Xbox has created a new transmedia business unit, XP, to run its film, television, licensing and location-based entertainment extensions — and installed Mojang Studios president Kayleen Walters as its leader, with Reddit's former chief product officer Maria Angelidou-Smith taking over Mojang.

The restructuring consolidates Microsoft's off-console brand business into four pillars: Xbox Pictures (film and TV adaptations), Xbox Products (licensing and merchandise), Xbox Partnerships (sponsors and brand partners), and Xbox Places (broadcast events, theme parks and other location-based experiences). The division will oversee existing properties including the Fallout TV series on Amazon Prime Video and the Minecraft World theme park project.

Who is running the new unit?

Walters brings a franchise-building résumé that spans three major IP companies. She spent 13 years at Lucasfilm, rising to vice president of franchise marketing and integrated planning, then eight years overseeing franchise development at Microsoft. She became head of Mojang in February, replacing Åsa Bredin, who stepped down to focus on personal goals.

She also served as executive producer of A Minecraft Movie in 2025, which generated $550 million within ten days of theatrical release. A sequel is greenlit for July 23, 2027.

Angelidou-Smith arrives from Reddit, where she was chief product officer, after nearly a decade at Facebook.

What did Xbox leadership say?

In an email to Xbox employees, Xbox head Asha Sharma said the company's franchises "mean more to people than the time they spend playing them, and Kayleen knows how to build those experiences with the industry without losing what made people care about the franchise in the first place."

On the Mojang appointment, Sharma said: "We wanted someone who has built products for communities at enormous scale, who is deeply technical, and who understands how creators, product, technology, and monetization come together. Maria brings a rare combination of those experiences."

What is already in the pipeline?

The XP unit inherits a slate with mixed track records:

• Fallout TV series — a hit for Amazon Prime Video that drove back-catalogue game sales and a player uptick in mobile title Fallout Shelter.
• Minecraft World — opening at UK theme park Chessington World of Adventures in 2027, part of a 2024 deal under which owner Merlin Entertainments is investing more than $110 million in two Minecraft-themed attractions.
• Gears of War movie — in development at Netflix, set to "tell the origin story of Delta Squad."
• Halo TV series — cancelled in 2024 after two seasons on Paramount+, a cautionary precedent for the division.

Walters framed the Merlin deal as complementary expertise: "We are everywhere digitally, Merlin is everywhere physically. It's about how do we expand Minecraft beyond the game. Mojang and Microsoft are experts on Minecraft and the brand, Merlin are the experts on location-based experiences; it's a shared vision."

Where does this fit in Microsoft's gaming reset?

The XP announcement continues a year of sweeping change across Microsoft's gaming portfolio. Sharma's earlier "reset" has cut around 3,200 jobs and divested five studios.

GamesIndustry.biz contributing editor Rob Fahey has questioned the lack of a stated endpoint: "Nobody has yet deigned to outline a clear vision for what Xbox will actually look like after this reset," he wrote.

The XP division offers one partial answer — Xbox intends to monetize its franchises well beyond game sales. The first test arrives with the Minecraft World opening at Chessington in 2027 and the Minecraft movie sequel on July 23 that year.