Microsoft is announcing major changes to the leadership of its gaming division, including the appointment of a new president of Xbox.

 

 

According to a newly leaked memo from Microsoft, Sarah Bond has become the new president of Xbox. The appointment was announced as part of a broader management shake-up of the conglomerate’s gaming division. It also promoted Matt Booty, head of Microsoft Studios, to a new position.

In 2023, Microsoft continued its aggressive investments in the gaming industry, most notably the addition of Activision Blizzard to its growing family of studios.

Following the recent closing of the $68.7 billion transaction, Microsoft now operates three independent game publishing divisions: Activision Blizzard, ZeniMax Media and Xbox Game Studios.

Activision Blizzard’s large-scale acquisition has already taken place. The conglomerate has now set about shaking up the gaming C-suite. Starting with the promotion of Xbox corporate vice president Sarah Bond to the position of president. Matt Booty, who previously led Microsoft Studios, was promoted to president of game content and studios as part of the same management shake-up. Both will report directly to Phil Spencer, Microsoft’s chief gaming CEO. This was revealed in an internal memo from Spencer, obtained by The Verge.

Spencer also disclosed that Microsoft marketing chief Chris Capossela is leaving the company after 32 years and will be replaced by Takeshi Numoto, another 26-year Microsoft veteran.

Additionally, Microsoft’s corporate vice president, Yusuf Mehdi, stepped up as executive vice president. The position will be held in addition to the usual consumer CMO responsibilities. Microsoft’s consumer sales organization, led by Ami Silverman, will be merged with the company’s gaming division as part of the same reorganization. Spencer explained that this team will be tasked with finding new audiences and transforming Xbox game sales worldwide.

Finally, Microsoft corporate vice president Dave McCarthy, vice president of Xbox Game Player Services, has been named the new CMO of Microsoft Gaming. Bond’s appointment as chairman of Xbox sounds like the most potentially significant change.

If only because the former head of Xbox Creator Experience and Ecosystem will now oversee all gaming platform work at the company, including hardware research and development.

These leadership changes come at a time when Microsoft’s gaming division is stronger than ever. The company’s latest financial report revealed that Xbox Game Pass recently hit a new subscription milestone thanks to Starfield. At the same time, the overall gaming business posted 9% revenue growth in the first quarter of FY2024. The increase was primarily due to new game releases and Xbox Game Pass subscriptions. These managed to offset the 7% annual decline in console sales.

Source: The Verge

this is the new Xbox / Microsoft Gaming leadership team. If you look closely, you'll notice that there will be more women than men in the gaming leadership team at Microsoft once Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick departs. Full details here 👉 https://t.co/L9j03QXulm pic.twitter.com/qwrCj6DbHM

— Tom Warren (@tomwarren) October 26, 2023