Unity Timeline from IPO to Developer Upset (via GamesIndustryBiz)
Folks, Homework time. GamesIndustryBiz is a good resource. They track and report on the Game Industry. Here is a 2020 to 2023 Timeline of Unity. Does it look healthy or struggling to you? This is context for the latest changes. Look at the timeline, the stock price, the layoffs, the small acquisitions, the purchase of Weta Digital, and the merger with IronSource.
Things are not grim, but Unity is trying to fix or changes things here, post IPO after a long history of surviving on investor dollars. And they were doing this process now without engaging the developer community they built. Until the first shoe dropped. I’m not even convinced we’ve had the “other” shoe drop yet, as the saying goes. Developers are in for a ride.
Unity is already on this ride. Unity has never been profitable in its entire history. That's right. from 2004 to 2019 Unity has operated at a loss. Unity is struggling to get to profitability after chasing user growth like Uber and WeWork. The bull economy is over for the forseeable future. John Riccitiello former CEO of Electronic Arts and innovator in Free to Play economies in Games is trying to lead Unity from being a largely Free engine, into being a F2P Engine. Developers make your choices. The ride is not over. The other shoe has not yet dropped.
Unity Public Timeline for Sept 2020 to Sept 2023
(via GamesIndustryBiz Headlines)
?Sept. 14, 2023: “Unity’s pricing is a symptom, not the cause of tougher times ahead for the games industry |?Opinion. Midia Research's Karol Severin looks at the wider factors behind the engine's controversial new fee”
GamesIndustryBiz: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/unitys-pricing-is-a-symptom-not-the-cause-of-tougher-times-ahead-for-the-games-industry-opinion
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Sep 13, 2023: “Unity clarifies new fee plans amid developer?backlash. Engine provider estimates only 10% of developers will end up paying install charge, demos and charity bundles exempt”
GamesIndustryBiz: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/unity-clarifies-new-fee-plans-amid-developer-backlash
Sep 12, 2023: “Unity adding a fee for each time a game is?installed. Developers who meet revenue and install thresholds will need to pay up to $0.20 in Runtime Fees each time their game is installed on a new device.”
GamesIndustryBiz: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/unity-adding-a-fee-for-each-time-a-game-is-installed
Aug 3, 2023: "Unity's Q2 revenue sees an 80% year-on-year?jump. Grow Solutions revenues rise 157% compared to last year's pre-IronSource merger numbers, but net losses continue"
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May 11, 2023: "Unity revenue reaches $500m during Q1?2023. Company's titular engine accounted for $170 million in revenue alone"
GamesIndustryBiz: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/unity-revenue-reaches-500m-during-q1-2023
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May 5, 2023: "Unity's incredible shrinking growth story | This Week in?Business. The engine maker has switched from hiring aggressively in the name of growth to firing aggressively for the same reason"
GamesIndustryBiz: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/unitys-incredible-shrinking-growth-story-this-week-in-business
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May 3, 2023: "Unity lays off 600 more, closing half of?offices. CEO John Riccitiello says third round of layoffs in less than a year "all about setting ourselves up for higher growth"
GamesIndustryBiz: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/unity-lays-off-hundreds-more-closing-half-of-offices
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Feb 27, 2023: "Unity posts first profitable quarter on non-GAAP basis, expects to be profitable in?2023. Engine provider says profitability is driven equally by Create and Grow segments of the business"
GamesIndustryBiz: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/unity-posts-first-profitable-quarter-on-non-gaap-basis-expects-to-be-profitable-in-2023
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Jan 17, 2023: "Unity lays off nearly?300. CEO John Riccitiello says cuts deal "very specifically with overlap" as a number of projects shelved"
GamesIndustryBiz: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/unity-lays-off-nearly-300
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Nov 10, 2022: "Unity Q3 revenues are up but losses deepen to?$239.6m. CFO says results are "in line with guidance" as firm manages costs in the face of economic turbulence"
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Nov. 7, 2022: “ Unity has completed its merger with?IronSource. CEO John Riccitiello assures company will still support all developers, but notes benefits are "particularly strong" for mobile studios”
Oct 4, 2022: "Is Unity still focused on making?games? With an IronSource deal pending, CEO John Riccitiello talks about the future of Unity, its history of losses, and buying back stock in the wake of layoffs"
GamesIndustryBiz https://www.gamesindustry.biz/is-unity-still-focused-on-making-games
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Aug 10, 2022: "Unity revenues up modestly as losses mount in?Q2. Non-gaming business growing as engine maker's posts sales of $297 million and net losses of $204 million"
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Jul 15, 2022: "Unity CEO: Devs who push back against monetisation can be “brilliant” but also “fucking?idiots” John Riccitiello also says more than half the staff affected by recent layoffs have been rehired elsewhere in the company"
GamesIndustryBiz: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/riccitiello-developers-who-push-back-against-monetisation-are-pure-brilliant-and-fucking-idiots
Jul 13, 2022: “IronSource to merge with?Unity: IronSource's CEO Tomer Bar-Zeev, will join Unity's board of directors and executive leadership team.”
