Kabam lays off ‘small number’ of staff

Kabam has laid off a number of employees in a transition to mobile development that it expects will lead to an overall increase in the workforce.

The company is in the midst of a growth spurt, but a spokesperson told GamesIndustry International that a "small number of employees in the overall employee base" had been let go.

The shift to mobile is expected to take the company workforce from its current number of 700 to over 900 by year’s end.

Even so, the change means not everyone gets to stay.

“As much as possible we tried to find positions for everyone affected," said Kabam’s VP of corporate communications, Steve Swasey.

"We were able to do that with some but not with others."

Kabam is just one of many companies trying to shift to a more mobile centric approach as the market for smartphone and tablet games grows.

While this is good news for companies and developers who can make the transition, some are inevitably being left behind.

"The big growth for Kabam is in the mobile games, and that’s where we’re focusing,” said Swasey.

“There are some positions we’re not able to move over, so we had to say goodbye to some folks."