Netflix to cut 6% of its workforce

The company’s co-CEOs, Greg Peters and Ted Sarandos, announced job cuts in a memo to employees on Wednesday.

According to the memo, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press, Peters and Sarandos said, “Such decisions are never easy, and we do not take them lightly.” They affirmed that the company’s performance is strong, but that Netflix needs “discipline in prioritizing hiring and allocating resources” as it invests in future growth and “high-impact areas to improve our services.”

In contrast to the co-CEOs’ memo, Netflix declined to provide further comment on the job cuts announced on Wednesday.

Netflix’s profits have grown this year, driven by rising subscriber numbers and price increases. In the second quarter of the current fiscal year, the company reported profits of $3.4 billion, a 9% year-on-year increase, and revenues of $12.56 billion, up 13% annually.

However, Netflix’s third-quarter forecasts fell short of Wall Street analysts’ estimates, and the company is scheduled to release its financial results next week.

Despite Netflix’s dominant position in the streaming market—holding a 19% market share according to the latest data from Just Watch, a streaming services guide—competing services such as Amazon’s Prime Video and Disney+ are closing the gap rapidly.

This news report is from The Associated Press (AP), translated from English by a Deutsche Welle (DW) correspondent based in Cairo.