Bloomberg:
“Paramount Global, looking to reduce costs as it copes with a loss of traditional TV viewers, is letting go of about 25% of the staff in its domestic cable networks and shutting down MTV News after four decades on the air.
Employees are being notified Tuesday, the company said in a statement. Paramount is combining nine separate teams into one. It had already announced plans to merge its Showtime and MTV studios
Despite subscriber growth and new hit shows, “We continue to feel pressure from broader economic headwinds like many of our peers,” said Chris McCarthy, head of the company’s media networks.
Paramount shares collapsed 30% last week after the company reported an 11 per cent decline in ad sales at its traditional TV networks and a US$511 million loss in streaming. The results underscore the challenges big media companies face in making the transition to online viewing.”
Full article from Bloomberg here
This move also comes after a Wells Fargo analyst suggested that Paramount gets out of the streaming game altogether and go down the Sony route of selling their content to the highest bidder. He further argued that there's little point continuing to bludgeon money whilst fighting to be 5th place at best in the streaming wars (since there's little hope of beating Amazon, Apple, Disney, HBO, or Hulu).
Full article on that from IndieWire here
Personally, I would have to agree. During an arms race like the Streaming Wars, you're better being an arms dealer (content) than trying to stake your own claim when you're in Paramount's position.
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