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[saintjules]

 

[ShaiKhulud1989]

PR effect from the Direct is over so it's time for some dose of reality. It will get worse.

 

[LordCBH]

Microsoft continues to be scum.

 

[Xion_Stellar]

69 Billion Dollars went towards that Activision Blizzard purchase so of course the first move they make to save money is to cut off people working on the product they are trying to make and sell.

Sheesh.

 

[tmlDan]

Not surprised at all, I would not be surprised if more were gone later this year

 

[Fake]

Thats... a lot.

 

[SEGAvangelist]

Yes. Cut all the fat.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

I bet all the Activision employees now wished Bobby K was still CEO. I dont think he gassed tons of employees.

Although it doesn't say how the 1900 are split being Activision, Xbox gaming studios and maybe that also includes Xbox hardware/services kind of departments.

 

[geary]

That's bound to happen...They just bought them and a lot of corporate job will overlap.

 

[SJRB]

Jesus Christ.

 

[OverHeat]

Should have just closed 343i right guys?

 

[Fart Knight]

 

[Ronin_7]

Absolute disaster.

 

[aliadiere25]

They only made 219 billion in revenue in 2023, so times are tough.

 

[Bernoulli]

 

[Crispy Gamer]

Satya is trying to turn a profit with slowing growth this move was inevitable it sucks for those affected especially the Activision employees I can't imagine being bought out then laid off.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

are they prepping for another acquisition?

 

[Sushi_Combo]

This is just the beginning. There's probably a lot of redundancy since the acquisition.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

That's bound to happen...They just bought them and a lot of corporate job will overlap.

Yup.

In any company, fat cutting is part of the process. You just got to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I got gassed 15 years+ ago because my company merged divisions. There wasnt even a buy out or anything. They simply combined two silos into one giant silo and suddenly a lot of roles were cut as some roles could now be handled by one person (such as a lot of sales people were fired, but existing sales people just added on new product lines to their responsibilities doing double duty).

Best way to keep a job is be chill with bosses and hope your work is great and not redundant where a guy sitting next to you might be doing the exact same thing.

 

[Three]

Those promised acquisition Unions working wonders

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Satya is trying to turn a profit with slowing growth this move was inevitable it sucks for those affected especially the Activision employees I can't imagine being bought out then laid off.

everyone knew this would happen

 

[SEGAvangelist]

I bet all the Activision employees now wished Bobby K was still CEO. I dont think he gassed tons of employees.

Although it doesn't say how the 1900 are split being Activision, Xbox gaming studios and maybe that also includes Xbox hardware/services kind of departments.

I'm sure there are a TON of redundancies post-acquisition. They just added 3 publishers, not to mention, there are probably some Bethesda people that needed to go too. I'm curious how many of these people have blue hair, and pronouns in their bios.

 

[Skifi28]

At least Microsoft is not showing us the dangers of irresponsible consolidation like Embracer.

Opinion - News - [Windows Central]Embracer Group is showcasing the dangers of irresponsible consolidation, which stands in stark contrast to Xbox.

Summary by chatgpt This article delves into Embracer Group's expansion strategy, highlighting the risks of irresponsible consolidation and its potential negative impact on industry engagement. Embracer Group's approach, marked by the acquisition of numerous game studios, is presented as...

www.neogaf.com

 

[ulantan]

Remember when people kept saying everyone at activision needed the deal to go through so that Microsoft could save them...I remember.

 

[GHG]

Reminder - this is a company whose employees were lobbying and begging for the acquisition to come to pass.

Talk about digging your own grave.

 

[lh032]

2027 real!!!???

 

[Punished Miku]

They need developers but they don't really need anything related to publishing. They have 3 publishing arms and need 1. They have 3 marketing departments but they really need 1. The list goes on. It's not great for those losing their jobs, but that was always predictable. It's why the term redundancy exists.

 

[DenchDeckard]

The post covid boom cull continues across the industry. These won't be the first at xbox, abk, bethesda

 

[Gamer_By_Proxy]

inb4 the "this makes xbox more lean and efficient, sony is doomed" blue check influencers

 

[DaGwaphics]

A bit expected after these big mergers, the redundancies have to go. Certainly sucks for these people though. The post covid effect is probably part of it as well as DenchDeckard mentioned.

 

[SEGAvangelist]

Remember when people kept saying everyone at activision needed the deal to go through so that Microsoft could save them...I remember.

I don't, actually. Most people here were against the acquisition.

 

[Magic Carpet]

They have 3 marketing departments but they really need 1

They need a better marketing department. Hopefully they kept the best of the 3.

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

What in the actual fuck.

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Yes. Cut all the fat.

did phil got fired?!

 

[FalsettoVibe]

gyatt dayum!

 

[Mowcno]

That's like the number of employee's of 8 big development studios. This was always going to happen after they expanded so much.

 

[xHunter]

Alongside the layoffs, Blizzard president Mike Ybarra has decided to leave the company. “As many of you know, Mike previously spent more than 20 years at Microsoft. Now that he has seen the acquisition through as Blizzard’s president, he has decided to leave the company,” says Microsoft’s game content and studios president Matt Booty in an internal memo.

Job well done by Agent Ybarra.

 

[Punished Miku]

They need a better marketing department. Hopefully they kept the best of the 3.

They'll probably keep the best people from each and mix it up, but who knows.

 

[Cyberpunkd]

Yes. Cut all the fat.

They can start with Phil, since it doesn't look like he is doing a good job.

 

[Pelta88]

I'm guessing those GP subs remaining stagnant...

 

[Topher]

Tom Warren mistating the number. Microsoft are laying off 1900 "roles". That equates to 22,000 employees.

"As part of this process, we have made the painful decision to reduce the size of our gaming workforce by approximately 1900 roles out of the 22,000 people on our team. "
-Phil Spencer

Edit: No that's not right either. 22k is the number of employees at Microsoft. Phil Spencer is saying how many "roles" are being laid, but doesn't appear to say how many actual employees.

Elsewhere....

Microsoft Tops Apple to Become Most Valuable Public Company​

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/12/technology/microsoft-apple-most-valuable-company.html

 

[Draugoth]

It gets worse

 

[Tiago Rodrigues]

This is enough for...how many AAA studios?
This is more than Bungie...the entire publisher Sony bought...holy crap.

And this is Microsoft...the 3 trillion company.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

The post covid boom cull continues across the industry. These won't be the first at xbox, abk, bethesda

From what I remember when some gaffers posted bar charts showing hiring sprees by tech companies, I'm pretty sure it started before covid. Like 2016 or 2017, MS, Google, FB etc... all amped up hiring like handing out candy. Gaming companies surely did too. And then you got companies like Embracer buying up shit loads of gaming companies during covid when interest rates were rock bottom. During covid most companies are trying to survive or make it out of covid best they can and Embracer is doing the opposite buying every indie/AA budget kind of company totalling in the billions of dollars.

 

[Embearded]

I don't, actually. Most people here were against the acquisition.

I've seen the "save Actv Blizz" argument in another forum, were saying otherwise got you banned.

 

[30yearsofhurt]

Shocked but not shocked. Microsoft has a terrible record with managing acquisitions.

 

[lughnasadh123]

Microsoft having a "hold my beer' moment going into 2024 after 2023 being such a shit year for layoffs. What an absolute shit look after spending that much on acquisitions.

 

[DenchDeckard]

Fuxk me. Mike's gone again?

This is wild.

 

[LordCBH]

It gets worse

So Ybarra fought hard to get this done as a Microsoft plant, and now he’s leaving before the shit hits the fan and everyone at blizzard turns their attention to him.

 

[solidus12]

The consequences of mass consolidation.