Shockwave.com Announces Layoffs

Entertainment Web site Shockwave.com is shedding staff and cutting costs as new management seeks to tighten the company’s focus on interactive games and films, chief executive Lawrence Levy said Wednesday. Shockwave.com, which now offers online games and short animated films, has laid off 20 of its 170 employees. The cutbacks don’t mean Shockwave.com will follow in the footsteps of Pop.com and Digital Entertainment Network, two Web-based entertainment ventures that turned into high-profile failures, Levy said. Nor does it mean the company is backing away from doing deals with big-name Hollywood talent, Levy said in an interview. Shockwave.com, owned by Web services and software developer Macromedia Inc., is based in San Francisco but has offices in Los Angeles. Workers in both offices were laid off, said company spokeswoman Mary Leong.