anything beyond their control. Guess what? A worldwide health emergency counts as ACT OF GOD. Because that is far beyond their control as a festival. They are doing the responsible thing. Offering future tickets is fine. That’s not wrong to do it this way.
Boo hoo hoo, so sad for all the hipsters’ parents who shelled out their hard-earned money for airfare/hotel/tickets so their entitled loser children could feel cultured for a few days by attending the douche by douchefest.
No but seriously, that sucks and I hope nobody is overly devastated as a result of this cancellation. Stay safe, folks and wash your hands regularly.