(Yicai) Oct. 28 -- A representative of Tencent Holdings has rebutted online rumors about layoffs, organizational restructuring, and studio cuts at the Chinese internet giant's digital entertainment unit while confirming several key executive changes.

Rumors of a big shake-up at Tencent Interactive Entertainment Group are false, the representative told Yicai. Video game development studio TiMi Studio Group does not have a specific team optimization plan but has numerous vacancies for which it hopes to recruit, the person added.

Tencent IEG is the division responsible for managing and developing Tencent’s gaming and digital entertainment portfolio, overseeing operations, production, and strategic initiatives in gaming, esports, and interactive entertainment experiences. It has grown substantially, especially through TiMi and Lightspeed & Quantum Studios. And with popular titles such as Honor of Kings, Tencent has become a dominant player in the global gaming market.

Online rumors claim that Tencent IEG is undergoing organizational restructuring, reducing the number of studios and laying off employees, while TiMi, consisting of 13 studios and 6,000 employees, could be merged into four, with a 20 percent cut to its headcount.

And around 30 percent of staff working on the Palworld-like game project at LightSpeed Studios have been let go, according to the rumors.

In an internal email on Oct. 25, Shenzhen-based Tencent said Vice President Zeng Yu will no longer serve as head of Tencent IEG's technical line and the Platform and Content Group Technology & Content Platform, with Senior VP Ma Xiaoyi to take over the technical line post.

Tencent has decided to proceed with organizational restructuring and the removal and appointment of new managers, it noted in the email. Tencent IEG has established four departments or centers, including one for product efficiency, and has dissolved three others, including the research and development efficiency department, it added.

The management changes includes more than 10 individuals, Tencent said. Besides Yu, who is retiring to focus on his family and health, most have been reassigned or given additional roles, with only two general managers no longer holding their original posts, it pointed out.

Separate rumors circulating on social media claimed that Huang Lanxiao, GM of a Level-1 studio at TiMi and executive producer of hit online battle arena Honor of Kings, will also be stepping down. 

While the Tencent representative did not provide further details regarding Huang, other sources told Yicai that while Tencent IEG's in-house development studio group has not undergone a big organizational shake-up, some studios have optimized their headcounts recently, though the details are unknown.

Editor: Martin Kadiev