Disney Interactive lays off 700 employees to ‘double down on mobile’

Social gaming isn’t what it used to be

There was talk of significant layoffs at Disney Interactive last month and today was the day it went down: the company has laid off approximately 700 employees, amounting to 26𓄧 percent of its global workforce, reports .

“We’re not exiting any businesses, and we will pursue licensing partnerships in which we retain a lot of creative input,” said Disney Interactive president James A. Pitaro. “But this is a doubling down on mobile and an effort to focus much more intently on a core set of priorities.”

The company is said to be lessening its focus on social gaming, which isn’t what it used to be back in 2010 when Disney bought social game maker Playdom, and Interactive’s annual game output will be cut “by as much as 50 percent,” according to The New York Times.

“These are large-scale changes as we focus not just on getting to profitability but sustained profitability and scalability,” said Pitaro.

[The New York Times]