Paramount Global, the storied media conglomerate, announced Thursday it will lay off 15% of its US staff and write down $6 billion in value of its cable television networks as it prepares to merge with Skydance Media.
The layoffs, which will affect around 2,000 staffers in the coming weeks, are part of Paramount’s bid to trim $500 million in annual costs companywide ahead of its merger with technology scion David Ellison’s SkyDance.
The layoffs will see the elimination of “redundant functions” in marketing and communications and the reduction of headcount in finance, legal, technology, and other support functions, Paramount co-chief executive Chris McCarthy said.
Paramount, which controls a vast cable and television portfolio, said the writedown of its TV business “is primarily as a result of recent indicators in the linear affiliate marketplace, and the estimated total company market value indicated by the Skydance transactions.”
The announcement is the latest painful sign of the dramatic changes impacting the traditional television business as consumers rapidly shift away from the cable bundle in favor of streaming services.
On Wednesday, Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of CNN, TNT, HGTV and other cable networks, posted a $9.1 billion write down on its television business.
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