Roblox announced on Thursday that creators can now sell physical merchandise directly within their experiences and games on the platform with the launch of new Commerce APIs. The offering provides creators with a new way to generate revenue beyond the purchases of virtual goods or one-time fees to access specific experiences. The company first began testing the ability to buy physical merchandise within a few branded experiences in mid-2024. Last September, Roblox announced that creators would soon be able to sell physical items in experiences thanks to a partnership with Shopify. Now, Roblox is making that integration available to all eligible creators and brands after completing a closed beta test of its Commerce APIs. The ability to purchase physical products will be available in all-ages experiences for U.S. users ages 13 and up. Roblox plans to add more partners and expand the feature to additional markets in the future. For brands, the Commerce APIs offer a new way to reach customers. For example, beauty brand Fenty is going to launch a shoppable experience within Roblox to offer an exclusive Gloss Bomb shade called “Grape Splash.” Image Credits:Roblox Eligible creators and brands can also bundle physical purchases with digital items via the new Commerce APIs. That means that you could purchase a physical hoodie and also receive one for your digital avatar. Techcrunch event Join us at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot for our leading AI industry event with speakers from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Cohere. For a limited time, tickets are just $292 for an entire day of expert talks, workshops, and potent networking. Exhibit at TechCrunch Sessions: AI Secure your spot at TC Sessions: AI and show 1,200+ decision-makers what you’ve built — without the big spend. Available through May 9 or while tables last. Berkeley, CA | June 5 REGISTER NOW Roblox’s new Approved Merchandiser Program (AMP) lets creators and brands connect their real-world or online store purchases to avatar items and accessories on Roblox. The AMP program and a badge on physical products will serve as a mark of authenticity to show consumers that the items are official. Products with the badge will include a code for a unique digital item relevant to the IP that they can use on Roblox. “Our vision for the future of shopping is an experience that’s more exciting and social than the traditional online shopping experience,” the company said in a blog post. “On Roblox, you can explore virtual stores, try on clothes, and share the experience with others. This naturally builds interest and purchase intent. Now we’re taking it one step further, bridging the gap between virtual and real-world shopping by enabling Roblox users to purchase physical items.” Roblox notes that creator studio Twin Atlas used Commerce APIs in their games to sell physical products and ended up seeing six-figure commerce revenue during the first few weeks. Around 90% of their total orders are placed via their in-game commerce integration, Roblox says.

Subscribe to Nintendo Life on YouTube812k Yes, you read that headline correctly. Cookie Clicker, the infamous idle game about clicking a cookie, is coming to Switch, fresh out of the oven, on 22nd May. We'd imagine that you will be familiar with Cookie Clicker already. This one was initially released by one-man dev Julien 'Orteil' Thiennot back in 2013 and quickly built up a huge following thanks to its addictively simple gameplay loop: click the cookie to get more cookies. If you've never sampled it before, then we'd wager that synopsis sounds a little dry. But trust us, it's the ultimate time sink. Each cookie you gain gives you the chance to get even more cookies, with unlockable auto-clickers and a whole host of other weird and wonderful ways to keep the baked goods rolling in.Subscribe to Nintendo Life on YouTube812kWatch on YouTube The Switch version was teased on Orteil's BlueSky account, and the corresponding eShop page revealed it would be arriving next week for just £4.29 / $4.99 — a small price to pay to risk losing all your free time. Here's the official rundown of the game's features and a handful of eShop screenshots from publisher DashNet, so you can see what you're letting yourself in for: * Collect cookies and spend them to earn even more cookies * Over 600+ upgrades * Pet your dragon* Mini-games * Unlock heavenly perma-upgrades * Music by C418 Images: DashNet Look, we can't imagine that this will be rocketing to the top of our Game of the Year lists come December, but it runs the risk of scoring highly in the 'Most Played' category if we're not careful. Just one more Do you have fond memories of Cookie Clicker? Will you be picking it up on Switch? Click down to the comments and let us know. Related Games See Also Share:0 0 Jim came to Nintendo Life in 2022 and, despite his insistence that The Minish Cap is the best Zelda game and his unwavering love for the Star Wars prequels (yes, really), he has continued to write news and features on the site ever since. Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment... Related Articles Nintendo Reconfirms Release Windows For Major Switch 2 Games And original Switch, of course Here's A Look At The Back Of Mario Kart World's Switch 2 Box Art The race begins next month The First Review For Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time Is In A fantasy score? SNK Announces ACA NEOGEO Selection Vol. 5 And Vol. 6 For Switch Update: Multi-language release confirmed Review: 1000xRESIST (Switch) - A Sci-Fi Narrative Masterpiece, Hair To Hair You can (not) Resist

Next Game Incoming Of course Warner Bros. announces a Mortal Kombat 1 Definitive Edition just after posting disastrous results for its gaming division A recent financial report from Warner Bros stated that gaming revenue decreased 48% from this time last year. News by Connor Makar Staff Writer Published on May 15, 2025 Warner Bros and NetherRealm Studios has announced the Mortal Kombat 1 Definitive Edition, which will contain all the DLC characters, new movie skins, "and more". This newly packaged version of the gory fighter is available now, and offers a chance for folks to hop in with all the content. But this news has been met with an intense negative reaction, and stands out as especially dire given the recent Warner Bros quarterly financial report. This definitive edition, which will more than likely be the final version of the game, comes only two years after its release back in 2023. Definitive does literally mean the end of something, after all. The game has sold, as far as we know, at least 5 million copies and remains a high ranker on monthly downloads on consoles, a fact recently highlighted by Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon. All this sounds like great news right? It is, but additional context paints a more complicated picture. To see this content please enable targeting cookies. While Mortal Kombat 1's 5 million sales figure sounds wonderful, Mortal Kombat X sold more than 12 million copies in its life, while Mortal Kombat 11 - the best seeling MK ever - broke the 15 million sales milestone. As such, Mortal Kombat 1's sales performance seems significantly smaller than past releases would lead you to expect. In the Warner Bros Q1 2025 financial report, the company highlighted a 48% decrease in revenue from its gaming department compared to last year. This was attributed to last year's Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League (which underperformed), and last year's higher carry-over from Hogwarts Legacy and Mortal Kombat 1. Why this is particularly frustrating for a portion of fans is that this definitive edition marks an end to a short life for Mortal Kombat 1. In September of last year, Ed Boon went on Twitter to state that the team had not begun work on NetherRealm's next game, and "NetherRealm is still fully committed to supporting Mortal Kombat 1 for a long time to come." To give Mr Boon a break, if Warner Bros wants NetherRealm to move onto a new game, that's not exactly his call. I'm sure he and the team would be cool working on Mortal Kombat 1 for years if they could. But given this statement, you've got to wonder how far we are from NetherRealm's next game if it's had only eight months to work on it. But it's a bummer for Mortal Kombat fans! It feels as though a game that's performing pretty well compared to other fighting games (albeit not prior MKs) is potentially getting the DLC rug pulled from under it. The competitive scene will now be left with a final version, kinda hampering its potential to grow, and it'll fade out from people's minds as they wait for Mortal Kombat 2 or Injustice 3, or what have you. So yeah, spare a thought for the NetherRealm team, and let us know what you'd like to see from NetherRealm below!

cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.

