Up to 260 jobs to go at Rovio

Rovio will lay off up to 260 staff as it aims to completely restructure the firm and reinvigorate its falling revenues.

The redundancies will apply to the entire organisation. This excludes employees working on the upcoming Angry Birds Movie, however

Rovio CEO Pekka Rantala said in its current financial condition, the company needed to focus on three core areas: games, media and consumer products. He admitted that the publisher had done "too many things" after the early success of Angry Birds.

“While we have gathered good momentum this year, especially with the launch of the Angry Birds 2 game – downloaded nearly 50 million times in its first month of release – fundamental changes are needed to ensure Rovio succeeds in its global ambitions to be the leading entertainment company with mobile games at its heart,” said Rantala.

“This is personally a difficult decision. However, it is certain that a leaner and more agile Rovio is absolutely necessary to move forward and take the company to new successes in the future. We will work with and support all our employees through this period of change.

“Rovio’s growth and eagerness to explore new business opportunities over the past few years has been exceptional. As a result, we did too many things. In our current financial condition we must now put focus on where we are at our best: in creating magnificent gaming experiences, in producing an amazing animation movie and in delighting our fans with great products.”

Update: Rovio Stockholm GM Oskar Burman has tweeted that his studio is unaffected by today’s announced redundancies.