Sony has revealed plans to lay off approximately 900 employees from its PlayStation unit and shut down a London-based studio, according to an announcement made on Tuesday. <o:p></o:p>

According to a Reuters report, this decision comes due to challenges faced by the videogame industry as it strives to recover from the post-pandemic slump. <o:p></o:p>

The job cuts are expected to affect about 8 per cent of the division's workforce across regions spanning from the Americas to Asia.<o:p></o:p>

Sony gaming chief Jim Ryan stated, "We have concluded that tough decisions have become inevitable," attributing the move to the evolving landscape of the videogame industry, encompassing changes in development, distribution, and product launches. <o:p></o:p>

Ryan, who has been at the helm, is set to retire in March. <o:p></o:p>

The decision comes as industry counterparts like Microsoft and Tencent-owned Riot Games, recently implemented layoffs in response to the sluggish recovery in the gaming market.<o:p></o:p>

The global videogame market experienced a growth of just 0.6 per cent in the previous year, reaching $184 billion, as reported by industry tracker Newzoo. <o:p></o:p>

This growth, though subdued, stands in contrast to the decline of over 5 per cent witnessed in 2022. <o:p></o:p>

Notably, the layoffs will not only impact Sony's PlayStation unit but will also extend to its other studios. <o:p></o:p>

This includes prominent names such as US-based Insomniac Games, known for their work on titles like "Marvel's Spider-Man 2," and Naughty Dog, the studio behind the critically acclaimed "The Last of Us." <o:p></o:p>

Earlier this month, Sony slashed its annual sales expectations for the PlayStation 5 console, indicating a cautious outlook for the upcoming fiscal year. <o:p></o:p>

The company anticipates a gradual decline in unit sales for the PlayStation 5 and has declared no plans to release major franchise titles in the coming fiscal year. <o:p></o:p>

Despite these challenges, the PlayStation 5 has achieved impressive lifetime sales, surpassing 50 million units since its launch in late 2020, overcoming initial hurdles related to pandemic-induced supply shortages.<o:p></o:p>

(With inputs from Reuters)<o:p></o:p>

Sony has revealed plans to lay off approximately 900 employees from its PlayStation unit and shut down a London-based studio, according to an announcement made on Tuesday.

Sony has revealed plans to lay off approximately 900 employees from its PlayStation unit and shut down a London-based studio, according to an announcement made on Tuesday. According to a Reuters report, this decision comes due to challenges faced by the videogame industry as it strives to recover from the post-pandemic slump. The job cuts are expected to affect about 8 per cent of the division's workforce across regions spanning from the Americas to Asia. Sony gaming chief Jim Ryan stated, "We have concluded that tough decisions have become inevitable," attributing the move to the evolving landscape of the videogame industry, encompassing changes in development, distribution, and product launches. Ryan, who has been at the helm, is set to retire in March. The decision comes as industry counterparts like Microsoft and Tencent-owned Riot Games, recently implemented layoffs in response to the sluggish recovery in the gaming market. The global videogame market experienced a growth of just 0.6 per cent in the previous year, reaching $184 billion, as reported by industry tracker Newzoo. This growth, though subdued, stands in contrast to the decline of over 5 per cent witnessed in 2022. Notably, the layoffs will not only impact Sony's PlayStation unit but will also extend to its other studios. This includes prominent names such as US-based Insomniac Games, known for their work on titles like "Marvel's Spider-Man 2," and Naughty Dog, the studio behind the critically acclaimed "The Last of Us." Earlier this month, Sony slashed its annual sales expectations for the PlayStation 5 console, indicating a cautious outlook for the upcoming fiscal year. The company anticipates a gradual decline in unit sales for the PlayStation 5 and has declared no plans to release major franchise titles in the coming fiscal year. Despite these challenges, the PlayStation 5 has achieved impressive lifetime sales, surpassing 50 million units since its launch in late 2020, overcoming initial hurdles related to pandemic-induced supply shortages. (With inputs from Reuters)

Sony announces layoffs and studio closure while challenges loom in the gaming sector

The Karnataka High Court&nbsp;on Thursday overturned the imposition of Goods and Services Tax (GST) worth Rs 21,000 crore&nbsp;on Gameskraft Technologies Pvt. Ltd. (GTPL).&nbsp;

The Karnataka High Court's ruling is expected to bring much-need clarity on the tax liabilities&nbsp;of online gaming platforms and establish&nbsp;a precedent that could influence similar cases in the future.

In his&nbsp;judgment, Justice S.R. Krishna Kumar established a distinction between 'games of skill' and 'games of chance', adding that the former was outside the purview of 'betting and gambling', and therefore exempt from GST.&nbsp;

In November 2021, officials from the Directorate General of Goods and Services Tax Intelligence&nbsp;had conducted a search and seizure operation at GTPL's premises. Consequently, GST authorities froze GTPL's bank accounts, alleging that the gaming company had suppressed taxable value by claiming discounts.