President Donald Trump has asked Apple CEO Tim Cook to halt the company's manufacturing expansion in India, in a potential disruption of Apple's plan to shift iPhone production away from China. "I had a little problem with Tim Cook yesterday," Trump said during his state visit to Qatar, according to Bloomberg. "He is building all over India." "They [India] have offered us a deal where basically they have agreed to charge us literally no tariffs. I said 'Tim, we are treating you really good, we put up with all the plants you built in China for years. We are not interested in you building in India. India can take care of themselves'." Trump claimed that following their discussion, Apple will be "upping their production in the United States." In the fiscal year ending March, Apple's iPhone production in India reached $22 billion, a nearly 60% increase compared to the previous year. However, Trump's comments complicate Apple's strategy to import most US-bound iPhones from India by the end of next year. Apple and its manufacturing partners have accelerated their movement away from China in recent months. The trend began after COVID restrictions disrupted operations, and has only accelerated amid ongoing US-China tensions, particularly in the wake of Trump's on-again, off-again tariffs. Most India-manufactured iPhones are assembled at Foxconn's factory in the southern part of the country. Tata Group's electronics manufacturing arm, which acquired Wistron's local business and manages Pegatron's operations in India, is another major supplier. When asked about the supply chain's future during the company's recent earnings call, Cook said: "What we learned some time ago, having everything in one location had too much risk with it. We have, over time, with certain parts of the supply chain, opened up new sources of supply. You could see that kind of thing continuing in the future." During the same earnings call, Cook highlighted Apple's impact in the United States, including plans to spend $500 billion over the next four years and expanding facilities in several states. A new factory for advanced server manufacturing in Texas is scheduled to open later this year. Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts. Tags: India, Tim Cook

He retired last year after 13 seasons playing starting center for the Philadelphia Eagles. And Jason Kelce’s houses reflect his ties to the area. Since retirement, the NFL star has kept busy hosting an ESPN talk show and the popular podcast New Heights with his brother, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end (and beau to Taylor Swift), Travis Kelce. Through it all, the Ohio native has continued to keep his primary residence in Pennsylvania, not too far outside of Philly, where he spent his entire professional football career. In 2022 Kelce bought a beach house on the Jersey Shore, where he can retreat to along with his wife, podcast host Kylie Kelce, and their four daughters.Read on to learn more about the athlete’s real estate portfolio.Pennsylvania compoundJason Kelce and his wife, Kylie Kelce, at the premiere of Kelce, an Prime Video documentary about the family, in 2023. Photo: Lisa Lake/Getty ImagesWhile playing for the Philadelphia Eagles, Kelce purchased a charming four-bedroom, three-bathroom home in Haverford, Pennsylvania, in 2018 for $680,000. The single-family home was built in 1959 and has original wood-burning fireplaces, vaulted ceilings with wood beams, and endless natural light. The football family’s home is nestled far back from the road on one acre of land, complete with a panoramic wraparound deck and in-ground pool. Jason and Kylie opened their doors for a mini tour in February 2024, when they renovated their children’s playroom with Pottery Barn Kids.In 2020, Kelce expanded the estate with the $3.96 million purchase of an eight-acre plot next door. Three years later, he paid $1.35 million to add on a third parcel. In February, the football star was granted permission from the local zoning board to build a fourth home and add a privacy fence around the compound, which now totals 10 acres.Jersey Shore beach houseIn 2022 Jason increased his real estate holdings when he bought a $2.2 million house in Sea Isle City, New Jersey, a beach town known for its laid-back family-friendly ambiance. Originally built in 1988, the 2,200-square-foot traditional-style home has four bedrooms, three and a half bathrooms, and was completely renovated in 2017. With two wraparound decks and an abundance of windows and skylights, the three-story home offers endless views of the ocean and sandy shores of neighboring Ludlam Beach.

