[ad_1]
Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish said Thursday that the company will continue to reduce its global workforce “to operate as a more efficient company and spend less.” But there were no further details in a memo to staff obtained by Deadline following a public meeting on “Bob Live” this morning.
The company has three main strategic goals going forward: maximizing content, driving streaming profitability, and “further unleashing the power of ONE PARAMOUNT.”
“As has been the case in recent years, this means we will continue to reduce our workforce globally,” the memo said. “These decisions are never easy, but they are essential on our path to profit growth.”
Read the full memo below.
Deadline reported last weekend that the cuts at Paramount would affect hundreds of employees across the company. He WSJ in December it had pegged layoffs at around 1,000, leading to a fairly brutal period of waiting for staff that is still ongoing. Deadline heard that senior executives had been given reduction targets to hit to cut costs.
“Amid all this change, it’s no surprise that Paramount remains a topic of speculation. We are a historic public company in a highly followed industry. But I have always believed that the best thing we can do is focus on what we can control: execution,” Bakish wrote.
Below is the full note.
Team: Today we dedicate the first Bob Live of 2024 to our strategic focus for the year. Importantly, this vision builds on everything this extraordinary team accomplished in 2023, and there is no doubt that we have made incredible progress. Last year, Paramount+ remained one of the fastest-growing paid streaming services and Pluto TV was the most distributed FAST service in the world.
We had the number one show on television, five number one box office debuts, and the number one broadcast network last season, to name just a few accomplishments. In these and more ways, we are unleashing the power of our content, which remains our mission no matter what challenges we face. And we’ve certainly faced some. As an industry, we have faced a weak advertising market, a volatile macroeconomic environment and two historic strikes just last year. All while we navigate the continued evolution of the streaming business, as industry sentiment and success metrics continue to shift. And we’ve embarked on our own journey as a company: to realize the full potential of One Paramount as we transition our business from linear to streaming and continue to adjust the way we publish and monetize our content.
Amid all this change, it’s no surprise that Paramount remains a topic of speculation. We are a historic public company in a highly followed industry. But I’ve always believed that the best thing we can do is focus on what we can control: execution. Leaning on what works, while continually adjusting to current realities.
So what does that mean for us in 2024? Our priority is to drive profit growth. And we will achieve this by increasing our revenue while closely managing costs, a balance that will require all teams, divisions and brands to be aligned. More specifically, we have three key strategies to achieve this:
1. Maximize CONTENT with greater impact. When it comes to massive and popular content, we have always exceeded our expectations. And, for our audiences and partners around the world, it has become abundantly clear that our Hollywood hits are the biggest draw. That’s why, in 2024, we will focus our resources on the most powerful and resonant franchises, films and series that perform across all platforms globally. As we refine our content strategy, this means we will produce fewer local and international originals for our platforms, apart from our main free-to-air networks in Australia, Argentina, Chile and the United Kingdom, where we will continue to have a strong presence. local content channeling. And we will continue to maximize our global successes across multiple platforms and revenue streams (including streaming, film, television and licensing) to get the greatest return on our investment.
2. Boost the profitability of STREAMING. We’ve learned a lot since we launched Paramount+ almost three years ago. As we said last quarter, we expect 2022 to be our peak investment year, so we are a year ahead of schedule on that important metric. Given our continued drive for streaming profitability, this year we will lean even more into large markets such as the US, UK, Canada and Australia, where we have a strong multi-platform presence, our studio content in the US has better resonance and where there is the greatest earning potential. In other major markets in Europe, Latin America and Asia, we will continue our market-by-market strategy and leverage the power of our strong local partnerships, ensuring we operate with the best model to drive scale and local audience, while managing costs. Globally, increasing subscriber engagement and retention on our platforms will also be critical priorities on our path to streaming profitability. So will driving revenue through advertising, subscriptions and licensing, including through our recently announced Paramount+ branded destinations, while we continue to operate as efficiently as possible and reduce costs.
3. Further unleash the power of ONE PARAMOUNT. We’ve made a lot of progress on this front, but we can still do more to harness the collective power of our company. That means continuing to collaborate across teams, time zones, and functions on efforts like cross-promotion, innovative partnerships, data and insights, and more, to make the most of our assets and expertise. As always, we will continue to work to strengthen our culture, prioritizing inclusion, developing employees and leaders, and guiding our teams through change. Our One Paramount mentality will not only drive better results, but will also allow us to operate as a more efficient company and spend less. Wherever possible, we will look to expand our shared services model as we streamline operations.
As has been the case in recent years, this means we will continue to reduce our workforce globally. These decisions are never easy, but they are essential on our path to profit growth. We will continue to be as thoughtful as possible, communicate when there is information to share, and support our teams at all times. If you didn’t get a chance to tune in to today’s Bob Live, do so whenever you can on Vimeo. There is more information there, and even more to come. Expect to hear updates on our progress against this strategy throughout the year. In many ways, 2024 will be the next big step in our transformation and we must evolve the way we work to support it. I cannot emphasize enough how grateful I am for their dedication and how proud I am of everything this team continues to accomplish. In light of all we have accomplished together, I have no doubt that we are up to the task.
Best, bob