John Smedley steps down as Daybreak’s CEO

According to a news report from VentureBeat, John Smedley, long time CEO of Daybreak (going back into its early days as Sony Online Entertainment), has stepped down and is being replaced by former COO Russell Shanks.

Since Daybreak went independent from Sony, it has been in the news frequently, dealing with layoffs, DDOS attacks, and community reassurances that EQNext, H1Z1, and other titles are still being worked on lovingly by the staff. At this time, it’s unclear what this change in staffing will do to affect Daybreak’s games and services.