You can trust VideoGamer. Our team of gaming experts spend hours testing and reviewing the latest games, to ensure you're reading the most comprehensive guide possible. Rest assured, all imagery and advice is unique and original. Check out how we test and review games here Death Stranding 2 is one of the most exciting games of 2025, and its release date is set for June 26th. The original experience was a divisive journey as most opinions ranged from the extremes of it being either amazing or a boring walking simulator. Fortunately for both players and Sony, opinions from Death Stranding 2 playtests seem a lot more “positive,” however, Hideo Kojima wishes it was “a bit more controversial”. Hideo Kojima says he wishes Death Stranding 2 was “a bit more controversial” after “positive” playtests Hideo Kojima conducted an interview for the latest issue of EDGE magazine to promote the upcoming release of Death Stranding 2. During the interview, the game director revealed that, “with the playtests for Death Standing 2: On the Beach, everyone seems to be positive”. This a stark contrast to playtests for the original Death Stranding where Kojima found “that four out of ten people would love the game, but six would say it was a terrible game”. Kojima acknowledged that “Sony is pleased” with the positive feedback. However, he added, “but I do wish I was a bit more controversial”. The mastermind director said, “Blockbuster films need an 80 percent approval rating – I don’t want to make games like that. I’m not interested in appealing to the mass market, or selling millions of copies…  That’s not what I’m aiming for”. While confessing he is “not interested in making something that appeals to everyone,” Kojima admitted, “Of course, I can’t afford to make a failure, either. I must take care of my studio, my staff, and our production budget”. Kojima’s aim with Death Stranding 2 and all other projects is to “make something new” rather than “simply recreate something that’s already in the world”. Interview quotes come courtesy of VGC. The release date for Death Stranding 2 is June 26th. The game will have a recap to help newcomers who didn’t play DS1, and, even though the sequel hasn’t come out yet, Kojima has said he has a great idea for Death Stranding 3, but someone else will need to make it. In other PlayStation news, the release date for Ghost of Yotei is confirmed, and Sony are considering even more PS5 price increases in response to US tariffs. Death Stranding 2 On The Beach Platform(s): PlayStation 5 Genre(s): Action, Action Adventure, Adventure Subscribe to our newsletters! By subscribing, you agree to our Privacy Policy and may receive occasional deal communications; you can unsubscribe anytime. Share

Super Smash Bros dating app sent cease and desist Match made. Image credit: Nintendo News by Tom Phillips Editor-in-Chief Published on May 15, 2025 A Super Smash Bros fan app that described itself as "the premium dating app for Smashers" has been blocked from release, its creator has said. SmashTogether was first announced nearly a year ago, back in June 2024, and had this week been edging towards a beta release. 24 hours from launch, Nintendo now appears to have stepped in, as SmashTogether's creator has suddenly reported receiving a notice demanding they cease and desist what they're doing (thanks, Automaton). To see this content please enable targeting cookies. There are lots of reasons why Nintendo likely thought SmashTogether - an app designed to pair up fans of its colourful fighting game filled with kid-friendly characters - was a terrible idea, probable copyright infringement being just one. Still, there will be some out there who were looking forward to SmashTogether being a thing. Indeed, earlier this week the app's creator announced they had already secured 400 pre-registrations from fans keen to play Smash with other Smash Bros aficionados, and then play smash with them after. Sadly this means - look, let's just get this all out the way - Mario fans will no longer be able to lay pipe, Solid Snake lovers will no longer live up to the name, and you won't be able to browse King Dedede's D. There have been no further updates from the SmashTogether creator since the announcement of that cease and desist, but we've contacted them for comment. Nintendo's continually-busy legal team recently celebrated a "significant" win against piracy for the "entire games industry" after squashing a file-sharing site used for illegal copies of games. The Mario maker is also still going after monster battling game Palworld for its various similarities to Pokémon.

May 15, 20255 min readThe Wonders of Bird-Watching without TechTechnology has made it easier than ever to quickly find, identify and record birds. But to truly appreciate feathered friends, consider unpluggingBy Derek Lovitch edited by Kate WongA Boreal Owl emerges from its roost to begin its evening of hunting activities in Northern Minnesota. The Boreal Owl is a tiny but fierce gnome of the deep boreal forest—the belt of cold, wet, largely coniferous forest that encircles the North Pole. Highly sought after by birders, this owl appeals less for its plumage than for its secrecy and its rarity in most places where people tend to live. This past winter, a huge movement of this species to regions south of its usual range occurred because of food scarcity—an event called an irruption. This put Boreal Owls within striking distance of birders—including me—who were looking to add the species to their “life list,” a record of all the species a person has seen. So in March, before the visiting owls returned home, some friends and I made a last-minute weekend trip to Duluth, Minn., to look for them. Although there’s always a frenetic energy to a rarity chase such as this, to me, the experience underscored the importance of taking time to pause and observe the birds we find.Deep birding. Slow birding. Holistic birding. There are a lot of things we can call it, but I prefer, simply, “bird-watching.” I’ve spent most of my career as a biologist introducing people to birding and getting them to engage in the natural world, from the backyard and beyond. The recent surge of interest in birding, which began during the peak of the