Xbox has asserted that it is not reducing its investment in games, even as reports indicate upcoming workforce reductions at Microsoft. This statement comes in the wake of news detailing Xbox's withdrawal from certain funding deals and considerations about studios being potentially impacted. A new report suggests that these planned layoffs across Microsoft will affect less than 2.5% of the company's total workforce.
The scale of the impending cuts, according to Business Insider, is projected to be smaller than those implemented last year. With Microsoft's global workforce numbering approximately 220,000 individuals, a reduction of under 2.5% still represents a significant number of employees facing job loss.
Despite reported shifts in how Xbox is allocating resources, including backing out of funding for projects like IO Interactive's Project Fantasy, a spokesperson told Bloomberg that the company's investment in content will remain largely the same as the previous year. "We expect to invest about the same in content as we did last year. What's changing is where we're investing and the kinds of projects we're backing," the spokesperson stated.
These planned layoffs are reportedly set to be finalized and enacted early next week. The full extent of which departments and projects at Xbox will be affected is expected to become clearer once these measures are implemented.