Redmond-based Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) has laid off about 650 employees from its gaming division, or 3% of the department.
The Xbox owner laid off 1,900 employees from its gaming division in January, and it laid off an undisclosed number of employees in July. Social media posts at the time of the July cuts indicate it was Xbox employees who were laid off.
Variety reported the most recent round of layoffs early Thursday morning, and a Microsoft spokesperson confirmed the report to the Business Journal but declined to provide additional details. It's unclear how many of the laid-off employees are based in the Seattle area.
The layoffs come after Microsoft closed its $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard in October last year.
Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer said in a staff email obtained by Variety that laid-off U.S. employees will get severance, extended health care and outplacement services. International employees' exit packages will depend on location. Spencer also said in the email the layoffs would mostly affect corporate and support roles.
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"With these changes, our corporate and supporting teams and resources are aligned for sustainable future growth, and can better support our studio teams and business units with programs and resources that can scale to meet their needs," Spencer said in the email. "No games, devices or experiences are being cancelled and no studios are being closed as part of these adjustments today."
Microsoft had about 228,000 full-time employees as of the end of June. The company has 53,625 employees in the Puget Sound region, making it the second-largest local tech employer behind Amazon, according to Business Journal research.
Layoffs have hit the gaming industry hard recently. Big names like Riot Games, Take-Two and Nintendo have all gone through layoffs this year. Bellevue-based Bungie laid off 17% of its staff in July.
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