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Ziff Davis Announces IGN Layoffs & Shutdown of 1Up, UGO, GameSpy
posted on by Joanne Mertz
In an internal corporation memo publicly released by Polygon, CEO of Ziff Davis Vivek Shah has announced layoffs for editorial employees at IGN as well as the eventual shutdown of 1UP.com, UGO.com, and GameSpy.com.
"It's always upsetting to say goodbye to colleagues and let's do what we can to help these employees as they seek new opportunities." says Shah. "It's also important for you to know that we are absolutely confident that we now have the best structure and team to successfully move the company forward and that there are no further planned reductions." The memo did not explicitly state how many employees were laid off.
Shah explained that the objective for the layoffs and terminations of the websites is to concentrate energy and resources into Ziff Davis' two main brands, IGN and AskMen.com. IGN's role from now on will focus on broadcasting eSports events, while searching for parties interested in acquiring IPL, IGN's original eSports network. AskMen is to receive more dedicated ad sales team.
1UP was supported by Electronic Gaming Monthly when it launched in 2003, 10 years ago. Ziff Davis sold 1UP to UGO in 2009, and purchased both brands earlier this month.
Source: MTVGeek
