Microsoft has announced plans for considerable layoffs in its Xbox gaming division.

Microsoft has announced plans for considerable layoffs in its Xbox gaming division. 

 Hyderabad: Microsoft is gearing up to let go of a significant number of employees from its Xbox division as part of a broader company restructuring. Reports suggest that the layoffs could be announced early next week, just ahead of the fiscal year’s end on June 30.

  While the exact number of job cuts is still uncertain, it seems several teams will be affected, including those in Microsoft’s global sales operations, according to a Bloomberg report.   Microsoft lays off hundreds more employees amid major job cuts in the AI era

The Xbox division is responsible for Microsoft’s gaming consoles, game development studios, and digital services like Game Pass. If this goes through, it would mark the fourth significant round of layoffs at the company in the last 18 months. Back in May, Microsoft announced it would reduce its workforce by 6,000 employees, which is about 3 percent of its global team. The tech giant has been facing intense pressure since its acquisition of Activision Blizzard in 2023 for a whopping USD 69 billion. In January 2024, Microsoft let go of 1,900 employees at Activision Blizzard and Xbox, and then cut another 650 jobs in its Xbox gaming unit in September. As of June 2024, Microsoft employed around 228,000 people worldwide, with approximately 45,000 in sales and marketing roles. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella previously stated that the recent layoffs were not a reflection of employee performance but rather a necessary step in organizational restructuring. In a message to staff, Nadella emphasized that these layoffs were essential to realign teams with Microsoft’s shifting priorities, especially its increasing focus on artificial intelligence.