Microsoft is shedding 1,900 employees — or round 8% of Microsoft Gaming’s 22,000 workers. Nearly all of layoffs are at Activision Blizzard, although cuts will influence Xbox and ZeniMax workers, too. The memo from Microsoft Gaming chief Phil Spencer: It has been somewhat over three months for the reason that Activision, Blizzard, and King groups joined Microsoft. As we transfer ahead in 2024, the management of Microsoft Gaming and Activision Blizzard is dedicated to aligning on a technique and an execution plan with a sustainable price construction that can assist the entire of our rising enterprise. Collectively, we have set priorities, recognized areas of overlap, and ensured that we’re all aligned on the very best alternatives for development.
As a part of this course of, we’ve got made the painful determination to scale back the scale of our gaming workforce by roughly 1900 roles out of the 22,000 individuals on our group. The Gaming Management Group and I are dedicated to navigating this course of as thoughtfully as potential. The people who find themselves immediately impacted by these reductions have all performed an essential half within the success of Activision Blizzard, ZeniMax and the Xbox groups, and they need to be happy with every thing they’ve completed right here. We’re grateful for all the creativity, ardour and dedication they’ve delivered to our video games, our gamers and our colleagues. We’ll present our full assist to those that are impacted throughout the transition, together with severance advantages knowledgeable by native employment legal guidelines. These whose roles will probably be impacted will probably be notified, and we ask that you simply please deal with your departing colleagues with the respect and compassion that’s in step with our values.
Trying forward, we’ll proceed to put money into areas that can develop our enterprise and assist our technique of bringing extra video games to extra gamers all over the world. Though it is a troublesome second for our group, I am as assured as ever in your potential to create and nurture the video games, tales and worlds that convey gamers collectively.
