After axing 150 employees back in May, Netflix has announced an additional 300 jobs lost today as its subscriptions — and shares value — continue to fall.
The latest round of terminations follows the company having reported a 35 percent drop in shares back in April — their biggest drop in more than a decade.
It also coincides with the streamer's announcement that it will be introducing an ad-supported, cheaper tier subscription for people who think regular Netflix is too expensive, and "don't mind advertising," as CEO Ted Sarandos put it, speaking with Sway podcast host Kara Swisher on the Cannes Lions stage today, as per The Hollywood Reporter.
Netflix offered the following statement about the downsizing: "While we continue to invest significantly in the business, we made these adjustments so that our costs are growing in line with our slower revenue growth," adding that the company would continue to hire in other areas [as reported by BBC].
The company's shortcomings have inspired rumours of a takeover, which Sarandos said "is always a reality, so we have to be wide-eyed about that," while assuring that there is "plenty of scale and profitability and free cashflow to continue to grow this business."
While at Cannes, the CEO also doubled down on his support for Dave Chappelle and his Netflix-backed comedy special The Closer, which attracted criticism (and later, employee walkouts) for its transphobic jokes.
"We won't make everyone happy, but that's the beauty of on-demand: you can turn it off," Sarandos said, apparently unaware of the irony. "The reason comedy is hard is we don't all laugh at the same thing. We all cry at the same thing so drama is a little easier to pull off, but when it comes to comedy, it's all very different."
He added: "Part of the art form is to cross the line, and part of the art form means you only find where the line is by crossing it sometimes. Supporting expression is really important."
The latest round of terminations follows the company having reported a 35 percent drop in shares back in April — their biggest drop in more than a decade.
It also coincides with the streamer's announcement that it will be introducing an ad-supported, cheaper tier subscription for people who think regular Netflix is too expensive, and "don't mind advertising," as CEO Ted Sarandos put it, speaking with Sway podcast host Kara Swisher on the Cannes Lions stage today, as per The Hollywood Reporter.
Netflix offered the following statement about the downsizing: "While we continue to invest significantly in the business, we made these adjustments so that our costs are growing in line with our slower revenue growth," adding that the company would continue to hire in other areas [as reported by BBC].
The company's shortcomings have inspired rumours of a takeover, which Sarandos said "is always a reality, so we have to be wide-eyed about that," while assuring that there is "plenty of scale and profitability and free cashflow to continue to grow this business."
While at Cannes, the CEO also doubled down on his support for Dave Chappelle and his Netflix-backed comedy special The Closer, which attracted criticism (and later, employee walkouts) for its transphobic jokes.
"We won't make everyone happy, but that's the beauty of on-demand: you can turn it off," Sarandos said, apparently unaware of the irony. "The reason comedy is hard is we don't all laugh at the same thing. We all cry at the same thing so drama is a little easier to pull off, but when it comes to comedy, it's all very different."
He added: "Part of the art form is to cross the line, and part of the art form means you only find where the line is by crossing it sometimes. Supporting expression is really important."
