After struggling financially and months of struggling to secure the acquisition before agreeing to the merger, Skydance Media Paramount announced it will cut roughly 15% of its total US workforce as part of broader cost-cutting initiatives.
Paramount said approximately 2,000 workers will be laid off, with layoffs beginning in the coming weeks and ending by the end of the year.
Related: Paramount Leadership Hits Layoffs
Paramount Global co-head Chris McCarthy said the layoffs would affect two sectors: “redundant roles” for those in marketing and communications, and those working in finance, legal, technology and other support areas in an effort to continue to “streamline” the company structure.
“As you can imagine, these are difficult decisions,” McCarthy said on the Q2 2024 earnings call with investors. “We have incredibly talented people at Paramount, and these actions are not a reflection of their contributions. Rather, they are necessary to transform our organization going forward .”
The news comes just a day after rival Warner Bros. Discovery posted a net loss of $10 billion and a $9.1 billion write-down of TV assets, pointing to a broader industry trend of declining cable viewership amid the rise of streaming services. Paramount wrote off the value of its cable networks by nearly $6 billion in the second quarter.
Rumors of layoffs began at Paramount in June at its annual shareholder meeting, when executives unveiled a plan to cut roughly $500 million in costs, noting that it would include “eliminating” duplicate teams and functions across the organization, real estate, marketing and more. corporate overhead category.”
Related: Paramount lays off hundreds of employees just days after ‘Blockbuster’ Super Bowl LVIII
“To be clear, the $500 million in cost savings is just the beginning,” co-CEO Bob Cheeks said in an interview. CNBC.
Paramount laid off an estimated 800 employees earlier this year after the company aired Super Bowl LVIII to “return earnings growth to the company” amid debt-related costs.
Earlier last month, Paramount and Skydance Media agreed to a merger worth an estimated $8 billion, subject to approval by majority shareholder Shari Redstone.
Paramount Global was down 33% year-to-date on Friday morning.