Sony is the latest big tech to announce a wave of layoffs. According to a new press release, the company will cut about 900 jobs in its PlayStation division. It represents 8% of its global workforce. PlayStation is one of the most relevant names in the gaming industry, and it seems that the company isn’t in the most comfortable position despite the popularity of its consoles and games. According to Sony, the new changes in the industry are the reason for the restructuring. The jobs cuts will happen in the Americas, Japan, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the Asia Pacific Region.
Sony Announce layoffs at PlayStation Studios
The Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO, Jim Ryan, said in a blogpost on Tuesday: “We need to deliver on expectations from developers and gamers to continue to propel future technology in gaming. So we took a step back to ensure we are set up to continue bringing the best gaming experiences to the community.
Sony’s layoffs were announced one month after Microsoft. To recall, Microsoft said it would cut nearly 2,000 workers after its acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Also, Riot Games, the popular developer behind League of Legends and Valorant, announced back in January that it was laying off 11% of its staff.
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PlayStation Studios in London will be completely shut down. The cuts will also happen at Firesprite studio. In addition, the cuts will cover various functions across Sony Interactive Entertainment in the UK. The company will provide severance benefits to employees affected.
“While these are challenging times, it is not indicative of a lack of strength of our company, our brand, or our industry,” Ryan said. “Our goal is to remain agile and adaptable. We will continue to focus on delivering the best gaming experiences possible now and in the future.”
It is worth noting that Sony had issues at the start of this generation. The PS5 arrived near the end of 2020 amidst the constraints in the supply chain. The company took some time to achieve high sales numbers. In the past years, Sony also adopted a new strategy of releasing some of its IPs on PC platforms. Apparently, this is a strategy that will move forward as the company will keep trying to circumvent any financial crisis.
Buying dozen of studios then laying off people. Such a great time to be alive. Nobody cares anymore for anything but money. Very very sad.