THE 2020 Billboard Music Awards are the latest casualty of the coronavirus outbreak. The annual event that was to air April 29 on NBC from Las Vegas has been postponed. No new date is set.

“In accordance with the current guidelines set forth by national and local health officials and in order to ensure the health and safety of our artists, fans, guests and staff – we are postponing the Billboard Music Awards,” NBC and producer dick clark productions said in a statement.

Kelly Clarkson, whose freshman talk show has gone dark amid the COVID-19 scare, was set to host the trophy show for a third time. Nominations for this year’s awards have yet to be announced.

In its move to Wednesday night last year, the show averaged a 2.1 rating in adults 18-49 and 8 million viewers, per Nielsen Live+same day ratings, easily topping the Big 4 networks on the night of May 1.

Billboard Music Awards nominees and winners are based on key fan interactions with music, including album and digital song sales, streaming, radio airplay, touring and social engagement, tracked by Billboard and its data partners, including Nielsen Music and Next Big Sound.

“For more than two decades, the Billboard Music Awards has honored the best in music based on the Billboard charts,” the dcp-NBC statement added, “and we look forward to celebrating the incredible artists who topped those charts over the last year. dcp and NBC will announce a new date and venue for the show in the near future.”(SD-Agencies)