Paramount Global lays off about 800 employees, a day after announcing record Super Bowl ratings
Paramount Global is laying off hundreds of employees, just one day after the company announced CBS had record Super Bowl viewership, Chief Executive Officer Bob Bakish said Tuesday in an internal memo to employees.
Paramount will lay off about 800 people, or an estimated 3% of its workforce, according to a person familiar with the matter. Paramount Global ended 2022 with about 24,500 full-time and part-time employees.
"These adjustments will help enable us to build on our momentum and execute our strategic vision for the year ahead – and I firmly believe we have much to be excited about," Bakish wrote in the note.
Paramount Global owns a variety of assets including CBS, Paramount Pictures, Pluto TV, Paramount+ and cable networks including Nickelodeon, BET and Comedy Central. The job cuts come as the media company considers merger and acquisition options. Paramount Global has held early merger talks with Skydance Media and Warner Bros. Discovery in recent months, CNBC has previously reported.
The media company had warned employees of impending cuts in an internal memo last month. Bakish said at the time that Paramount Global needed to "operate as a leaner company and spend less."
