Unity CEO quits over criticism of the engine’s monetization plans
By ForGeeks Unity has announced that John Riccitiello will step down as president, CEO, chairman and board member effective today. A former Electronic Arts executive, Ricitiello joined Unity’s board of directors in 2013 and took over the company the following year.
According to the announcement, Ricitiello is now chairman and CEO of Unity.
His departure comes weeks after the company sparked a backlash from the developer community by announcing controversial plans to monetize the popular game engine, which it partially abandoned after the outrage.
Former IBM president James Whitehurst has been named interim CEO and president of the company, while Roelof Botha, the company’s top independent board director, has been named the new chairman.
Whitehurst has been named interim CEO and president of the company.
Last month, the company announced plans to charge developers each time a game using the engine is installed. Starting in January 2024, the proposed Unity runtime fee will be charged to games that meet a minimum revenue threshold and have passed a minimum installation period.
The proposed fee would be applied to games that meet a minimum revenue threshold and have passed a minimum installation period.
