There has been some more industry news this week, this time regarding Microsoft’s Xbox division, which completed its acquisition of Activision Blizzard last year and recently reiterated its support for Nintendo platforms in the future.
In a message from Xbox boss and Microsoft gaming boss Phil Spencer (via IGN), it was discovered 1,900 roles of the 22,000 total in the entire team were laid off.
This includes many roles within ZeniMax (Bethesda) and Activision Blizzard. The rationale behind this is that the company’s leadership is aligning on a “strategy and execution plan with a sustainable cost structure” that will support the entire growing business. Here is Phil’s full statement:
Phil Spencer: “It’s been just over three months since the Activision, Blizzard and King teams joined Microsoft. As we move forward into 2024, Microsoft Gaming and Activision Blizzard leadership are committed to aligning our strategy and execution plan with a sustainable cost structure that will support our entire growing business Together we set priorities, identified areas of overlap and ensured we were all aligned with the best opportunities for growth.
As part of this process, we’ve made the painful decision to reduce the size of our gaming workforce by approximately 1,900 roles out of the 22,000 people on our team. The Gaming Leadership Team and I are committed to managing this process as thoughtfully as possible. All of the people directly affected by these cuts have played an important role in the success of Activision Blizzard, ZeniMax and the Xbox teams and should be proud of everything they’ve accomplished here. We are grateful for all the creativity, passion and dedication they bring to our games, our players and our colleagues. We will provide full support to those affected during the transition, including severance pay under local employment laws. Those whose roles will be affected will be notified, and we ask that you treat your departing colleagues with respect and compassion consistent with our values.
Looking ahead, we will continue to invest in areas that will grow our business and support our strategy of bringing more games to more players around the world. While this is a difficult time for our team, I am as confident as ever in your ability to create and nurture games, stories and worlds that bring players together.”
On the same day as this announcement, Microsoft now has 3 trillion dollars market capitalization for the first time in its history, which puts it behind Apple as the second company ever to achieve this. This is thanks in part to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s decision-making acquiring and investing in AI and ‘Copilot’ as well as games and IPs like Minecraft over the past decade.
This latest round of layoffs follows a flurry of others already this year, including some companies also having to downsize. Earlier this week, Riot Games cut 530 jobs globally.
Microsoft, Xbox, Bethesda and Activision Blizzard are responsible for publishing games on the Nintendo Switch such as Minecraft Legends, Overwatch 2, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Diablo, and recently confirmed the fact that Nintendo users can expect to feel part of Xbox family go ahead. An agreement was also reached to bring Call of Duty to Nintendo platforms for the next 10 years. You can learn more about the latest Microsoft layoffs on our related website Pure Xbox
