Netflix Lays Off An Additional 300 Employees Amid Subscriber Decline

According to reports, the May layoffs also mainly affected U.S.-based employees, including some in the executive roles working on original content. 150 employees were laid off in May while at least 10 full-time and part-time staffers were let go in April as part of a restructuring of the company’s marketing efforts. The removed positions only reflect less than 2% of the platform’s 11,000 staffers.

Last month’s job cuts came shortly after the company reported its first subscriber loss, resulting in the streamer’s “slowing revenue growth.” A Netflix representative said in a statement:

“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.”

According to reports, Netflix stock (NFLX) has taken a big decline, dipping about 50 percent since it announced the Q1 subscriber decline — the first time its user base has shrunk in nearly a decade. Netflix will report its Q2 performance on July 19.

As a solution, the company has committed to cutting costs in order to keep its margins at 20 percent, which is the reason for the job cuts. However, the streaming giant is still spending big bucks on content. Netflix is reportedly on track to spend $17 billion this year– around the same amount as last year.

Despite the major decline in subscribers, Netflix still remains the most popular streaming service with 221.64 million subscribers worldwide. In comparison, Disney+ has 137.7 million.

What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments below!

[VIA]