Streaming service Netflix has laid off 150 employees following their recent subscriber drop. Once the gold standard of streaming, Netflix changed the entire industry with its original series and movie release pattern, forcing other major studios to create their own streaming services. Now Netflix faces massive competition from Disney+, HBO Max, Paramount+, Peacock, and Amazon Prime and the bill appears to have come due for them.
The streaming service has been hit with bad news in the past month. First, they reported their first loss in subscribers, the first time that had happened in ten years. Netflix said it would crack down on password sharing and now add a lower-cost ad-tier service to combat the issue. The bubble appears to have burst as Netflix made several cancelations of original programming and stopped the development of the adaptation of the comic series Bone after years of spending money freely.
The bad news keeps coming in, as Deadline reports that Netflix has laid off 150 employees from their 11,00 workforce. Most of the jobs loss appears to be U.S. based, and a number of them are executive ranks in the original content front, but no official breakdown has been revealed yet. A spokesperson for Netflix released a statement regarding the layoffs to Deadline that can be read below:
“As we explained on earnings, our slowing revenue growth means we are also having to slow our cost growth as a company. So sadly, we are letting around 150 employees go today, mostly US-based. These changes are primarily driven by business needs rather than individual performance, which makes them especially tough as none of us want to say goodbye to such great colleagues. We’re working hard to support them through this very difficult transition”.
This news of layoffs comes just days after Netflix released a memo to its employees informing them to quit if they do not like the content they create. While Netflix is still cutting some costs, the streaming service is still looking to draw in viewers with high-profile series like Stranger Things season 4, an adaptation of the comic book Sandman, and a new season of Cobra Kai. The streaming service is still investing heavily in Netflix original films from in-demand directors like Joe and Anthony Russo's The Gray Man, Guillermo Del Toro's Pinocchio, and Rian Johnson's Knives Out 2. All of which are expected to cost Netflix quite a bit which means cutting costs in other areas.
The Netflix layoffs also come close to the recent announcement of many CW series being canceled, leaving many in the entertainment industry without work. The management change at Warner Bros. following the Discovery merger has led to many individuals being let go and jobs consolidated. Now reports are coming in that Dinsey executives hope to replace new CEO, Bob Chapek. All this indicates a massive change in the entertainment industry, and sadly, many people who work below the line are likely to be the ones who suffer the most.
Source: Deadline