Netflix axes 1,000 jobs in its biggest cuts since 2022 as YouTube and TikTok steal its audiences

Netflix is cutting roughly 1,000 staff — 6% of its entire workforce — after co-CEOs Greg Peters and Ted Sarandos sent an internal memo to employees on Wednesday confirming the layoffs. The cuts are concentrated in product, tech, legal and human-resources teams, even as bosses insist the business is "strong and growing" and on track to hit its full-year forecast. The company had around 16,000 employees at the end of last year, and its shares have fallen around 25% so far this year before ticking up 0.7% on the news.

Bloomberg reported over the summer that more than half the audience for Netflix's biggest shows was gone by the second season.

A bid by Netflix to purchase Warner Bros Discovery's streaming and studio assets fell apart earlier this year, fuelling doubts about its direction as rival Skydance nears completion of its $110bn Warner Bros takeover.

A senior analyst at eMarketer warned Netflix is nearing a subscription ceiling and has failed to find 'another line of major revenue' beyond its core model.