In a move to streamline its gaming initiatives, Amazon is closing its Crown streaming channel on Twitch and disbanding its Game Growth program, which assisted game developers in marketing their products. The company is also refocusing its efforts on Prime Gaming, its free games subscription service.
"After careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to close Crown Channel and Game Growth," explained Christoph Hartmann, Vice President of Amazon Games, in a memo to employees. "We are also refocusing our efforts for Prime Gaming, as we've learned that delivering free games every month is what our customers want most."
The decision to close Crown Channel and Game Growth comes amid larger job reductions within Amazon's gaming division. The company is eliminating over 180 positions, affecting employees across various initiatives, including Prime Gaming, Game Growth, and its San Diego studio.
"We know this is difficult news, and we are committed to supporting our impacted employees," Hartmann stated. "Each employee whose role has been impacted will receive a live meeting to discuss these changes directly. We are also providing severance pay, outplacement services, and continued health insurance benefits."
Despite the layoffs, Hartmann maintains confidence in Amazon's gaming future. "We are developing and publishing great games with high potential," he asserted. "Our studio teams are growing, and our roadmap is bright. We are focused on our upcoming publishing launches for Throne and Liberty and Blue Protocol, as well as future projects like our Tomb Raider and The Lord of the Rings games, and our projects with Glowmade and Disruptive Games."
Amazon's decision to streamline its gaming initiatives reflects the company's broader strategy of focusing on initiatives with the highest potential for growth. By consolidating its efforts, Amazon aims to deliver a more impactful gaming experience for its players.
Here was the entire memo:
Hello everyone,
I have some important news to share with you all today about the future of our business.
As I've shared previously, our goal for Amazon Games is to become one of the leading creators of high-quality gaming content that delights players for years to come. Part of this bold vision involves experimentation as we explore what gamers want most and we regularly review these experiments to ensure we're creating the most impact.
After our initial restructuring in April, it became clear that we needed to focus our resources even more on the areas that are growing with the highest potential to drive our business forward. As such, the leadership team and I have made the difficult decision to close two of our initiatives - Crown Channel and Game Growth. We are also refocusing our efforts for Prime Gaming. We've listened to our customers and we know delivering free games every month is what they want most, so we are refining our Prime benefit to increase our focus there. With these changes in our business approach come changes to our resourcing, resulting in the elimination of just over 180 roles.
I know this is difficult news and that the impact will be felt widely. It never feels good to say goodbye to colleagues. This isn't a decision the leadership team came to quickly; it was the result of extensive considerations and road mapping for our future. We are proud of the work the teams have been doing, pushing into new areas with weekly content on Crown Channel, and finding more ways to help publishers reach new audiences with Game Growth. But after further evaluation of our businesses, it became clear that we need focus our resources and efforts to deliver great games to players now and in the future.
Each employee whose role has been impacted should now have a live meeting scheduled this morning so we can discuss these changes directly. We are also working to ensure all impacted employees are given the support they need on an individual level, including severance pay, outplacement services, health insurance benefits and more. Your managers, business leaders and HRBPs are available for conversations and we have a licensed counselor available 24/7 through our Employee Assistance Program.
I recognize that this is the second time this year that you are hearing about org-wide team changes and seeing colleagues go, so let me be very clear when I say this: I remain confident in our future. We are developing and publishing great games with high potential, our studio teams are growing, and our roadmap is bright. We are focused on our upcoming publishing launches for Throne and Liberty and Blue Protocol, as well as future projects like our Tomb Raider and The Lord of the Rings games, and our projects with Glowmade and Disruptive Games. Our internal studios are actively recruiting and hiring to fill critical roles as they develop new IP, while Prime Gaming continues to secure deals and deliver compelling content for members every month. We are committed to our vision of becoming one of the leading developers and publishers of high-quality games, and focusing our resources accordingly will help us get there.
