Last night Microsoft announced a third round of layoffs in its gaming division. News coming in from the Microsoft office revealed that it is laying off over 650 employees from its Xbox business. The company revealed that this was a part of continued restructuring following its $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Previously, it had even laid off 1,900 employees from Activision Blizzard and Xbox. On top of that four studios were also shut that were acquired during the $7.5 billion Bethesda acquisition in May.
Also read: Microsoft lays off over 650 employees in Xbox department, shares news via internal memo
Phil Spencer, who is the Chief at Xbox, had informed the team about the layoffs via an internal memo at 3 AM PT. As per the memo, the job cuts would mainly impact corporate and supporting functions such as HR and marketing, rather than game development or studio operations.
Now these layoffs have created a lot of confusion among the employees. People are even
questioning the company’s overall gaming strategy. Previously, Microsoft’s decision to bring some Xbox-exclusive games to PlayStation to generate additional revenue was also pretty confusing to a lot of people.
The issue here is that Game Pass subscription growth has slowed down, and Xbox Series S and X sales are also low. , pushing Microsoft to explore alternative ways to boost revenue.
Microsoft’s focus has now shifted toward its next-generation hardware rather than competing directly with Sony’s PS5 Pro. Amidst the layoffs and restructuring, the major concern for Microsoft is that Call of Duty on Game Pass should increase subscription numbers and stabilise Microsoft’s gaming revenues.
The only concerning part is that these layoffs have become so common in the name of restructuring and companies trying to protect themselves in times of financial crisis. What are your thoughts on it? Let me know in the comments.
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Mustafa Khan
Mustafa is new on the block and is a tech geek who is currently working with Digit as a News Writer. He tests the new gadgets that come on board and writes for the news desk. He has found his way with words and you can count on him when in need of tech advice. No judgement. He is based out of Delhi, he’s your person for good photos, good food recommendations, and to know about anything GenZ. View Full Profile
