According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, Disney Interactive plans to lay off “several hundred people” starting next week. Disney Infinity managed to sell over 3 million Starter Packs, and that helped the game division turn a profit last quarter. One might think this would result in job security, but one would be wrong.
The job cuts should happen after Disney releases their latest financial earnings report on Wednesday. For the record, Disney Interactive currently employs around 3,000 people, and these cuts will hurt social gaming studio Playdom. Disney picked up the developer in 2010 for $563 million.
Disney Interactive president Jimmy Pitaro plans to “reorganize the group” and when we see words like “reorganize,” we know some employees will see pink slips. As for Disney Infinity, it’s the company’s competitor to Activision’s hugely successful Skylanders franchise. Both feature plastic figurines that represent new playable characters in the game.
Nobody likes to get fired
Or laid off, whatever. Here’s hoping that anyone who loses their job will find a new home soon. Reportedly, these cuts won’t affect Disney Infinity, as it appears to be full steam ahead for that new IP. 3 million+ isn’t bad at all; in fact, it nearly outsold the recently released Skylanders: SWAP Force over the holidays.
