Reports claim Twitch is planning huge layoffs with up to 500 people affected

techradar.com:

Live-streaming service Twitch is reportedly planning to make huge cuts to its workforce with around 500 members of staff expected to be affected, according to Bloomberg. 

The report, which was published yesterday (January 9) claims that in total, approximately 35% of Twitch’s workforce will be impacted. This comes less than a year after the Amazon-owned streaming service announced that it was laying off over 400 people, in what CEO Dan Clancy described as a “difficult decision” which was not made “without considerable thought.”

At the time of writing, Twitch hasn’t publicly verified this latest report, but TRG has reached out for comment and will update this story if we get a response. 

Last November, Amazon Games made cuts to over 180 jobs as the decision was made to shut down Crown Channel (an online streaming channel which regularly featured Twitch stars) and Game Growth. Game Growth described its aim as enabling “game consumers to easily find and access any game experience, for any platform, anywhere in the world” while “re-imagining how game creators promote their products.”

Layoffs were sadly constant in the games industry last year, and this latest report from Bloomberg isn’t the first time that they’ve been brought up in 2024. Yesterday (January 9), it was confirmed that game software development company Unity is cutting around 25% of its workforce, which will impact approximately 1,800 people. 

In a statement sent to TRG, a Unity spokesperson said: “This decision was not taken lightly, and we extend our deepest gratitude to those affected for their dedication and contribution.

«We are committed to supporting impacted employees through this challenging transition.  We appreciate the understanding and support of our