Microsoft(US:MSFT) Xin Lang Cai Jing·2025-07-03 05:25Group 1 - Microsoft announced a global workforce reduction affecting approximately 9,000 employees, which is less than 4% of its total workforce, impacting multiple teams, regions, and levels of staff [1] - The gaming division is undergoing significant changes, with hundreds of employees laid off from various studios, including those behind popular franchises like Call of Duty and Halo [1] - Microsoft has canceled several long-developed game projects, including Everwild and an original online game from ZeniMax Online Studios, as well as the reboot of Perfect Dark [1] Group 2 - Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft's gaming division, stated that the company is making strategic choices to focus on growth areas and improve agility and efficiency by reducing management layers [2] - Spencer mentioned that affected employees will receive priority consideration for other open positions within the company, emphasizing the strength of Microsoft's platform, hardware, and game development roadmap [2] - Microsoft has conducted multiple rounds of layoffs this year, totaling approximately 18,000 employees, including a previous reduction of over 6,000 in May and around 2,300 in June [2] Group 3 - The layoffs in the gaming division were anticipated due to pressure to improve profit margins following Microsoft's $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard in October 2023 [3] - This marks the fourth major round of layoffs in the Xbox division over the past 18 months, with a focus on the marketing department [3] - As of July 2, Microsoft's stock price slightly decreased by 0.2% to $491.09 per share, with a total market capitalization of $3.65 trillion [3]