Sony has announced plans to cut around 900 jobs at its Playstation arm and close its London studio.
The gaming giant’s CEO Jim Ryan described the move as an “extremely difficult decision”, adding that “the industry has changed tremendously” and that the company needed to “future-proof us to set up the business for what lies ahead”.
When it is complete, the number of employees in Sony’s Playstation division is expected to have decreased by about 8 percent.
The cuts follow many other tech and gaming companies, which have cut jobs in recent months in response to ongoing global economic uncertainty.
In an email sent to Playstation staff, Ryan confirmed that the proposed cuts will see the company’s London Studio close “in its entirety”, with staff cuts also at its Liverpool-based Firesprite Studio, and that there will be “reductions of various functions across Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) in the UK”.
He added: “The PlayStation community means everything to us, so I felt it was important to update you on a difficult day at our company.
“We have taken the extremely difficult decision to announce our plan to begin a reduction in our total workforce globally by approximately 8 percent or approximately 900 people, subject to local law and consultation processes. Employees worldwide, including our studios, are affected.
“These are incredibly talented people who have been part of our success, and we are very grateful for their contributions.
“But the industry has changed immensely and we need to be future ready to set the business up for what lies ahead.
“We need to meet the expectations of developers and players and continue to drive future technology in gaming, so we took a step back to ensure we are focused on continuing to provide the best gaming experiences to the community.”
Sony acquired Firesprite Studio in September 2021 for an undisclosed sum.
Earlier this month, Sony revised down its sales forecast for the Playstation 5 console by four million.
The gaming sector and the wider tech sector have seen massive cuts over the past year, with thousands of staff cuts at the likes of Meta, Amazon, TikTok, Snapchat and others.
Last month, Microsoft also announced it was cutting 1,900 Xbox and Activision Blizzard employees.
