Tencent rebukes layoff and restructuring rumours but admits changes at the top of the company
Tencent has rebuked rumours of layoffs and restructuring but admits there have been several key changes at the top of the company.
A leaked internal email sent on October 25 informed Tencent staff that VP Zeng Yu would no longer lead Tencent IEG’s technical line and the Platform and Content Group Technology & Content Platform.
Talking to Yicai, the spokesperson also disputed claims that TiMi Studio Group, which presently consists of around 6000 personnel across 13 studios, was set to merge some teams, putting around 1200 staff – that’s 20% of its workforce – at risk of redundancy.
However, the spokesperson insisted that rather than making cuts, Tencent’s umbrella games subsidiary TiMi Studio Group was, in fact, actively recruiting.
Rumours of a formal restructure and a 30% cut of its staff at LightSpeed Studios have similarly been denied.
The company did, however, admit that “more than 10 individuals” had been impacted by changes at the top of the organisation. As well as Yu, who is reportedly retiring, other managers have seemingly been laid off or redistributed to other areas of the business.
Tencent and Guillemot Brothers Ltd have reportedly been exploring ways to stabilise Ubisoft in the wake of its recent troubles, which could result in the pair buying out the publisher and taking it private.