reorganization
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Former Google exec says he was pushed out for defending human rights
Google's former global head of international relations claims he was pushed out of the company for trying to protect free expression and privacy in China. In a letter shared today, Ross LaJeunesse says that, after 11 years of working to protect human rights in China, he was told there was no longer a job for him as a result of "reorganization." He says the company has strayed from its "don't be evil" motto, and rather than take a lesser role, he's leaving to run for a Senate seat in Maine.
Facebook reorganizes Oculus to further its long-term VR goals
Facebook isn't done shaking up its strategy for Oculus. TechCrunch has learned that Facebook reorganized its augmented and virtual reality teams this week to focus on areas of technical expertise, rather than specific products. The company acknowledged the change in a statement, saying that they were "internal changes" that shouldn't affect end users or developers. However, that's not entirely true -- this appears to be as much about making AR and VR more viable in the long term, rather than revolving around near-term releases.
BitTorrent says it's not killing its streaming media service
Last week, Variety published a report detailing some internal turmoil at BitTorrent: the company's CEOs had both reportedly been fired, the recently-launched BitTorrent Now initiative was dead and the company's new LA office / studio had been shut down. Today, BitTorrent has given us more details on the situation at the company -- some of what Variety reported appears to be accurate, but the company has denied BitTorrent Now's demise. The company says it "remains focused on the media space," including BitTorrent Now.
Google is merging its European operations
Google and Europe. It's a bit of a bumpy relationship. Things like the right to be forgotten and good old anti-trust issues are challenges the company has little choice but to divert resources to. Things are only made more complex by the fact that Google runs two operations in the continent -- north and west, south and east. Not for much longer, though, as the two units are uniting and Matt Brittin (current head of the north/west part) is assuming control.
Angry Birds publisher cuts layoffs down to 110
Angry Birds publisher Rovio announced plans to cut 16 percent of its workforce in early October, which approximated 130 jobs. That number is now down to 110, as the studio concluded its employee negotiations this week. As part of Rovio's reorganization plans, it opened up "several positions" to internal applicants, so the final number of layoffs for the publisher is expected to change as the company fills those new roles. As part of its restructuring, Rovio will discontinue its Tampere studio and consolidate its operations in Finland to its Espoo branch. The company's profits were halved as of April, resulting in a leadership change at the end of the year as announced in August. As of January 1, 2015, Mikael Hed will step down as CEO and move into the role of Chairman of Rovio Animation Studios, being replaced by Nokia's former Senior Vice President of Pekka Rantala. [Image: Rovio]
Perfect World reorganizes its R&D branches
Chinese gaming giant Perfect World Co. has issued a statement declaring a restructuring of research and development teams and the subsequent formation of five new subsidiaries. Says the press release, The structure of forming new subsidiaries that are majority-owned by Perfect World is aimed to help attract and motivate top talent by granting them direct stake in the subsidiaries under the new incentive scheme. Perfect World will support these subsidiaries with the Company's proprietary technology, graphic design, integrated platform, distribution channels and other valuable resources. The Company believes that the new structure will help invigorate the game development process, support game design flexibility, allow faster reaction to changing market trends, and boost game development productivity. Through its subsidiary Perfect Online Holding Limited, Perfect World also recently acquired a 3% stake in Digital Extremes Ltd., which publishes Warframe. Perfect World Co., Ltd., is not to be conflated with Perfect World Entertainment, known to our audience primarily for its custodianship of Cryptic's Star Trek Online, Neverwinter, and Champions Online. PWE is Perfect World Co.'s North American online games publisher.
Kodak exits bankruptcy with new focus on business imaging
After a year and a half of trials and tribulations, Kodak is finally in the clear -- it just exited Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Now that the company has finished offloading its document and personal imaging groups, it's free to pursue a recently court-approved reorganization plan that focuses solely on business products like movie film and packaging. The resulting firm is a far cry from the camera giant that we once knew, but we may hear about its work in the future. Kodak promises more details of "what's next," and it tells the AP that it's working on technology like printable touchscreen layers and smart packaging.
Command & Conquer F2P developer EA Phenomic closed
EA's in-house real-time strategy developer, EA Phenomic, has been closed and its 60 employees laid off, GamesIndustry International reports. The studio most recently developed EA's free-to-play, browser-based RTS Command & Conquer: Tiberium Alliances. Purchased by EA in 2004, it was originally founded in 1997 as Phenomic Game Development. "As part of EA's realignment in recent weeks, we have announced internally a small adjustment to some development staff to better focus our teams against priority growth areas," an EA representative told GamesIndustry International. "The decision to let people go is not something we take lightly and we are working to ensure that impacted employees are treated fairly and with respect for their contributions to EA, and with assistance to find other job opportunities." Thus far, this internal restructuring initiative has been responsible for around 900 lost jobs, including layoffs in LA and Montreal, as well as the closure of PopCap Dublin and the reported shuttering of BioWare's San Francisco component.