The authorities had also argued that the amounts staked by participating players on the GTPL platforms constituted taxable "betting and gambling".&nbsp;

Gameskraft Technologies challenged the order before the Karnataka High Court, which allowed the company to operate its bank accounts for specific purposes.&nbsp;

While the hearing concluded in September 2022 and the judgment was reserved, GST authorities issued an Intimation Notice demanding a staggering Rs 21,000 crore.&nbsp;

They claimed that GTPL had misclassified its supply as services and engaged in the supply of 'actionable claims', which&nbsp;required GST payment under the Central Goods and Services Tax Rules. The company promptly challenged the Intimation Notice in the Karnataka High Court, which stayed its operation.

Interestingly,&nbsp;the All India Gaming Federation and E-Gaming Federation decided to&nbsp;intervene&nbsp;in support of Gameskraft Technologies in the Karnataka High Court, after recognising the significant impact this case could have on the online gaming industry.&nbsp;

The Karnataka High Court on Thursday overturned the imposition of Goods and Services Tax (GST) worth Rs 21,000 crore on Gameskraft Technologies Pvt. Ltd. (GTPL).

The Karnataka High Court on Thursday overturned the imposition of Goods and Services Tax (GST) worth Rs 21,000 crore on Gameskraft Technologies Pvt. Ltd. (GTPL). The Karnataka High Court's ruling is expected to bring much-need clarity on the tax liabilities of online gaming platforms and establish a precedent that could influence similar cases in the future. In his judgment, Justice S.R. Krishna Kumar established a distinction between 'games of skill' and 'games of chance', adding that the former was outside the purview of 'betting and gambling', and therefore exempt from GST. In November 2021, officials from the Directorate General of Goods and Services Tax Intelligence had conducted a search and seizure operation at GTPL's premises. Consequently, GST authorities froze GTPL's bank accounts, alleging that the gaming company had suppressed taxable value by claiming discounts. The authorities had also argued that the amounts staked by participating players on the GTPL platforms constituted taxable "betting and gambling". Gameskraft Technologies challenged the order before the Karnataka High Court, which allowed the company to operate its bank accounts for specific purposes. While the hearing concluded in September 2022 and the judgment was reserved, GST authorities issued an Intimation Notice demanding a staggering Rs 21,000 crore. They claimed that GTPL had misclassified its supply as services and engaged in the supply of 'actionable claims', which required GST payment under the Central Goods and Services Tax Rules. The company promptly challenged the Intimation Notice in the Karnataka High Court, which stayed its operation. Interestingly, the All India Gaming Federation and E-Gaming Federation decided to intervene in support of Gameskraft Technologies in the Karnataka High Court, after recognising the significant impact this case could have on the online gaming industry.

Karnataka High Court quashes Rs 21,000 crore GST on Gameskraft Technologies

Technology has been a boon during the time of COVID-19 pandemic. Adapting to the ever-evolving scenario, the world has used the world of technology to optimize the survival instinct while keeping up with the day-to-day demands of lives. Be it entertainment, online shopping or even gaming, Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR/VR) has come out as one of the advanced technologies amid the pandemic that has helped not only the gamers but also the daily consumers to make use of the technology.

The world of gaming has witnessed a massive surge in the number of users and the number of hours spends by gamers in front of their console or gaming system. While traditional games have shone in the times of lockdown and unlock, XR (AR and VR) games are breaking into the scene much rapidly than ever before.

“A major challenge for XR has been the dependency on devices. The COVID-19 pandemic has been pretty great for the gaming industry due to the huge surge of users, engagement and so much more. In terms of VR, I feel this is the time we will see users adapting to technology. Games like Oculus Quest 2 was preordered five times as much as the original, which has also helped developers. I feel the greatest challenge has definitely been the supply-demand in the case of VR since it was severely impacted by the COVID-19 lockdown. I feel India is a more AR friendly market than a VR. Simple factors such as device dependency and network connectivity contribute to the cause,” Shrey Mishra, Co-Founder at XR Central told WION.

TRENDING |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/romain-grosjeans-fireball-crash-haas-fiery-f1-accident-in-pictures-346535" hreflang="en">Romain Grosjean's fireball crash: Haas' fiery F1 accident in pictures</a>

The biggest challenge for XR gaming sector would be to keep this anticipation among the gamers high as it was during the lockdown. Introduction of cheaper VR sets and creation of addictive games have made the mark already but the way social media is catering to AR-enabled platforms such as Facebook and Snapchat will only increase the curiosity among the young gaming generation.

<h2>"AR/VR in gaming sector bound to grow"</h2>

“It is simple to see that the sector is bound to grow. New cheaper headsets will be introduced in the market with a higher level of flexibility. Virtual reality (VR) in the gaming market was valued at USD 7.7 billion in 2019 and is projected to reach USD 42.50 billion by 2025. A huge spike will be through AR-enabled messengers like Facebook and Snapchat messenger which are driving a huge wave of users to augmented reality,” Shrey added.