COVID pandemic, has been wonderful to see. But the vast majority of recent birders, particularly those who began birding in the past five years, have found birding to be intimately tied to technology, especially cell phones.We have phone apps that can keep lists of birds we’ve seen, apps to help identify birds, apps that allow us to contribute data to scientific projects and messaging apps to alert others to rare bird sightings. We can also use our phones to document our birding discoveries with photographs, videos and audio recordings.On supporting science journalismIf you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.But I wonder whether, by relying on technology to this extent, we are losing out on the most important tool for birding—and perhaps life in general: the power of observation.Slow DownAt just 10 inches from head to tail, a Boreal Owl hidden in a dense conifer stand is the proverbial needle in a haystack. But on cold, sunny mornings, the owls come out to sun themselves at forest edges, using the meager winter rays rather than hard-earned calories to warm up. One famous “edge” is the length of the North Shore Scenic Drive heading north from Duluth. On our first morning of the trip, as we ventured onto this road, a text alerted us to a nearby Boreal Owl. After the longest 12-minute drive of my life, we saw the growing group of gawkers. We jumped out of the car, and there was our quarry, sitting in a sun-soaked spruce tree! We basked in the glory of a little predator that is so hard to find that people fly halfway across the country to spend a weekend shivering in hopes of seeing it. Mission accomplished!Birders were coming and going, some seeing the owl only for a moment before they hopped back into their car and raced off for the next tick mark in the never-ending collecting game of modern birding. My friends were getting cold, and they were antsy to find a Great Gray Owl that had been seen a few miles away. I couldn’t blame them—Great Grays are active during the day, so they can be seen flying, hunting or otherwise doing something. This Boreal was just sitting there. But I couldn’t leave. I handed my friends the car keys and said, “Give me a little longer.”When I was growing up as a young birder, I had a field guide, an inexpensive pair of binoculars, and a pen and notebook. I loved my time in the woods, with only the birds for company, eagerly learning the nuances of identification and watching their behavior. Without the instant gratification of an ID or listing app, I had to pay close attention to the details of birds. I learned from my many mistakes. Mentors shared their ethical practices with me, and I relished the personal connections I made in the birding community.Yet these days, I describe myself not as a birder but rather a bird-watcher. Sure, I make use of the latest tools. For example, my birding plans during migration are informed by the complex algorithms that underpin modern weather forecasting and advanced radar technology that allows me to gauge the movement of birds overnight. But once I am out in the field, all I want to do is disconnect, to absorb, to engage. I typically enter the trails with nothing more than a weatherproof notebook and my trusty binoculars. If I take a camera, it’s handy in case I need to document a rarity or capture a special moment, but it’s a distant second in my priorities.Instead I take copious notes. When traveling, I write down descriptions of unfamiliar birds, even new species pointed out to me by a local guide. Like many people, I retain information better from the simple act of writing it down. And my field notebook holds more memories than any checklist can accommodate.What fascinates me the most about birds is their behavior, which isn’t easy to understand when looking through a viewfinder or reviewing photographs at home. So when observing a bird, I also jot down what it is doing. What is it looking at? How is it interacting with its mate? How does it look when it flies (after all, flight is the most magical thing about birds)?Go DeepWhen my friends left me with the Boreal Owl, I settled in to give it my fullest attention. The bird acknowledged my presence for nearly a second as it opened one eye before turning its head and nestling its face into its fluffy back. When a Black-capped Chickadee called nearby, the owl awoke and made sure it wasn’t going to be harassed by the fearless chickadee before it went back to sleep. Later a pair of Red-breasted Nuthatches decided they weren’t too happy about the predator’s presence but only gave a half-hearted attempt to drive it away. This owl was apparently boring to them.It wasn’t to me. I was transfixed on my life bird. What would it do next? How old was it—could I tell based on the wear and molt patterns of its feathers? Would it be as tolerant of the nuthatches the next time? I was in deep.Only when my friends returned did I realize I had been staring at this barely moving bird for a full two hours. No wonder I could no longer feel my feet or hands. But I had seen—truly seen—a Boreal Owl. I could finally leave now.Birding is a chance to turn off our devices and use our senses, to breathe fresh air, to connect with the natural world and immerse ourselves in the now, the moment, the bird. The next time you see a bird, whether it’s a rare Boreal Owl or a common American Robin, maybe step back, stay a while and put the watching back in bird-watching.

