Valve sacked about 30 members of staff including Jeri Ellsworth

[Moshly]

Wow 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-21471974

As the curtain was being lifted on the Linux store, Valve sacked about 30 members of staff including high-profile developer Jeri Ellsworth who was reportedly working on the hardware behind the company's console.

Valve boss Gabe Newell took the unusual step of issuing a statement about the lay-offs to curb speculation about what they would mean for the company's many projects.

He said the sackings did not mean it was cancelling any projects or changing its priorities.

"We're not going to discuss why anyone in particular is or isn't working here," he said.

[andersm]

From what people have dug up, the layoffs were not focused on the hardware group. Reportedly Valve does fire people frequently, but at the same time having so many go at the same time seems unusual.