Xbox Boss Don Mattrick Taking CEO Job At Zynga?

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The rumor mill is abuzz with talk of Don Mattrick leaving Microsoft to take the helm at Zynga. Even though the article cites "multiple sources close to the situation," that seemed to be enough to drive Zynga's stock up ten percent.

Don Mattrick, the president of Microsoft’s Interactive Entertainment unit — which centers on the Xbox and all the software giant’s gaming and entertainment efforts — is leaving the company, said multiple sources close to the situation.
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Unfortunately I think they entirely blamed Marketing and PR on their xbox problems. So I don't expect change.

As for Zynga, seems like a good match. *snicker*.
 
I predicted he would be leaving for different reasons back on the 19th...

pxc said:
peers into crystal ball:

...Don Mattrick departs MS to spend more time with his family...
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Smells like when Sinofsky was ordered to leave over the Metro debacle.
 
odditory said:
Smells like when Sinofsky was ordered to leave over the Metro debacle.
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That's not why Sinofsky left. Apparently he ruffled too many feathers and I think he wanted replace Ballmer when he retired which wasn't going to happen. Metro was signed off by Ballmer and even Gates gave his blessing from what I've read about the matter.
 
Is that the dude with the punchy face? Can't say I'm suprised he's not sticking around Microsoft.
 
It looks like Stalin's *COUGH* I mean Ballmer's purge is going nicely.
 
If true, they are not buying him for his divine insight.

At this point, he has connections up the wahzoo.

They are paying him for WHO he knows, not WHAT he knows.
 
Steve Ballmer, via this company wide e-mail, has confirmed that Don Mattrick has been hired by Zynga. No word on a replacement but, at least for now, the Xbox team will report directly to Ballmer himself.

Zynga announced today that Don Mattrick would be its new CEO, effective July 8. This is a great opportunity for Don, and I wish him success. Don’s directs will report to me and will continue to drive the day-to-day business as a team, particularly focused on shipping Xbox One this holiday.

Since joining IEB more than six years ago, Don and his team have accomplished much. Xbox Live members grew from 6 million to 48 million. Xbox 360 became the No. 1 selling console in North America the past two years. We introduced Kinect and have sold more than 24 million sensors. We released fantastic games, and, most importantly, we expanded Xbox to go beyond great gaming to deliver all the entertainment people want — sports, music, movies, live television and much more.

In the past month, the IEB team showed for the first time here on our Redmond campus, and again at E3, how we are going to continue to transform entertainment with Xbox One. I am incredibly proud of the work and vision culminating in Xbox One.
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This is rather weird because MS will somehow fix the backlash from Xbox1 E3 fiasco by dumping Don ?

It is not Don who thought of all the silly stuff that made Sony look good.
 
This looks like a match made in Wall Street. I can't *wait* to see all the *wonderful* things that Zynga will come up with now!
 
Looking for scape goats for the XBox One pre launch disaster maybe?

Or maybe he was the one responsible for the about face on DRM on XBox One and that t-o'd the upper eschelon?
 
Why the hell would you leave a prospering company like MS for a rapidly dying company like Zynga?
 
Zynga was one of the reasons I rooted my Note 2. It was canned spamware, and I couldn't install it without rooting.
 
I wouldn't be surprised if there are either more departures or internal moves tbh. This was obviously going to happen and at that level it doesn't matter if you have 40 years at sea with no incidents once that little bastard of a seaman runs it aground killing someone your ass is out the door.

And yes I would classify the Xbox One disaster as someone being killed in because Xbone was the victim and the PS4 was the one holding the bloody knife.
 
With so much successful 360 stuff under his belt, it's a complete mystery how Mattrick flubbed the xb1 launch as he did.
 
TheGamerZ said:
Why the hell would you leave a prospering company like MS for a rapidly dying company like Zynga?
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I'm almost 100% positive it wasn't done without a request from Balmer. Balmer did a corporate restructuring recently. Instead of getting rid of the person ruining Microsoft, Balmer. Balmer gets rid of everyone else that has a voice.
 
