Microsoft said Thursday that it would eliminate 1,900 roles in its video game division, including at Activision Blizzard, which it acquired for $69 billion three months ago.
The job cuts will be made at the video game giant Activision, the maker of hit games like Call of Duty and Guitar Hero, as well Xbox, according to a staff memo from Phil Spencer, the head of Microsoft Gaming, that was obtained by The New York Times.
The cuts amount to a reduction of nearly 9 percent of Microsoft’s 22,000-person video game team.
“Looking ahead, we’ll continue to invest in areas that will grow our business and support our strategy of bringing more games to more players around the world,” Mr. Spencer said in the memo.
Microsoft, which is neck-and-neck with Apple as the world’s largest public company, completed its acquisition of Activision Blizzard in October after of a year of regulatory hurdles.
The head of Activision Blizzard, Mike Ybarra, also announced on the social media platform X that Thursday would be his last day at the company.
“Having already spent 20+ years at Microsoft and with the acquisition of Activision Blizzard behind us, it’s time for me to (once again) become Blizzard’s biggest fan from the outside,” Mr. Ybarra wrote.
Microsoft did not immediately respond to a request for comment.