Capcom layoffs, Senior VP Christian Svensson among them [Update: Capcom responds]
Capcom is currently going through a reorganization, with Christian Svensson, senior VP of planning and business development, known to be departing the company. "After nearly eight years, it is my final day at Capcom," wrote Svensson in a social media post. "This departure is not a bad thing for me and it's happening mostly because I'd suggested it during the early planning for today's reorg. While I wish the company the best of luck, Capcom is going in a different direction and the need for people at my level, relative to other areas, is lacking. Those who know me well, know that I've been ready to go for quite some time." We've reached out to Capcom for a statement and will update when we have more. Update: A Capcom representative has provided us with a statement regarding today's events: "Capcom today laid off several employees from the US office as part of an overall organizational restructure of the company. The transition to the new generation of hardware and changing industry landscape have required us to adapt our business to best meet our new goals. We sincerely thank each individual for their contributions and wish them well."
Microsoft's metamorphosis: Ballmer restructures Redmond, focuses on services and devices
Rumors of a massive reorg in Redmond have been floating around for awhile now. And the noise reached a fever pitch when Don Mattrick left Microsoft for Zygna's (apparently) greener pastures -- purportedly because he didn't like the role he'd receive in the pending restructuring. Now, a mere ten days after the ex-Xbox chief's departure, we know what the new Microsoft will look like. As expected, the company has been bifurcated into services and devices divisions, with Julie Larson-Green getting the nod as hardware chief and Terry Myerson becoming the Grand Poobah of Windows. Of course, quite a few other execs have seen their roles shift as well, with Qi Lu managing productivity, communication and search apps and services, and Satya Nadella heading up the company's cloud initiatives. Additionally, Skype president Tony Bates has been tapped to manage the Business Development and Evangelism group, where he'll lead corporate strategy and developer outreach. There are even more changes afoot. CTO Eric Rudder is now responsible for an Advanced Strategy and Research group and Tami Reller is the new US marketing chief. COO Kevin Turner, CFO Amy Hood, General Counsel Brad Smith and Chief People Officer Lisa Brummel will maintain their current positions. Finally, Office president Kurt DelBene will be retiring from Microsoft, according to the company-wide reorganization email published on the company's site. So what this all this mean for MS? Hit up the source for a 2,700-word memo detailing Steve Ballmer's vision.
Nihilistic becomes nStigate, steps away from retail game development
Black Ops: Declassified and Resistance: Burning Skies developer Nihilistic Software is reorganizing and reforming, with a focus on moving from retail game development towards downloadable, online, and mobile markets. The California-based company today announced it's renaming itself as nStigate following a reorganization that won't see any "planned layoffs," but will see its staff base shrink across the coming months.Founded in 1998, Nihilistic debuted two years later with the macabre RPG Vampire: The Masquerade. The studio more recently came into prominence on PlayStation Vita, releasing Burning Skies and being hired by Activision to develop Call of Duty for Sony's new handheld. Black Ops: Declassified releases next month and Nihilistic assured gamers on Twitter the coming transition won't affect any current projects.[Thanks, Ethan]
Sharp reports 2,000 job cuts in Japan, more changes expected
There was little doubt jobs would be on the line after Sharp's significant Q1 losses, but now it's official. Following a board meeting today, the company has joined the likes of RIM, Sony and HP, announcing the "voluntary retirement" of around 2,000 staff in Japan before the year's out. The layoffs are part of a wider, textbook reorganization plan, and are expected to cost a sizeable 27 billion yen (approximately $344 million). Neither figure is set in stone, however, so when everything is finalized we could see more jobs impacted and those costs soar. Whether this puts off potential investment from Hon Hai Precision Industry is unknown, but while Sharp's TVs get ever bigger, its wallet continues to get thinner.
Nokia shutters two Chinese offices as part of strategic reorganization in the region
There's a hole in Nokia's heart and it goes all the way to China. Following news this past April that a massive restructuring effort was underway for Espoo's Asian operations, comes word that offices in Chengdu and Shanghai have been closed amidst declining market share. That's according to the Wall Street Journal which says the layoffs are targeted at the company's Chinese sales division -- an area Elop's made clear is essential for growth -- as Nokia's presence in the region has dwindled to 11 percent in Q1, a sharp drop from its more robust 30 percent share last Q2 2011. And with increasing competition from rival OEMs, the layoffs are expected to continue while the house that Lumia's attempting to rebuild gains its footing.
