EA cuts hundreds of jobs

After posting huge quarterly losses, gaming giant, Electronic Arts has announced plans to sack some 540 workers.

After posting huge quarterly losses, gaming giant, Electronic Arts has announced plans to sack some 540 workers.

EA, who is the publisher of hugely popular titles such as FIFA, Spore and Warhammer Online, reported a net loss of US $310 million dollars – forcing the company to cutback on six percent of their current staff.

The six percent reduction in workforce would result in a saving of US$50 million. In a statement to the press, EA’s chief executive, John Riccitello commented:

“Considering the slowdown at retail we’ve seen in October, we are cautious in the short term.
Longer term, we are very bullish on the game sector overall and on EA in particular.

“The industry is growing double-digits on the strength of three new game consoles and increases in the number of homes with broadband Internet connections. EA is well-positioned to benefit from these technology drivers.”

Despite the quarterly loss, and job cuts, EA expects to post revenue for the year between 4.9 billion US dollars and 5.15 billion US dollars, up 33 percent to 41 percent from the previous year.

Source: SMH