Struggling gaming firm Zynga has announced Microsoft president of Interactive Entertainment Don Mattrick will be replacing founder Mark Pincus as chief executive officer (CEO).
Pincus, who has been accused by many of failing replicate his success with social media games in the smartphone and tablet arena, will remain as chairman and chief product officer.
During the last two and a half years shares in Zynga have dropped by 70 per cent, while 20 per cent of its workforce has been laid off.
In a note to Zynga employees and shareholders, Pincus said: “Over the last few months I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about all that we have achieved together as a company. We have pioneered social gaming and helped make Play a core part of millions of people’s lives. But Zynga has so much more potential ahead, the opportunity to be an Internet Treasure and deliver on our mission of connecting the world through games.
“I’ve always said to Bing and our Board that if I could find someone who could do a better job as our CEO I’d do all I could to recruit and bring that person in. I’m confident that Don is that leader.”Pincus followed it up with a Tweet welcoming Mattrick to the company.
Very excited to welcome don mattrick as our new ceo #internettreasure
— mark pincus (@markpinc) July 1, 2013
Mattrick has a wealth of experience in the games industry, having worked at EA for 14 years and at Microsoft since 2007, where he has been credited with the expansion of the Xbox 360 game console.