Heneghan Peng's University of Greenwich building Source:&nbsp Hufton + Crow EXCLUSIVE: Lecturers at Greenwich University’s architecture school have been left ‘angry and disillusioned’ by plans for a restructure that put over 300 university staff at risk, including dozens in the department The south-east London university informed staff last month of its plans to make 319 redundancies, including all casual staff known as hourly-paid lecturers (HPLs) within the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences (FLAS) and Greenwich Business School (GBS). A consultation document for FLAS, sent out to staff last month and seen by the AJ, reveals the university intends to replace 151 HPLs with just 50 academic teaching posts, which would mainly be part-time positions, equating to 17 full-time equivalents. It also wants to set up a ‘pool’ of associate academic staff for ad-hoc cover, which it is understood will work on zero-hour contracts.Advertisement The School of Design, which includes the architecture department and is based at a Heneghan Peng-designed building in Greenwich town centre, is one of the worst-hit departments. Within architecture, the AJ understands 50 of the 70 teaching staff could be made redundant, with 20 then hired back. It is believed that 31 full-time academics will also be made redundant in the Faculty of Engineering and Science. According to the consultation document, the faculty’s rationale is to claw back staffing costs, with the university forecasting it will spend £1.7 million on HLPs in 2024/2025. It says it needs to reduce staff costs by 4 per cent (around £800,000) to operate within budget. ‘Staff cost savings measures need to be fully implemented no later than 31 August 2025 to have as close to full-year effect,’ the consultation states. However the restructure of FLAS, which since last year has been under the leadership of pro vice-chancellor and executive dean professor Natasha Vall, is facing opposition from lecturers, students and the University and College Union (UCU).Advertisement A letter heavily criticising the plans, and seen by the AJ, was sent to senior management last week and signed by more than 30 teaching staff in the architecture school. Describing the plans as ‘hugely damaging to the faculty and its students’, the letter includes calculations that suggest the proposals will reduce student teaching time by 40 per cent. It also warns that the reduction in staff-to-student ratios could mean the courses could come under scrutiny from accrediting bodies such as the RIBA and the Architects’ Registration Board (ARB). ‘There is a real risk that affected courses will lose their accredited status or be put on to special measures,’ it said. The lecturers’ letter also raises concerns that the ‘associate academic’ positions could essentially become zero-hour contracts at a lower remuneration, classifying staff as workers rather than employees and removing basic rights such as sick pay and maternity pay. It adds that staff are ‘incredibly angry and disillusioned’ by the way the proposals have been presented, and especially that the redundancy plans were announced during the Easter break, after many HPLs’ teaching involvement for the year had ended. This meant that any HPLs who wanted to take part in the consultation had to do so at a time they were not employed by the university. Explaining the rationale for axing HPLs, the consultation said that while the casual lecturers had played an ‘important role’ in providing specialist teaching and cover for sickness absence, they had also been used to ‘meet core teaching needs’. It added: ‘The faculty considers that, however able and committed individual HPLs are, it is important that core teaching should be provided by members of staff with a longer-term commitment to, and stake in, the university.’ However, the lecturers’ letter said the comparison between full-time and HLP staff denigrates and discriminates against employees on HPL contracts, many of whom have worked for the university for years. What is an HPL? Hourly paid lecturers are teaching staff paid a specific rate per hour and often work on a contract basis, which may be for a specific academic year or even a term without a guarantee of ongoing work. While hourly-paid roles are often taken up by postgraduate or PhD students, many are also professionals who come in to teach alongside their main jobs. This is especially the case in the school of architecture, where architects teach alongside working in practice. Students are also opposing the cuts. A letter sent by the Greenwich Landscape and Architecture Society to School of Design head Chris Pallant and associate head Rashesh Ram said the proposed changes would ‘damage the credibility’ of the course and reputation of the School of Design. ‘Students are concerned that being taught in larger groups by multiple full-time tutors will not only prevent them from learning from real-life practitioners, but also create problems with design process as no one will fully know their project and be able to provide them with the guidance equivalent to 1:1 tutorials we currently have,’ it said. Lecturers have also urged the university to explain its justification for the cuts, given that the university is in good financial health. Last year, financial records show that Greenwich University made a surplus of more than £33 million. In a statement issued on the cuts at Greenwich, UCU general secretary Jo Grady said: ‘Students are having their fees hiked, yet the University of Greenwich wants to sack hundreds of their teachers and instead bring in a pool of zero-hour academics, all while the vice-chancellor's pay continues to soar. These are the actions of the very worst type of rogue employer, not a public institution of Greenwich’s standing. ‘There is no financial justification to force through these cuts, and if the university continues to do so, impacted courses will be stripped of their academic value. It must think again.’ The spokesperson said the UCU had taken steps to raise a dispute with the university and was moving to consultation on a ballot for strike action. Greenwich University has been approached for comment. 2025-05-15 Ella Jessel comment and share