Netflix is laying off around 1,000 employees in its biggest round of job cuts since 2022, as the streaming giant looks to address slowing growth and mounting competition for viewers' time. The layoffs will affect roughly 6 percent of the company's workforce, with most of the cuts expected across its product, technology, legal and human resources teams, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal. Netflix's co-CEOs, Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters, informed employees about the decision in an email on Wednesday.
The move comes at a crucial time for Netflix, which is trying to expand beyond its traditional subscription business while facing pressure to deliver faster growth. Speaking at a Bloomberg event in late September, Sarandos acknowledged that the company was not progressing at the pace he wanted.
"We're not growing as fast as I want us to, and we're working on making that move faster," he said.
Netflix faces pressure to speed up growth
The layoffs come as Netflix deals with a difficult period for its stock. Its shares have fallen more than 30% over the past six months and over 40% in the past year, according to business insider
The company is also facing intense competition in an increasingly crowded entertainment market, where streaming platforms are fighting for viewers' attention. Netflix has been investing in advertising, live programming and gaming to diversify its revenue streams beyond subscriptions.
However, the company has also faced questions from investors about its audience engagement. Netflix reported 97 billion viewing hours in the first half of the year, representing a 2% increase compared with the same period last year.
While that figure is likely higher than the viewing hours reported by most paid streaming rivals, Netflix recently announced that it would publish detailed engagement data annually instead of twice a year.
The decision raised concerns among investors because viewing figures can offer clues about whether subscribers are finding enough value in the service to keep paying for it.
Netflix has also raised subscription prices in the US. In March, its standard ad-free plan increased from $17.99 to $19.99 per month, while its ad-supported plan went up from $7.99 to $8.99.
Netflix's latest cuts are its biggest since 2022, when the company laid off employees after losing subscribers for the first time in more than a decade. The streaming service had around 16,000 full-time employees at the end of last year.
