Zynga COO resigns

John Schappert, chief operating officer (COO) and director of online social gaming company Zynga, has resigned.

The company, the maker of Farmville, booked a loss in the quarter ended 30 June and lowered its outlook for the year, which led to its shares falling by around 40 percent.

Although Schappert's resignation was effective immediately from the announcement made on Wednesday, the company insisted that his departure was not related to "any disagreement with the company on any matter relating to the company's operations, policies or practices'.

"The company noted that Mr Schappert leaves as a friend of the company and it wishes him all the best," Zynga said in a regulatory filing.

According to Reuters, the resignation did not come as a surprise as Zynga had said earlier this month that Schappert had already given up many of his game development responsibilities while it carried out a management reshuffle.

Zynga promoted David Ko, its chief mobile officer, and Steve Chiang, executive VP of games to positions with the responsibility for game development alongside CEO Mark Pincus.

Schappert joined Zynga from rival Electronic Arts in May 2011, where he was also COO.