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Netflix Is Cutting Around 6% of Its Workforce — About 1,000 People

Netflix is cutting around 1,000 employees (6% of its staff) — the largest layoffs since 2022. Product, technology, legal, and HR teams were hit hardest.

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Netflix Confirms It’s Laying Off 6% of Staff
Netflix Confirms It’s Laying Off 6% of StaffAI-generated

Netflix is cutting around 1,000 employees, or 6% of its staff — the company's largest layoff since 2022. The Wall Street Journal first reported the news on Wednesday; ADWEEK confirmed the information citing a knowledgeable source.

Which divisions were hit hardest?

According to the source, the company is carrying out a series of organizational changes. The cuts hit four areas hardest:

  • product teams;
  • the technology division;
  • the legal department;
  • HR.

The source emphasized that the company is maintaining its annual forecast and continues to invest in priority areas in order to improve the service and ensure further growth.

What did the executives say?

Netflix co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters sent a memo to employees on Wednesday. It was quoted by the media.

"Our mission — to entertain the world — is ambitious, and achieving it requires discipline in where we prioritize people and resources," the memorandum said.

For practitioners, the wording reads unambiguously: the layoff is framed not as a crisis but as a budget reallocation. The finance team confirms — the company does not plan to withdraw its annual forecast.

How does this fit into the industry context?

The Netflix cuts are another episode in the wave of optimization sweeping the media industry. The sector is going through consolidation and shifting priorities, and every major player is cutting costs along its own trajectory.

Disney laid off around 300 employees in September. Earlier this year, the company had already parted ways with roughly 1,000 people.

Skydance — the company formed after the Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery merger closed — is preparing for continued consolidation amid $80 billion in debt.

What does this change for the market?

The signal for Netflix's advertisers and partners is clear: the company is managing costs amid growth, not fighting for survival. The statement about maintaining the annual forecast is the memo's key fact, and that is what should be tracked in upcoming earnings reports.

For industry employees, the picture is harsher: product and technology teams, traditionally considered protected at streaming companies, are now being laid off alongside support functions.

Author: Alexey Chernykh

Original: wsj.com

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