Xbox CEO Phil Spencer has sent a company-wide email detailing his personal sadness at layoffs at Microsoft, including certain Xbox divisions.
Huge cutbacks are being made across the industry as we enter what appears to be a global recession. Earlier this week Ubisoft announced it was scrapping several games it had in production and warned staff to 'work harder' and that it was now their responsibility to save Ubisoft. Microsoft has now had a similar cutback by axing 10,000 jobs across the company, including some sectors of Xbox.
Xbox CEO Phil Spencer has sent out an email to all Full-Time Gaming Division employees expressing his sadness for people being laid-off. You can read Phil's email below.
"This has been a difficult week across Microsoft, and here, inside our teams. Now that many of the 1:1 and team conversations have happened, I want to take a moment to reiterate the message that you heard from your leaders.
This is a challenging moment in our business, and this week’s actions were painful choices. The Gaming Leadership Team had to make decisions that we felt set us up for the long-term success of our products and business, but the individual results of those decisions are real. I know that hurts. Thank you for supporting our colleagues as they process these changes.
Over the coming weeks we will have many opportunities to connect and answer your questions, including the Monthly Gaming Update next week for teams who attend that meeting, and I am in close contact with teams at ZeniMax to provide support. The GLT and I are committed to being as transparent as we can. Moving forward with ambiguity is challenging, but I am confident that together, we will get through this difficult moment in time.
Xbox has a long history of success thanks to the work you do in service of players, creators, and each other. Your work is so deeply appreciated and valued in these times of change and is integral to our business momentum. I am confident in our future and proud to be part of this team, but also conscious that this is a challenging time and I want to thank you for everything you do here.
Phil"
The biggest hits to the Gaming side of Microsoft include the team behind Halo, 343 Industries, it is rumored that they have been completely removed from the Halo franchise. Other cuts include The Coalition, ZeniMax Media and Bethesda Game Studios. It is unclear how this will impact Xbox in the year ahead as they intend to release Redfall, Forza Motorsports and Starfield.
Last year Microsoft managed to scrounge together $68 Billion to purchase Activision-Blizzard, a deal that has become a nightmare for the company, with many major competitors including PlayStation and Google speaking out against the deal. It's an odd thing to process that Microsoft has a cool 68 billi purchasing power but can't afford the wages of 10,000 people.
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