Twitch Announces Another Round of Layoffs, Leaving Many Contemplating the Future of the Industry
An in-depth look at Twitch's recent layoffs and the impact on the livestreaming industry.
Twitch Announces Another Round of Layoffs
Continuing the unfortunate trends of 2023, Twitch announces another round of layoffs, leaving many contemplating the future of the industry. In an unfortunate announcement to many employees, livestreaming giant Twitch has announced yet another round of layoffs, with roughly 500 staffers due to be let go. Twitch has stated 'cutting costs' as a primary reason for its continued workforce trimmings, along with Twitch fully shutting down in South Korea to tighten up corporate spending. The layoffs continue the trend of company cutbacks and studio shutdowns that plagued the industry in 2023.
Acquired by Amazon in 2014, Twitch is a livestreaming service that allows users to broadcast a variety of content including video games, crafting, cooking, podcasts, and more. The platform has served as a leader in the livestreaming space, with various competitors popping up over the past decade. While many continue to prioritize the platform for content creation and consumption, continued layoffs have left many weary of the future of Twitch and livestreaming.
In an official blog post from Twitch CEO Dan Clancy, it was revealed that the livestreaming company is planning to cut another 500 members of its total workforce. Clancy, like other corporate executives in recent months, has highlighted efficiency and sustainability as reasons for the layoffs. A similar statement was made by Chris Cocks last year, regarding a massive round of layoffs at Hasbro, with Cocks emphasizing a need to 'get leaner' to ensure success. Audiences have questioned how necessary some of these industry layoffs are, as many companies in the gaming and content creation spheres have boasted record profits in recent years. In tandem with the Twitch announcement, numerous employees personally shared the news of their layoffs, with community members voicing words of support and questioning the longevity of livestreaming platforms.
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2024 Continues the Cost-cutting Trends of 2023
Twitch and Hasbro are not the only major companies to resort to layoffs to cut costs. Last year saw a near record number of industry workforce cutbacks, with multiple AAA studios and indie developers losing hundreds of staff members. Some of the most notable corporations to announce major layoffs last year include Ubisoft, Embracer Group, Bungie, Microsoft, Amazon Gaming, Epic Games, and more. While the layoffs at Twitch only target company employees, many streamers and viewers worry that the cutbacks will have a greater impact on the livestreaming service as a whole. Whether this will ring true remains to be seen, but many Twitch users are already seeking alternate platforms as a fail-safe to fall back on.
Only two weeks into 2024, the video game industry continues to face the unfortunate layoff trends of 2023. Unity has just announced another round of layoffs, and this latest chunk of workforce reductions at Twitch has left employees and fans reeling. As multiple corporations and studios continue to show rising profits, many are wondering when the cost-cutting layoffs will come to an end.
