Back in February, Jason Holtman, the lawyer and business director who previously led Valve’s Steam business for the past eight years was let go.
His high-profile departure was part of a series of group lay offs by Valve that saw 25 others leave the company. Included was Jeri Ellsworth, a big name in Valve’s development of hardware and controller prototypes, who stated that the lay off was sudden and unexpected.
Microsoft capitalized on the opportunity, and recently scooped up Jason. He confirmed that within Microsoft, his duties would change to focus on PC gaming and entertainment strategy.
“Yes, I have joined Microsoft where I will be focusing on making Windows a great platform for gaming and interactive entertainment,” he said. “I think there is a lot of opportunity for Microsoft to deliver the games and entertainment customers want and to work with developers to make that happen, so I’m excited to be here.”
With the upcoming release of the Xbox One, Microsoft has put less emphasis on their PC gaming, instead opting to focus on their consoles. With Jason joining the team, it could signal a preparation to realign priorities after the release.
While Jason’s name and reputation is big in the gaming world, Microsoft’s PC offerings are quite the opposite. Hopefully he will be able to breathe new life into it with his vast array of experience working with Valve.
