MySpace plans global staff cuts
June 23, 2009 by
MySpace announced this morning that it intends to reduce 67% of its staff globally as part of its new restructuring plan.
The proposed changes, subject to consultation with its divisions, means that offices worldwide, including Canada, will be placed under review, and that its international operations’ staff, which oversees roughly half of MySpace’s total user base, will be reduced to 150 from 450.
Following its announcement of US staff cuts last week, the social media giant released a statement to media this morning saying it plans to ‘retain a robust global consumer presence’ while ‘refocusing personnel around a smaller number of territories’ – London, Berlin and Sydney, which would become the primary regional hubs for its international operations.
The closing of at least four offices outside the US is expected, and offices under review for possible restructuring besides Canada include Argentina, Brazil, France, India, Italy, Mexico, Russia, Sweden and Spain.
‘As we conducted our review of the company, it was clear that internationally, just as in the US, MySpace’s staffing had become too big and cumbersome to be sustainable in current market conditions,’ said MySpace CEO Owen Van Natta in the release.
Locally owned and operated MySpace China, MySpace’s joint venture in Japan, will not be affected by plan.
MySpace’s worldwide monthly reach is currently at 130 million, according to comScore data (March 2009). Nearly 5 million of those are Canadian every month.
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