With 2021 set to bring new hopes and trends in the entire world with the gaming sector no exception, AR/VR trend is likely to witness a boost. Not only in the world of gaming but AR is also expected to boost the online shopping zone/&nbsp;

“Device dependency on AR and VR will steadily fall off. Web-based AR and VR solutions are the future. AR and VR will be included in corporate strategies. Digital Marketers will continue to experiment with AR/VR, if not already, will create something called experiential marketing. AR will become mainstream for online shopping.&nbsp;

IN PICS:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/battle-of-goats-legendary-bout-between-mike-tyson-and-jones-jr-ends-in-draw-346248" hreflang="en">Battle of GOATS: Legendary bout between Mike Tyson and Jones Jr. ends in draw</a>

“Virtual events will continue to be in bolster the Events and Entertainment industry. Even after the travel resumes, companies will look at hybrid event execution models (the combination of online and offline activations). Educational institutes will shift to AR and VR for experiential and immersive training and will no longer be restricted to PPTs and Excels,” Shrey concluded.

XRC are one of the market innovators with specialization in: Virtual spaces, 3D web and VR content, Web AR and Web VR, and AI-powered voice, among others.

Technology has been a boon during the time of COVID-19 pandemic. Adapting to the ever-evolving scenario, the world has used the world of technology to optimize the survival instinct while keeping up with the day-to-day demands of lives.

Technology has been a boon during the time of COVID-19 pandemic. Adapting to the ever-evolving scenario, the world has used the world of technology to optimize the survival instinct while keeping up with the day-to-day demands of lives. Be it entertainment, online shopping or even gaming, Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR/VR) has come out as one of the advanced technologies amid the pandemic that has helped not only the gamers but also the daily consumers to make use of the technology. The world of gaming has witnessed a massive surge in the number of users and the number of hours spends by gamers in front of their console or gaming system. While traditional games have shone in the times of lockdown and unlock, XR (AR and VR) games are breaking into the scene much rapidly than ever before. “A major challenge for XR has been the dependency on devices. The COVID-19 pandemic has been pretty great for the gaming industry due to the huge surge of users, engagement and so much more. In terms of VR, I feel this is the time we will see users adapting to technology. Games like Oculus Quest 2 was preordered five times as much as the original, which has also helped developers. I feel the greatest challenge has definitely been the supply-demand in the case of VR since it was severely impacted by the COVID-19 lockdown. I feel India is a more AR friendly market than a VR. Simple factors such as device dependency and network connectivity contribute to the cause,” Shrey Mishra, Co-Founder at XR Central told WION. TRENDING | Romain Grosjean's fireball crash: Haas' fiery F1 accident in pictures The biggest challenge for XR gaming sector would be to keep this anticipation among the gamers high as it was during the lockdown. Introduction of cheaper VR sets and creation of addictive games have made the mark already but the way social media is catering to AR-enabled platforms such as Facebook and Snapchat will only increase the curiosity among the young gaming generation. "AR/VR in gaming sector bound to grow" “It is simple to see that the sector is bound to grow. New cheaper headsets will be introduced in the market with a higher level of flexibility. Virtual reality (VR) in the gaming market was valued at USD 7.7 billion in 2019 and is projected to reach USD 42.50 billion by 2025. A huge spike will be through AR-enabled messengers like Facebook and Snapchat messenger which are driving a huge wave of users to augmented reality,” Shrey added. With 2021 set to bring new hopes and trends in the entire world with the gaming sector no exception, AR/VR trend is likely to witness a boost. Not only in the world of gaming but AR is also expected to boost the online shopping zone/ “Device dependency on AR and VR will steadily fall off. Web-based AR and VR solutions are the future. AR and VR will be included in corporate strategies. Digital Marketers will continue to experiment with AR/VR, if not already, will create something called experiential marketing. AR will become mainstream for online shopping. IN PICS: Battle of GOATS: Legendary bout between Mike Tyson and Jones Jr. ends in draw “Virtual events will continue to be in bolster the Events and Entertainment industry. Even after the travel resumes, companies will look at hybrid event execution models (the combination of online and offline activations). Educational institutes will shift to AR and VR for experiential and immersive training and will no longer be restricted to PPTs and Excels,” Shrey concluded. XRC are one of the market innovators with specialization in: Virtual spaces, 3D web and VR content, Web AR and Web VR, and AI-powered voice, among others.

Evolution of esports, gaming sectors with AR/VR trends

gaming-sector

Gaming Sector, News on Gaming Sector, stories on Gaming Sector, articles on Gaming Sector, Gaming Sector stories at Wion, Gaming Sector news, Gaming Sector latest news