Microsoft has defended the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) claims that it plans to lay off about 1,900 members of its gaming workforce. contradict the “statements it made” during the battle to acquire Activisionand stated that Activision was already planning “significant” staff cuts.
In case you missed it, on Wednesday (Feb. 7), the FTC filed a brief with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, alleging: “Microsoft reportedly stated that the layoffs were part of an ‘execution plan ‘. that would reduce the ‘areas of overlap’ between Microsoft and Activision, which is inconsistent with Microsoft’s suggestion to the Court that the two companies will operate independently after the merger.”
Microsoft’s answerfiled yesterday (Feb. 8) by Rakesh Kilaru in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, saying the FTC’s “factual assertions are incomplete and misleading” and that the recent layoffs cannot be “entirely” attributed to the takeover.
“In line with broader trends in the gaming industry, Activision was already planning to cut a significant number of jobs while still operating as an independent company,” the response said. “The recent announcement cannot therefore be entirely attributed to the merger.
“More importantly, Microsoft remains fully committed to its positions in this court,” the company continued. “To be clear, while some overlap was identified and some jobs were eliminated, Microsoft has structured and managed the post-merger company in such a way that it will easily be able to divest any or all of Activision’s businesses as robust market participants in the future . unlikely event that ultimately a decision is made to divest. This is exactly what Microsoft previously represented.”
Microsoft’s plans to lay off around 1,900 staff were revealed last month, with staff from the Xbox, Activision Blizzard and ZeniMax teams reportedly affected.
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