Boston studio shut down, others face closure

There were a number of layoffs at Zynga today, as you might have heard from employees who were affected and quickly spread the word. An internal note from CEO Mark Pincus confirms much of what's been said about the significant changes that took place.

For starters, Zynga Boston is being closed. Closures have been proposed for the company's Japan and UK studios, and layoffs are also hitting the studio in Austin. All told, approximately five percent of Zynga's full-time workforce has been let go. 13 older games are being sunset and the social game company will be "significantly reducing [its] investment in The Ville."

Pincus notes that "This is the most painful part of an overall cost reduction plan that also includes significant cuts in spending on data hosting, advertising and outside services, primarily contractors. These reductions, along with our ongoing efforts to implement more stringent budget and resource allocation around new games and partner projects, will improve our profitability and allow us to reinvest in great games and our Zynga network on web and mobile."

It's a shame how frequently layoffs seem to happen in this industry -- even when it is a company whose work you don't particularly care for. Best of luck to those impacted by the layoffs in finding work swiftly.

Zynga lays off five percent of employees during Apple's event, shutters Boston studio [update: Mark Pincus's memo to staff] [The Verge]