PlayStation lays off 90 employees as part of “global transformation”

PlayStation is making significant changes to its staff as it removed several sales and marketing positions, costing 90 people their jobs.

As reported by Axios, planned cuts took effect this week with PlayStation shutting down its merchandiser team in the US. Those in these roles would visit retail shops to train staff on selling PlayStation products and ensure they knew details about inventory. Several retail marketing jobs were also closed.

The changes appear to be part of PlayStation’s shift to a direct to consumer focus. Many of PlayStation’s titles are now available digitally. The recent announcement of broad changes to the subscription service PlayStation Plus suggests that Sony‘s physical sales are now a lower priority.

The shift in priority is reflected in Sony’s job listings, including several positions to sell its subscription service.

PlayStation Plus Collection. Credit: Sony Interactive Entertainment

However, one staff member affected by the job cuts told Axios that they were disappointed that staff were not provided with an earlier warning. PlayStation could have done more to find alternative positions for staff members.

PlayStation recently announced that its subscription service would be updated to a three-tiered system. The first tier, Essential, will continue to provide the current service offered by Plus, including online multiplayer access and two free games per month.

The new Plus Extra tier will include a catalogue of up to 400 PS4 and PS5 titles that players can download and play as they please. The final Plus Premium level will consist of everything from both previous tiers and adds a library of 340 additional games released for the PS3, PS1, PS2, and PSP that can be played through cloud streaming.

In other news, Unity said that Sony’s PSVR2 will take VR gaming to a new level.

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