The Sony Group Corporation has revealed that 900 jobs will be cut across the company, including in Liverpool.
The redundancies are due to a plunge in share price over recent months – Sony’s PlayStation division accounts for eight percent of the losses.
Liverpool is home to an office base for the gaming giant which was once located at Wavertree Technology Park, but moved to a space at St Paul’s Square a few years ago.
The Merseyside location will be affected by the redundancies, and the London office is said to be shutting down entirely.
Chief executive Jim Ryan said: “The PlayStation community means everything to us, so I felt it was important to update you on a difficult day at our company.
“These are incredibly talented people who have been part of our success, and we are very grateful for their contributions. However, the industry has changed immensely, and we need to future ready ourselves to set the business up for what lies ahead.
“We need to deliver on expectations from developers and gamers and continue to propel future technology in gaming, so we took a step back to ensure we are set up to continue bringing the best gaming experiences to the community.”
Game-makers will also feel the impact of layoffs – including Insomniac, Naughty Dog, and Guerrilla Games.
Firesprite, a Liverpool based game development studio founded in 2012 and a part of the Sony Corporation, will also face job losses.
PlayStation Studios boss Hermen Hulst has said that ‘the decision to stop work on these projects is not a reflection on the talent of passion of team members’.
Featured image (C) Pixabay by Kelsi Buck
