Gaming Electronic Arts to axe 500 jobs

[Darg]

Video game publishing giant Electronic Arts (EA) is to shed more than 500 jobs, after the firm announced lower than expected profits for the year.

Nearly 20% of its share value was wiped out after the profit warning, with its shares closing at $22.78.

EA said that higher development and marketing costs, as well as delays to the latest Harry Potter video game, were to blame.

However, this was offset by the success of titles such as Spore and NFL 09.

BBC NEWS | Technology | Video games giant to axe 500 jobs

news.bbc.co.uk

 

[Darg]

Arkane Studios Burdened by EA Layoffs

The ripples are already being felt down the food chain ...

When a publisher the size of Electronic Arts has financial problems, the ripples are felt throughout the industry. Arkane Studios -- the developer behind Dark Messiah of Might and Magic -- is just one example of a company caught in the crossfire following last week's 6 percent workforce reduction at EA. According to a report on GameDaily, the independent studio was collaborating with EA's Los Angeles branch on a high-profile project when they were blindsided by the sudden downsizing.