Woke tech giant Microsoft has announced a round of layoffs targeting 650 employees in its Xbox gaming division, the third games-related layoffs since the company acquired Activision Blizzard for $69 billion.
CNBC Reports In a memo sent to employees on Thursday, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer said the company had made the “difficult” decision to cut 650 jobs in the Xbox division. The layoffs will primarily affect corporate and support functions as Microsoft aligns its post-acquisition team structure to position the business for long-term success.
Spencer expressed the company's gratitude for the contributions of affected employees, saying, “We are deeply grateful for the contributions of our colleagues who found themselves impacted.” He promised that affected employees in the U.S. would be offered support through severance packages that include severance pay, extended health insurance and outplacement services. Packages for employees outside the U.S. will vary by location.
The memo also suggests there will be some impact to other teams that manage the lifecycle and performance of games as they adapt to changing priorities, but Spencer stressed that no games, devices or experiences will be canceled as a result of the cuts, and no studios will be closed.
Microsoft's gaming division has undergone major changes in recent years, with the company acquiring ZeniMax Media, owner of Bethesda Softworks, for $7.5 billion in 2021. Its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, publisher of the popular Star Wars games, follows a similar deal. call of duty The company's acquisition of the franchise for $69 billion in cash further changed the face of the gaming industry.
The job cuts at Xbox are part of a broader trend in the video game industry, with several major game studios shedding thousands of jobs worldwide since the start of 2023. Sony, Unity, Twitch, Playtika and Discord have all announced large-scale layoffs in recent months.
The layoffs have been particularly hard on Xbox: In January, just three months after completing its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Microsoft cut 1,900 jobs in its gaming division. In May, it announced the closure of several game studios, including Arkane Austin, Tango Gameworks and Alpha Dog, leading to further layoffs.
Despite the challenges facing the games industry, Spencer assured employees that these changes are necessary for the future sustainable growth of Microsoft Gaming, and he emphasized that corporate and support teams and resources are aligned to better support studio teams and business units with programs and resources that can scale to meet their needs.
As Microsoft navigates these changes, Spencer acknowledged the difficulty of the situation and praised the team's ability to come together and show compassion and kindness to one another during difficult times. He thanked employees for their support and compassion as they continue to serve our players.
Read the full memo below.
Subject: Microsoft Game Modifications
Our goal over the past year has been to onboard our new teams and enable them to do their best work with minimal disruption. As part of aligning our team structure and managing the business post-acquisition, we have made the decision to eliminate approximately 650 positions across Microsoft Gaming – primarily in corporate and support functions – to position the business for long-term success.
We know this is bad news to hear, and we deeply appreciate the contributions of our impacted colleagues. In the US, we are supporting them with severance packages that include severance pay, extended health insurance, and outplacement services; packages outside the US vary by location.
These changes align our corporate and support teams and resources for sustainable future growth and allow us to better support our studio teams and business units with programs and resources that can scale with their needs. Separately, they impact other teams that manage the lifecycle and performance of our games, adapting to changing priorities as part of running our business. No games, devices or experiences are being canceled, and no studios are being closed, as part of today's adjustments.
In the history of our team, there have been great moments and difficult moments. Today is one of those difficult days. I know it's hard to go through so many changes, but even in the most difficult times, this team has been able to come together and continue to serve our players while showing compassion and kindness to one another. I thank you all for your support as we go through these changes and I appreciate the compassion and respect you have for one another.
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Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering free speech and online censorship.
