Zynga chief Schappert steps down

Zynga chief operating officer John Schappert has exited the company and left its board of directors, according to a company filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

News of Schappert's resignation follows a downbeat four weeks at the cloud gaming firm, after its second quarter results fell short of Wall Street's expectations and Electronic Arts, Schappert's former employer, launched legal action against the company.

There were indications last week that Schappert's departure may have been imminent. Zynga's CEO, Mark Pincus, had begun overseeing the company's game development and executives who previously had reported to Schappert began answering to Pincus instead.

In a statement, Pincus said: "We can confirm that John Schappert has left Zynga and its Board of Directors effective immediately. John has made significant contributions to the games industry throughout his career and we appreciate all that he has done for Zynga. John leaves as a friend of the company and we wish him all the best."

Schappert's severance package, according the the Securities and Exchange Commission filing, includes "an amount equal to his annual base salary", as well as the value of his shares, which are automatically vested on his departure.