|
|
Author
|
Topic: Warner Brothers Lays Off 800
|
Jim Cassedy
Phenomenal Film Handler
![](http://www.film-tech.com/ubbmembers/4115a.jpg)
Posts: 1661
From: San Francisco, CA
Registered: Dec 2006
|
posted 01-20-2009 06:00 PM
Financial Times/WB Story
Warner Brothers Entertainment To Cut 800 Jobs By Matthew Garrahan in Los Angeles
Published: January 20 2009 20:56 Warner Brothers Entertainment, the Hollywood studio behind The Dark Knight, the biggest grossing movie of 2008, is to shed 10 per cent of all employees as the recession starts to bite in Hollywood.
The entertainment industry has traditionally been relatively immune to recessionary pressures. But with the slump in consumer spending hitting DVD sales – the industry’s most important revenue stream – and Blu-ray, the next generation home entertainment format, still yet to take off, studios are looking to tighten their belts.
In a letter to Warner Bros staff, Barry Meyer, the studio’s chairman, said the cuts reflected “changes necessary for stability and growth going forward”.
“The changing entertainment business landscape, shifting consumer demand and the overall state of the economy have affected companies around the world, and Warner Bros is not immune to these factors,” he added.
The studio also plans to move an unspecified number of jobs to India and Poland.
The cuts come after a year of cost-reduction moves at Warner. New Line Cinema, Warners’ sister company, was merged with the studio, while Warner Independent Pictures and Picturehouse, its two niche labels that specialised in edgier films, were closed.
The studio has also sharply cut the number of movies it releases, falling from a peak of more than 40 a year to about 25 in 2008.
Warners topped the box office charts with The Dark Knight, which has grossed close to $1bn around the world. But it had to share the film’s profits with Legendary Pictures, a production company that has a deal to co-finance 25 films with Warners.
With the Oscars only a month away, there have also been red faces at the studio over its involvement with Slumdog Millionaire.
Slumdog was due to be released by WIP but its future was thrown into doubt when Warners closed the niche label.
However, Fox Searchlight, a division of 20th Century Fox, was brought in as lead distributor, which insured the film received a theatrical release. The film, directed by Danny Boyle, has since become one of the favourites to win the best picture Oscar award.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2009
(Huh?: WB is outsourcing to India & Poland???? Did I read that right??? I was in an elevator that stalled for a few minutes the other day. When I pushed the 'emergency call' button to find out what was going on, I was actually connected to someone in INDIA!! Isn't technology wonderful? -JimC)
| IP: Logged
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
All times are Central (GMT -6:00)
|
|
Powered by Infopop Corporation
UBB.classicTM
6.3.1.2
The Film-Tech Forums are designed for various members related to the cinema industry to express their opinions, viewpoints and testimonials on various products, services and events based upon speculation, personal knowledge and factual information through use, therefore all views represented here allow no liability upon the publishers of this web site and the owners of said views assume no liability for any ill will resulting from these postings. The posts made here are for educational as well as entertainment purposes and as such anyone viewing this portion of the website must accept these views as statements of the author of that opinion
and agrees to release the authors from any and all liability.
|