Microsoft Job Cuts Continue amid Tech Layoffs

Microsoft's Recent Layoffs: Another Round of Cuts Across Multiple Divisions

Reports indicate Microsoft has conducted further layoffs, impacting employees across its gaming, security, and sales divisions. The exact number of affected employees remains undisclosed. Significantly, these job cuts are separate from a previous round of layoffs announced earlier in January.

The gaming industry has faced considerable challenges in recent years, with numerous companies, including Microsoft, implementing significant staff reductions in 2024. This trend has affected both large studios and smaller independent developers, with recent examples including IllFonic (Predator: Hunting Grounds) and People Can Fly (Outriders). Rocksteady also announced layoffs following the mixed reception of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.

Microsoft's own workforce reductions began in early 2024. In January, the company announced the termination of 1,900 Xbox division employees, including staff at acquired subsidiaries like Activision Blizzard and ZeniMax. September saw an additional 650 layoffs, this time affecting corporate and support roles within Activision Blizzard.

A new report from Business Insider (via GamesIndustry.biz) suggests another round of layoffs has occurred. While a Microsoft spokesperson confirmed the cuts, the precise number of employees affected remains unconfirmed, and the spokesperson emphasized these layoffs are unrelated to the earlier January cuts focused on underperforming employees.

The Broader Context of Microsoft's Layoffs

The ongoing layoffs are particularly noteworthy given Microsoft's recent acquisitions of major publishers such as Bethesda and Activision Blizzard, and the company's achievement of a $3 trillion market valuation shortly after the large-scale January 2024 layoffs. These initial cuts drew criticism from the FTC, which initially attempted to use them as grounds to block or reverse Microsoft's merger with Activision Blizzard.

Previous Microsoft layoffs have impacted various areas, including Xbox's physical retail teams, most of Blizzard's customer service team, and internal development studios like Sledgehammer Games and Toys for Bob. The cancellation of Blizzard's unannounced survival game, codenamed Project Odyssey, also followed these reductions.

The impact of this latest round of layoffs on the Xbox gaming division remains uncertain, pending confirmation of the number of employees affected.