Microsoft cuts 650 jobs in video game division

Microsoft is cutting 650 jobs from its video game division, according to a company email seen by The Wall Street Journal on Thursday.

The move follows 1,900 redundancies in May and comes at a time of massive layoffs across the gaming industry and companies contend with a tailing off of growth post-pandemic.

Microsoft has been steadily cutting gaming jobs since its $75bn takeover of videogame giant Activision Blizzard in October 2023, which added 10,000 to its overall headcount.

According to the internal memo, the job cuts are not a result of closures or cancellations to any games, devices or studios – unlike May's layoffs when three studios were closed – but are instead a result of a departmental reorganisation.

Phil Spencer, who heads up Microsoft Gaming, said in the email that the redundancies are part of a plan to "organised our business for long-term success", and mostly relate to people in corporate and support roles.

Microsoft's stock futures were more or less unchanged ahead of the opening bell on Wall Street.