Sony gets a Kaz-style kick to its corporate guts, emphasizes its oneness
Kazuo Hirai doesn't officially grab the reins as Sony's CEO and President until April 1st, but in reality he's already at the stirrups. He's making a number of exec-level switches that he hopes will deliver "rapid and optimized decision-making processes as 'One Sony'." His strategy? An inner circle consisting of himself and fellow reformers -- such as CFO Masaru Kato -- who will engage with department heads and, you know, make 'em do stuff faster. Digital imaging, gaming and mobile will be considered pillars of the electronics business and receive more "concentrated" resources as a result. Meanwhile, Kaz will directly oversee the struggling TV business in an effort to turn it around, which means his days of enjoying life and staring out of windows are probably numbered. See the press release for more tectonic detail.
HP's imaging / printing group combines with PC group, Printing and Personal Systems Group emerges
Rumor had it, and rumor was right. This morning, HP officially announced an organizational realignment that's set to "improve performance and drive profitable growth across the entire HP portfolio." Corporate speak, sure, but what's happening is that the Imaging and Printing Group (IPG) and Personal Systems Group (PSG) are joining forces to create the Printing and Personal Systems Group. The newly merged entity will be headed up by one Todd Bradley, who has served as the executive VP of PSG since '05. Vyomesh Joshi, executive VP of IPG, seems to be getting the better end of the deal, cashing in his "retirement" card after 31 years at the company. In related news, HP's Global Accounts Sales organization will join the newly named HP Enterprise Group, and it will "unify its Marketing functions across business units under Marty Homlish, executive vice president and chief marketing officer." Lastly, the company is sliding its Global Real Estate function from Finance into Global Technology and Business Processes, which is bound to befuddle precisely no one. For the full chair rearrangement, head on past the break.
iRobot reorganizes, forms new unit focused on Ava and other emerging technologies
iRobot has been branching out from its traditional household and military robots for quite a while, and it looks like it's now officially embracing those activities as a core part of its business. The company announced a reorganization (or "strategic realignment") today that will see it comprised of three different business units: Home Robots, Military Robots and Emerging Technologies. That last group includes things like the Ava mobile robotics platform, which iRobot hopes will eventually be used in everything from healthcare to retail to security applications. Alongside that news, the company also announced a bit of an exec shakeup, with Home Robots President Jeffrey Beck being named Chief Operating Officer, and former COO Joseph Dyer switching roles to become Chief Strategy Officer. The company's official announcement can be found after the break.
Kodak's stock price exploded after restructuring announcement
It's only January 10th and Kodak's already having a terrible year: six days ago the beloved photography company was preparing for Chapter 11, but today its stock price leapt by 45 percent (and counting). The cause? The announcement of a new plan intended to pull the troubled company into the 21st century and, more importantly, into the black. It's planning to simplify its business structure down to two divisions and reduce costs while pushing its successful range of printers. We've got the announcement after the break but hopefully we'll see the century-old company live to see another day.
Kodak files new ITC lawsuits against Apple and HTC
Kodak and Apple might already be embroiled in an existing brouhaha, but that's not stopping the company from going on the offensive with two new suits. Filed in the Western District of New York, the company alleges Apple's violated four of its patents and HTC five. The claims primarily center around transferring images on and off devices and cover a wide gamut including iPhones, various EVOs and tablets. FOSS Patents muses it's all a ruse to demonstrate there's still gold in Kodak's patent mine -- either way, the market's eating it up.
TomTom looks to shed ten-percent of workforce in restructuring effort
We have some sad news to report out of Holland today. TomTom has announced that it will release nearly ten-percent of its employees as the company works to reorganize and move away from the personal navigation device market. The struggling firm previously stated that it would trim €50 million from its annual operations budget, and many of TomTom's employees will now face the ramifications of this effort. Moving forward, the company will focus primarily on in-dash navigation equipment that's pre-installed by automotive manufacturers, along with fleet management for delivery companies. Hopefully we'll see some better times ahead for the Dutch firm. Frankly, we don't know what we'd do without the likes of Mr. T, Han Solo and Burt and Ernie leading the way.
Sony's Kaz Hirai consolidates power as likely CEO successor to Howard Stringer
Sony's in the midst of yet another realignment this morning. Most notable is the promotion of Kazuo "Kaz" Hirai to Representative Corporate Executive Officer and Executive Deputy President, effective as of April 1st. The change in title also carries new responsibilities for Sony's Consumer Products & Services Group putting Kaz in charge of all of Sony's consumer electronics businesses including TV, audio / video, imaging, PC, gaming, and mobile in addition to overseeing Sony's global sales and marketing, common software platforms, and design operations. The move makes Kaz the number one candidate to replace Howard Stringer, the 69 year old boss from Wales, who is expected to step down in 2013.
