phil spencer

Image: Jaap Arriens (Getty Images)The Federal Trade Commission isn’t happy with the outcome of Microsoft’s $68.7 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, telling a court on Wednesday that Microsoft’s recent layoffs contradict promises it made to get the merger approved. Warning! Microsoft Wants ChatGPT to Control Robots NextIn a letter to the clerk of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, the FTC criticized Microsoft for the layoff of 1,900 workers in January, which represented about 8% of its gaming division. The…

Blizzard Entertainment Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming, announced that Xbox will hold a “business update event” sometime next week in response to a flurry of discourse online about Xbox exclusives going multiplatform. Leaks and rumors about games that were previously Xbox-exclusives, like Hi-Fi Rush and Sea of Thieves, going multiplatform have been circulating for a couple of weeks, but they hit a fever pitch over the weekend. An XboxEra report claimed that a PlayStation 5 version of Bethesda Game Studios’…

A day after reports of multiple Microsoft first-party titles possibly making their way to rival platforms, the company said early Tuesday that it would host a business update event next week, detailing the “future of Xbox.” Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer posted the announcement on X (formerly Twitter), promising more details to the Xbox community. While the Xbox chief did not confirm the agenda of the event, Microsoft reportedly will reveal its plan to bring its exclusive titles, said to include Hi-Fi Rush and others,…

It didn’t take long for the Head of Xbox, Phil Spencer, to respond to the latest rumors. Those looking for an immediate conclusion will have to wait a little longer, however. According to Spencer, a business update event is planned for next week which is where Xbox will share more details about its vision and future. We're listening and we hear you. We've been planning a business update event for next week, where we look forward to sharing more details with you about our vision for the future of Xbox. Stay tuned.—…

Microsoft laid 1,900 employees in its gaming division, according to an internal memo seen by The Verge on Thursday, with a majority of the layoffs hitting its newly acquired Activision Blizzard employees. Some Xbox and ZeniMax employees were also affected, according to the memo. The layoffs come roughly three months after Microsoft closed a $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard.Warning! Microsoft Wants ChatGPT to Control Robots NextMicrosoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer welcomed Activision, Blizzard, and King…

This past year was a tipping point for the games industry. There have been some amazing, trend-setting releases alongside devastating industry turmoil, including mass layoffs, studio closures, and ballooning development costs. There’s a sense of foreboding entering into 2024, but there’s at least one thing we can glean from the chaos of 2023. The handheld console proved to be the hottest and best way to play games on the go or at home. The new portable paradigm has the ability to save the games industry from heartbreak,…

This story is part of our new Future of Gaming series, a three-site look at gaming’s most pioneering technologies, players, and makers.Warning! Microsoft Wants ChatGPT to Control Robots NextXbox hasn’t been able to compete with Nintendo and Sony when it comes hardware sales and exclusive titles. Microsoft, however, is making moves that could not only turn the tide in its favor but also revolutionize the industry.The vehicle for this revolution is Xbox Game Pass, which could lead to a console-less console war. Microsoft…

A wave of rumors has engulfed Sony’s premiere fish tail-shaped console, with speculation centering on an upcoming PS5 Pro next year with a beefed-up CPU and GPU supposed to help it swim above any of the other prominent consoles currently on the market.'Even AI Rappers are Harassed by Police' | AI UnlockedAn anonymous user on the ResetEra forums and more folks on Twitter claimed the PS5 Pro is internally dubbed Project “Viola.” The upcoming console would still use the same AMD Zen2 CPU, but it’s been overclocked to 4.4 GHz…

Microsoft has reportedly been developing an Xbox mobile storefront that would allow users to bypass Apple's App Store and Google's Play Store and download games off its own application. Earlier this year, Microsoft's gaming chief Phil Spencer, too, had revealed ahead of the annual Game Developer Conference that the company intended to launch its own app store for both iOS and Android. Now, Xbox is reportedly in talks with partners for the same.According to a Bloomberg report, Spencer claimed that the Xbox store app on…

Microsoft is talking to partners that will help the company to help it launch a mobile gaming store. This store will compete with Apple and Google, said Phil Spencer, who leads the company’s Xbox video-game division.“It’s an important part of our strategy and something we are actively working on today not only alone, but talking to other partners who’d also like to see more choices for how they can monetise on the phone,’’ Spencer said in an interview, as per BNN Bloomberg. “I don’t think this is multiple years away, I…