At the beginning of this year, Microsoft laid off approximately 1,900 employees from Xbox, including staff from Activision Blizzard, Bethesda, and other prominent studios. Unfortunately, the gaming division suffered another wave of layoffs this morning.
According to details, the tech giant laid off 650 Xbox employees this time. This once again affected Activision Blizzard and other areas of the company. Phil Spencer, head of Microsoft Gaming, issued a statement expressing regret over the bad news.
The executive reassured concerned players about the possible closure of studios or project cancellations, stating that this would not happen as the layoffs occurred in corporate and support areas.
Xbox and Activision Blizzard face more layoffs
In his statement, Spencer confirmed that the new wave of layoffs is related to recent acquisitions by Xbox and Microsoft. As part of a reorganization, the companies decided to cut 650 positions at Microsoft Gaming, primarily affecting corporate and support staff. The executive explained that it was a very difficult decision to make; however, he stated that it is important for the long-term success of their business.
“As part of aligning our post-acquisition team structure and managing our business, we have made the decision to eliminate approximately 650 roles across Microsoft Gaming — mostly corporate and supporting functions — to organize our business for long term success. I know that this is difficult news to hear. We are deeply grateful for the contributions of our colleagues who are learning they are impacted,” Spencer stated.
Microsoft and Xbox committed to helping all affected employees who will lose their jobs. They will be provided with severance packages, services to help them find new jobs, and medical assistance.
Spencer confirmed that staff in other areas will also be affected by the layoffs. However, he emphasized that this will not lead to the cancellation of games, experiences, or company closures.
“Separately, as part of running the business, there are some impacts to other teams as they adapt to shifting priorities and manage the lifecycle and performance of games. No games, devices or experiences are being cancelled and no studios are being closed as part of these adjustments today.
"Throughout our team’s history, we have had great moments, and we have had challenging ones. Today is one of the challenging days. I know that going through more changes like this is hard, but even in the most trying times, this team has been able to come together and show one another care and kindness as we work to continue delivering for our players,” Spencer concluded.
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