Activision Blizzard is planning to close its publishing offices in Europe and lay off even more employees in the process, according to a new report from GamesIndustry.biz.
In a statement provided to GamesIndustry.biz, an Activision Blizzard representative explained that the change comes as a result of players “increasingly choosing to connect with our games digitally”.
“We share plans with our teams in Europe on how we would evolve as an organization, adapting to this change to serve our players and positioning the region in the best way for future growth,” continues the statement. “We will be taking extensive steps to support all employees and facilitate the transition for those of our colleagues who may be affected by these proposed changes.”
This is the last of several rounds of layoffs that have affected the Activision Blizzard team in the past two years. In February 2019, the publisher announced that it would be reducing its workforce by 8%, or about 800 people. Later that year, restructuring saw the loss of more than 200 jobs. In 2020, the corporation closed its offices in Versailles, France, and earlier this week made drastic cuts for your sports team.
This did not stop executives from bragging about and personally benefiting from Activision Blizzard’s recent growth, even as employees Protested wage inequality. CEO Bobby Kotick is scheduled to receive a $ 200 million bonus for the publisher’s performance during the pandemic, while workers who really appreciate the success of Activision Blizzard are discarded with $ 200 Battle.net gift cards.
G / O Media can receive a commission
As usual, these and previous layoffs were not necessary. Activision Blizzard’s leadership could easily accept wage cuts or, at least, refuse bonuses in favor of contributing to the wages of these now unemployed workers. But in the relentless mill of capitalism, CEOs and their gang are always the ones who spin the wheel, happy to let hundreds and thousands of people suffer as ammunition if that means they will have their bread.