Netflix cuts 150 US-based jobs after losing subscribers

Image source, Netflix

A month after it said it was losing subscribers for the first time in a decade, the entertainment giant laid off about 150 staff.

The US office of the streaming service will be affected by the layoffs. They make up 2% of its North American workforce.

The company said the job losses were due to the decline in revenue.

The streaming service is losing viewers.

The company said in a statement that the changes are driven by business needs rather than individual performance, which makes them especially tough.

The Los Angeles Times reported that some parts of the business would see job losses.

Some people lost their jobs online.

unfortunately i, too, was affected by the netflix layoffs today. it was a wild ride and i'm really proud of the work that i did, particularly being part of the @netflixgolden launch, and feel v. lucky i got to work with such brilliant people

— Madelyn Chung 鍾舒華✨ (@madelynchung) May 17, 2022

In April, the streaming giant shocked the industry when it revealed it had lost 200,000 subscribers in the first three months of 2022, and warned another two million were expected to quit in the coming quarter.

The news caused an investor sell-off, with the firm's stock plunging in one day. It is now trading at a 42% discount to its previous premium.

In the past few years, competition has increased with the arrival of Disney Plus, Amazon Prime Video, and other platforms.

The company said in its earnings report last month that the decision to raise its prices in the US had cost it subscribers.

The service had to pull out of the Russian market alone.

Along with job losses, the company is also cutting content. In May it canceled the development of Pearl, an animated series that was created by the actress.

Analysts say that after a surge in sign-ups, the business has run out of easy ways to grow.

Password sharing has cost it 100 million households and the company is looking at a cheaper, ad-based model.