Zynga Slashes Workforce by Nearly 20 Percent

Zynga today laid off 18 percent of its workforce, eliminating 520 positions.

The company will close its New York and Los Angeles offices. It has already shuttered offices in Baltimore and Austin, Texas.

“None of us ever expected to face a day like today, especially when so much of our culture has been about growth… The scale that served us so well in building and delivering the leading social gaming service on the Web is now making it hard to successfully lead across mobile and multiplatform, which is where social games are going to be played,” said CEO Mark Pincus in an internal memo to employees.

The moves will reduce costs by $70 – $80 million per year, the company said.

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