CEO John Hanke said in a note that the privately held company, due to internal and external factors including an overall global macroeconomic slowdown, would cancel NBA All-World and halt production of an unissued Marvel-based title. Hanke additionally disclosed that the team at Niantic is focusing primarily on sustaining the success of Pokemon Go.
On Thursday, Niantic, a San Francisco-based mobile games developer, revealed that it would be letting go of 230 staff members as part of a restructuring plan and that it would halt production on an untitled Marvel game. CEO John Hanke stated in a letter that this overhaul was being caused by a variety of internal and external factors, such as dwindling global macroeconomic activity and newly-introduced changes that have made user acquisition through advertising more costly. Pokemon Go, Niantic's 2016 breakout hit, is the company's number one priority. According to Data.ai, the App Store's gaming expenditure in 2020 decreased by 5% to $110 billion.
The move speaks to the shifting augmented reality sector, which entails the amalgamation of data and virtual graphics into the real world. Pokemon Go is an example of this, with digital creatures appearing onscreen in harmony with the environment surrounding the gamer. This technology is manifesting itself in the form of goggles and headsets that use camera components to merge the physical and digital realms - Meta has released its Quest Pro headset and Apple will soon launch its ultra-anticipated Vision Pro. Hanke explained in his letter that these products lay the groundwork for the emergence of "true outdoor AR devices" (e.g. lightweight glasses with transparent displays). He continued by citing his belief in the possibility of providing "key content and platform services" to help this technology reach its fullest potential. That being said, he admitted that the AR market is advancing more slowly due to the current macro environment and larger competitors scaling back their investments.
Niantic employed 1,050 workers in 2022 and had attracted $300 million in funding that November, which post-money valuation estimates pegged at a whopping $9 billion.
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