An “extinction level event” for U.S. startups is what Y Combinator Founder Danny Tan calls Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse and subsequent takeover by the FDIC. The bank will reopen Monday, according to U.S. regulators, but there may very well be a ripple effect on financial institutions next week if the government doesn’t get a handle on the situation quickly.
Some Americans say “no more bailouts” for banks in response to this news, but doing nothing will likely hurt a lot of startups who won’t be able to make payroll and expenses and will be forced to lay off tens of thousands of workers in America or go out of business. Doing nothing is certainly an option but the effect of that could be disastrous.
Read my report on The Esports Advocate to learn what gaming and esports entities are facing financial challenges because of their direct ties to SVB. - James Fudge
Movers & Shakers
Jon Spector Leaving Blizzard and Overwatch League
Longtime Overwatch League lead Jon Spector announced this week that he would be leaving the company in March. While it is unclear where he is headed next, Spector's roots lie in traditional sports, so it would not be surprising if he took on a new role at a professional sports league. "After 6 amazing years, I’ve decided to hang up my sword and am leaving Blizzard at the end of March," Spector wrote on social media. “Working on Overwatch has been the highlight of my career – Team 4 brings immense talent and passion to their work every day."
Former Dota 2 Players Sues Evil Geniuses
Professional Dota 2 player Syed “SumaiL” Hassan has been embroiled in a legal battle with the North American organization Evil Geniuses since December of 2021, according to court documents obtained by Richard Lewis. Hassan, who competes for Nigma Galaxy currently, is suing the company over alleged breach of contract and fraud related to his player contract and the company's attempts—according to Hassan—to buy back stock that was issued during his contract, among a litany of other allegations detailed in the lawsuit.
Greg Street Leaving Riot and its Upcoming MMO Project
Greg Street announced via social media this week that he would be leaving Riot Games and its upcoming unnamed MMO project. Street, who has been with Riot for more than nine years (he joined the company in 2013 from Blizzard), said that a combination of "personal and professional considerations" played a role in this decision. He also assured fans of the upcoming MMO that it is in a good place with a great team: "The MMO is in good hands and it’s the right time to hand over the reigns for the next phase,” he said, adding that "I plan to stay in game development and I have had a number of exciting opportunities presented to me already. And I will be with you all playing the Riot MMO when it comes out."
People on the Move
Here is this week’s list of promotions, hires, and departures in the gaming/esports industry:
Esports:
Geoff Moore was named president & COO of OpTic Gaming earlier this year.
Francisco Rodriguezla joins Riot Games as a global influencer strategist for Valorant and Project L.
Ari Segal is the new CEO of Siprocal.
Chris Kissack joins Ten.gg as its new business development manager.
Ky Browning is no longer with Gameplan and is looking for opportunities.
FRAME brings on professional Dota 2 player Joakim Akterhall as a shareholder.
Arjun Ohri rejoins The Esports Club as business development manager.
Ankush Kharwal takes on the role of managing director at Esports Monk.
Pascal Bregeon is promoted to senior manager, affiliate marketing & PR operations at Corsair.
Gaming:
Scott Lussier leaves his role as design director at Hi-Rez Studios after more than eight years.
Rob Semsey takes on the role of director of studio operations and communications at 343 Industries.
David Cohen is the new senior director of business development - North America at iLogos Game Studios.
Davis Durham joins the NetEase Games team as a senior recruiter.
Savvy Games Studios appoints Sebastian Moreno Rodriguez as data scientist and NAIF M. SABAAN to the role of senior infrastructure administrator.
Jessica Castillo is promoted to the role of senior test analyst II for Overwatch at Blizzard.
Christine S. is promoted to data quality analyst at Blizzard.
Taylor Kemp has been promoted to the role of artist for World of Warcraft at Blizzard.
Eric Childs is promoted to senior animator at Blizzard.
James Chapman has been promoted to senior test analyst I at Blizzard.
Conner Allen joins 2K Vegas as a QA specialist.
Other:
Susan Arendt is promoted to director of content at Candor Content.
Ava Thompson-Powell will now serve at the evergreen editor at GGRecon.
Utkarsh Rampal is appointed to the role of senior content manager at Sportskeeda.
Joseph Milord has been promoted to senior publisher partnerships manager at LinkedIn News.
Yoni Ginsberg is promoted to VP of content strategy at Loaded.
Thomas Schiller is promoted to creative director at WWE.
Ryan Fellhauer is named senior marketing manager at Rooster Teeth.
Mark Pearce is promoted to SVP of business development & sales for global partnerships at IMG.
Thomas Tallentire takes on the role of lead data analyst at GAMURS Group.
Arnall Golden Gregory LLP welcomes Beth B. Moore, John Dresch, and Meicheng Zhu to focus on entertainment law.
In Other News:
Take-Two Interactive confirms layoffs after announcing “exponential growth.”
Layoffs hit LinkedIn's OpenToWork product management team.
GAMURS Group partners with NRL Gaming for esports tournaments.
Microsoft says there will be no price increase for Game Pass following Activision Blizzard acquisition.
Sony continues to tell UK regulators that it should block Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
Microsoft proposes remedies to UK regulators to address concerns over Activision Blizzard acquisition.
Playmaker and Complexity Gaming announce a partnership.
Riot Games says that it is investigating EG's treatment of LoL player "Danny."
Former Riot Games executives launch The Believer Company and plan to create an "open-world game." Lightspeed leads a $55M series A funding in the company.
Dallas Fuel will join East Division of Overwatch League in 2023.
Minnesota ROKKR partners with ESG for a Modern Warfare 2 Academy team.
Meta Entertainment signs a partnership with NXT Level Sports and Entertainment.
Global Esports reveals an all-women Valorant roster for VCT Game Changers.
Want to highlight your latest hire? Looking to promote a new job opening? Drop me a line at jamesbfudge@gmail.com with the subject line “People on the Move.”