Streaming giant Netflix has been reporting big losses for the first quarter of the year. In April, it was revealed that the platform had seen a massive drop in subscribers, with a net loss of 200,000, which in turn lost the company $50 billion from its market cap. However, its biggest losses came when the service was pulled from Russia - around 700,000 subscribers were lost.
Originally, the consequences of this seemed to be mostly limited to the platform’s actual content - last month, it was reported that several animated series that were in development had been cancelled as a result. However, as reported by Variety, a significant chunk of staff have now been laid off due to the company’s “slowing revenue growth”.
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“As we explained [in reporting Q1] earnings, our slowing revenue growth means we are also having to slow our cost growth as a company,” a Netflix rep wrote in a statement. “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.”
As well as 150 full-time employees losing their jobs, a further 70 part-time roles have also been axed from Netflix’s animation studio (likely tying into those previously mentioned cancelled animated series). Freelance roles in the company’s social media and publishing group have also been cut.
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“A number of agency contractors have also been impacted by the news announced this morning,” a Netflix spokesperson said. “We are grateful for their contributions to Netflix.”
Last week, it was reported that the streaming giant could be introducing a new, cheaper subscription tier by the end of the year, which would include adverts. The price of this tier hasn’t been revealed, and whether or not it would be cheap enough to win back the platform’s lost subscribers remains to be seen.
Topics: Netflix, TV And Film