Embracer Group Reports "An All-Time High Quarter" Following Mass Layoffs With More Likely To Come

More layoffs are likely on the way for Embracer Group's holdings as the company turns in "an all-time high quarter" according to its CEO, seemingly referring to revenues as profit and debt reduction missed expectations. The layoffs are most likely to hit PC/Console studios (including MMOs which were down as a whole) as the company looks to improve the cash flow of this segment of the business. We've already seen Embracer lay off some 1,400 employees, about 8% of its workforce.

"As part of the restructuring program, Embracer still has a few larger structured divestment processes ongoing that could strengthen our balance sheet and further reduce capex," their financial report reads. "Processes are in mature stages. Certain companies might initiate restructuring before any divestment is announced. Our overruling principle is to always maximize shareholder value in any given situation."

"In a group-wide effort, our companies and studios have had to make difficult decisions, particularly on having to part ways with team members. In total, we have reduced our global headcount by 8 % of the workforce since the start of the program. The reductions are managed locally on the operative group level with a focus on informing affected employees first, and then carried out with compassion, respect and integrity towards those affected."

PC and Console games saw a negative 5% decrease in revenue year-over-year while Mobile games grew 4%, tabletop games grew 7%, and Entertainment & Services grew 12%. This, of course, likely means more layoffs until the PC/Console games division becomes more profitable. They didn't really talk much specifically about MMOs, (really only mentioning Star Trek Online as a backlog contributor) but you'd imagine we'll be hearing about more "restructuring" soon.

You can check out the video presentation on the Embracer site.