ByteDance Ltd has closed the doors to 101 Studios in Shanghai, just three years after acquiring it. The studio’s shutdown unfortunately resulted in more than 100 jobs being slashed, almost a third of the entire workforce. The remaining staffers are expected to receive internal transfers, according to those close to the situation.
101 Studios was one of several game-development houses that ByteDance, the Chinese TikTok, had bet on in its bid to expand into the gaming industry. But the Beijing-based company appears to be stepping back from those goals, having recently cancelled other gaming projects, while downsizing another gaming unit this year.
ByteDance has been handicapped by Chinese content and licensing restrictions and a general uncertainty for the future of the industry. China’s crackdown on big tech and internet firms is at the heart of an economic slowdown for the gaming industry, one that essentially put all these companies in limbo for more than a year.
ByteDance has shut down many of its online tutoring operations, disbanded its venture investment team, and sold off a stock-trading app. It’s unclear what the future looks like for the company, but it doesn’t appear that much of it will include gaming.
(All information was provided by Caixin Global)
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