TheGamerZ said:
Why the hell would you leave a prospering company like MS for a rapidly dying company like Zynga?
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You wouldn't without the opportunity to make a lot of money -- as in enough to retire from (IE. An even better golden parachute at Zynga so when the company goes down, he collects his next ~xx million dollar payout and requires early?)

Either that, or he tried joining ship with other players in his 'market' and they all said no. Realistically, with his terrible job on the XBox One, I don't see him being offered a job at Sony or Nintendo. As far as publishers/developers go, he might have a bad reputation with EA's head honcho, Rare, Blizzard and so-on. I recall some tweets from exRare reps saying they'd be celebrating if they still worked for rare.

So he almost has to switch industries and Zynga I think is pretty close to a different industry. The product Zynga creates a lot of us wouldn't consider 'gaming' in the traditional sense.

Red Falcon said:
LMAO
I thought things couldn't get worse for Microsoft and the XBone. :D

*grabs popcorn*
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I thought things couldn't get more further away from gaming than 'Major Nelson' and Xbox 360's image couldn't possibly be made any more uncool than 'Major Nelson'...then came Xbox One's Don Mattrick and Major Nelson is still hanging around. What is he? pushing past 50 and pretending to be hip/into what a young to middle aged gaming crowd is after(12-40)?
 
No great loss from what I've seen over the past 6 months.

I also predicted he'd be 'moving on' soon. You can spot it a mile away these days with how corporates work.
 
WBurchnall said:
I thought things couldn't get more further away from gaming than 'Major Nelson' and Xbox 360's image couldn't possibly be made any more uncool than 'Major Nelson'...then came Xbox One's Don Mattrick and Major Nelson is still hanging around. What is he? pushing past 50 and pretending to be hip/into what a young to middle aged gaming crowd is after(12-40)?
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Seriously telling me you like the guy because of his age? If it was something like they way young people use social media, you may have a point. But video games have been around for a very long time. And trust me, a couple years of climbing the corporate ladder, it will be hit and miss whether they can any longer relate to gamers. Unless you get to an age range that was pre-video games. Which is way up there now.
 
When you are high up the food chain, your tech ability isn't critical. Your ability to hire good people and motivate them to excellence is why you get the bucks. Your decisions are based on data derived from staff.

A hotshoe at General Foods could turn around a car company. He doesn't make food or cars, he makes a system where it's easy for the employees to create those products.
 
So I would guess he lost some of his most talented staff and could not replace them with equals. Perhaps got lazy?
 
pxc said:
I predicted he would be leaving for different reasons back on the 19th...
pxc said:
peers into crystal ball:

...Don Mattrick departs MS to spend more time with his family...
Click to expand...
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Well, in a sense, you're right. Him and his family can now gather 'round any Zynga game and get all the in-game store stuff for free.


auspexd said:
Go go gadget... golden parachute.
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This 100%. Stay at MS, or take a CEO job with a "no-matter-what-happens" contracted wage that's exponentially more money.
 
Lith1um said:
Zynga was one of the reasons I rooted my Note 2. It was canned spamware, and I couldn't install it without rooting.
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Typo, meant to say that I couldn't uninstall it without rooting. It wouldn't even sleep, it reactivated itself at every boot. I hate canned spamware, and Zynga is the king of suck. Mattrick is a perfect match for Zynga.
 
ok, now can we get rid of this idiot please? look at his punchable face!

Xbox_One_Enthuellung_0010.jpg
 
temujin987 said:
ok, now can we get rid of this idiot please? look at his punchable face!
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Couldn't agree more. I want to roundhouse this guy everytime I see him. I don't know if it's his oversized head or his gaming-t-shirt-under-sports-coat attire, but he annoys the living crap out of me.
 
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