Head of Xbox Phil Spencer has announced layoffs of 1,900 employees across Xbox, Activision Blizzard and Bethesda.
After years of spending billions to acquire AAA studios for its first-party games lineup, Xbox is letting go of nearly 2000 talented workers across its portfolio.
In a message to workers obtained by IGN, Spencer confirmed that the company will “full support to those who are impacted during the transition, including severance benefits informed by local employment laws.”
Spencer explained that the layoffs — which occur just three months after the $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard — are part of a “execution plan with a sustainable cost structure that will support the whole of our growing business”.
“As part of this process, we have 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,” he continued. “The Gaming Leadership Team and I are committed to navigating this process as thoughtfully as possible.”
Spencer claimed that “the people who are directly impacted by these reductions have all played an important part in the success of Activision Blizzard, ZeniMax and the Xbox teams, and they should be proud of everything they’ve accomplished here.” They’re still being laid off.
Xbox’s layoffs come just after an expansive developer direct showing the future of the brand. Revealing Indiana Jones gameplay, new Avowed footage and more, the online showcase was meant to be a fresh start for the brand.
Furthermore, Xbox is far from the only brand to let go of so many people. League of Legends developer Riot Games recently announced plans to let go of over 500 developers, and so have many others.
However, Xbox is the only company to lay off thousands of workers directly after a huge investment. If $69 billion isn’t too much, why is 1,900 paychecks?