Unity Closes Two Offices Today Following Death Threats

Bloomberg reports that two Unity Technologies Inc. offices closed today following a “credible death threat” amidst ongoing controversy regarding a new per-install fee implemented for developers using Unity. The company also canceled a planned town hall, according to Bloomberg. 

Two days ago, Unity revealed plans to charge developers using the Unity video game engine a per-install fee that would be enacted every time a player installed their games. Developers were quick to point out issues with this per-install fee, like players’ ability to install, delete, install, rinse, and repeat to cost developers money as a form of retaliation, amongst other things. Many developers publicly called for Unity to walk back these changes. While Unity has addressed some of the concerns, developers are still wary of trusting the company moving forward, with some developers signaling they might move development to completely different engines in light of this fee. 

Unity CEO John Riccitiello had plans to address company staff during a town hall this morning but instead canceled it and closed the company’s Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, California, offices as a result of death threats Unity received it perceived to be credible.

 [Source: Bloomberg]