GamesIndustryBiz: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/ironsource-to-merge-with-unity
Jun 30, 2022: "Around 4% of Unity's workforce laid?off. The layoffs are reportedly still ongoing as an estimated 200+ people have already been impacted across the globe"
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May 11, 2022: "Unity Q1 2022 revenue up 36% to?$320m. But guidance for Q2 and full financial year has been lowered"
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Feb 4, 2022: "Unity revenues up 44% to $1.1bn, but losses?widen. Development platform sees uptick in full-year earnings, but operating losses account for almost half of it"
GamesIndustryBiz: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/unity-revenue-up-44-percent-to-usd1-1bn
Nov. 10, 2021: “Unity acquires VFX platform Weta for?$1.6bn. Leading digital platform houses the tech behind The Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones”
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Aug 11, 2021: "Unity revenues rise to $274m but losses remain?high. Loss from operations represented 55% of revenue"
GamesIndustryBiz: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/unity-revenues-rise-to-usd274m-but-losses-remain-high
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May 12, 2021: "Unity reports strong Q1 2021, but losses?widen. The company said $234.8m revenue exceeded expectations, but loss from operations represented $110.9m"
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Feb 5, 2021: "Unity reports record year despite?losses. Engine maker's first post-IPO results show revenues up across all divisions, including $25 million COVID boost"
GamesIndustryBiz: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/unity-reports-record-year-despite-losses
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?Nov. 12, 2020: "Unity shares first earnings following IPO with $201 million in Q3?revenue. On earnings call, CEO John Riccitiello addresses price hikes, COVID-19 impacts, future investments, and finding a casual audience"
GamesIndustryBiz: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/unity-shares-first-earnings-report-following-ipo-with-usd201-million-in-q3-revenue
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Aug 25, 2020: "What did we learn from the Unity IPO?filing? Engine maker's decision to go public gave details on how much it spent on recent acquisitions, CEO compensation, what happened with its sexual harassment suit, and more"
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Aug 24, 2020: "Unity IPO Filing"
Unity stock price from $68 to $35 in 3 short years.
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Entrepreneur & Game Developer & Investment Relations & Passion for Innovation
1 年Unity suicided by doing the worst decision that could be done, decision is both unacceptable and not ethical, which is breach of trust. It could be acceptable that if Unity would charge each developer based on a fair percentage in revenue. But no, instead Unity decided to charge developers by punishing them if they make a successful sale and the charge can exceed to levels beyond revenue. See the chart (Rammra on Unity forums posted this) that how Unity can kill a game and its studio if the game price is low (or F2P) and installed in so many devices. For instance, let's say a free mobile game (with in-game ad revenue) is downloaded 2 million times and started to earn $0.1 dollars ($200.000 revenue - pretty common situation in Mobile). How amazing. According to this new pricing policy, as the game reaches to $200.000 threshold, now the developer owes $0.15 for each install. As a result, developer needs to pay $300.000 to Unity for making $200.000 sales. Do you think that this is fair business (instead of asking a fair percentage)? Do you think that developers will continue making games in Unity?
Commerce Analyst @ Coinbase
1 年sneaky: https://x.com/Jakob_Wahlberg/status/1702056018803323019?s=20
EHR Systems Analyst Indie Game Dev | Activist | Artist | Dreamer Dynamic Problem Solver with Expertise in Training, Workflow Optimization, and Creative Solutions
1 年The mark of consultants makes this all stink. It seems as though they need better finance and operations managers, not to gut their company and extinguish their reputation in one fell swoop. When you hire outside consultants to get a “holistic and unbiased” look at operations to help trim the fat - they only see dollar signs and they only care about putting that income into the pockets of investors and higher ups. While everyone needs to make a living, completely upending a multibillion dollar industry by massively restructuring how devs can make their money is just…I mean don’t they have boards that make these decisions? Not one person was like, “Anyone think this is going to make us the JarJar Binks of the games industry?”
<insert made up title here>@ Eastman | BFA, AAS | VRARA Manufacturing Enablement Committee co-chair & member XR@Work
1 年Me thinks this is the beginning of the end for a certain CEO. Gonna get nasty before that end comes. Poor investors. ??
I help ambitious founders build better videogame companies | ?? business coach | 15+ years in games | Executive MBA | ?? Boden Game Changer ?? Reboot Develop Blue
1 年They seem to be running the "enshittification" playbook, so it'll likely get worse. https://kottke.org/23/01/the-enshittification-lifecycle-of-online-platforms