Confirmed: J. Allard, Robbie Bach leave Microsoft

We’ve heard rumors about this, but now we have confirmation with a memo that was handed to Kotaku from Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.

Both J. Allard (remember him!) and Xbox head Robbie Bach are outtie, both retiring from the company. Bach leaves after 22 years of service, and will be exiting in the fall, probably about the same time Natal launches. Hey, I’m not trying to say anything there.

J. Allard, CEO and CTO of Entertainment and Devices division, is leaving after 15 years at MS.

Here’s the expected staff shift from Kotaku:

Effective July 1, Don Mattrick, who leads Microsoft’s interactive entertainment business, and Andy Lees, who leads Microsoft’s mobile communications business, will report directly to Ballmer. Meanwhile corporate vice president David Treadwell will now report to Mattrick.

No reasons were given for the departure of both employees. Also, no mention of future plans for either Allard or Bach were mentioned.

Strange that both are leaving at around the same time, isn’t it? Really, I was joking about that whole Natal connection.

[Yes, I totally ‘shopped Robbie Bach’s head onto Bill Gates’ body.]