E3 2020 is cancelled

Just saw that YongYea published this:

On the one hand, E3 has stagnated in recent years. It's not the hype event that it used to be. On the other, a lot of people are going to point at Coronavirus as the culprit. I think both angles played a part.

I will also say that the ESA has done everything in their power to shoot themselves in the foot over the past couple years. Their pants-on-head retarded senate hearing over loot boxes soured my opinion on an organization I used to respect. I mean, sure. The ESA is pointing at Coronavirus as the main reason why they're cancelling it. But with Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft not setting up within the official convention space, things for the convention were not looking good in the first place. Nintendo has been doing online only Nintendo Direct streams to break the news for a while now. Microsoft set up in a nearby hotel, NOT the official show floor last year, and it appeared that they would do the same. And then Sony announced they would not have a booth at E3, meaning none of the big 3 would have a presence at the show floor.

I take no joy in writing this. When I was younger, I dreamed of being able to be at E3, back when it was a press-only conference. When I worked at GameStop, I relied on the ESRB ratings app to help parents decide if a game is right for their child. I don't like tearing people down, it tends to come back and bite me in the ass. I don't like kicking someone when they're down, it's been done enough times to me. Seeing the ESA cancel what is their biggest event makes me sad inside.

What do you think? Is this a smart plan by the ESA? Or do you think it's a death knell? Do you think they'll do another conference next year, or will everyone move online with no physical presence?