Disney has put its Metaverse plans on hold, as it furloughed its Metaverse development team. The company has joined many other major companies in implementing cost-cutting measures.
According to The Wall Street Journal, which cited people familiar with the situation, Disney has axed its Metaverse development team to save costs.
According to the media outlet, the company is implementing an extensive restructuring that is expected to lay off about 7,000 people in the coming months.
Corporate cost cutting measures across industries
Disney’s Metaverse team consisted of 50 individuals, all of whom have seen their positions eliminated, although the head of the team, Mike White, will remain in an undisclosed capacity. Disney made headlines in 2022 when it announced its plans for Metaverse experiences and even implied that this new form of engagement would create a new standard for entertainment.
Disney is not alone in implementing cost-cutting measures, as many other corporations have done during this worrying period for the global economy. Meta, Microsoft, Google, Twitter and others have also laid off thousands of employees. This is not a good sign for the economy which has recently been battered by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Job loss is a major theme of 2023 as far as global businesses are concerned. Among the layoffs in the crypto industry are Coinbase, Polygon and Immutable.
As the company in charge of some of the world’s biggest franchises, many will bemoan Disney’s decision to put the Metaverse on hold. The company had laid out some fairly detailed plans, but it remains to be seen if and when it will resume those plans.
The 2022 report talks about how Disney’s Metaverse plan will lay the foundation for how it interacts with audiences for the next 100 years. The company has the IP and technology to potentially reach hundreds of millions (if not billions) of users, and the hype for the Metaverse initiative was possibly the highest.
It also obtained a patent for an amusement park in the Metaverse, much to the delight of the crypto community. The company also posted job vacancy related to NFT. Most recently, it rehired Bob Iger as CEO, who is a Metaverse supporter.
The company’s share price is currently consolidating near a long-term low of approximately $95 per share.
Tech companies are firing
Metaverse departments appear at the top of the list for many companies that are working on cost reduction. Both Meta and Microsoft have either scrapped or greatly scaled down their Metaverse plans.
Meta is going through “years of efficiency” according to CEO Mark Zuckerberg, as its Reality Labs division imposes higher costs on the company. Microsoft laid off its entire industrial metaverse team, which numbered about 100 employees.
disclaimer
BeInCrypto has reached out to the company or individual involved in the story for an official statement regarding the recent developments, but has not yet received a response.