Mediagazer: Memo: Paramount starts layoffs to reduce costs; sources say ~800 employees, or an estimated 3% of its headcount, are getting cut across all divisions (Todd Spangler/Variety)

5:05 PM ET, February 13, 2024

Top News:

Todd Spangler / Variety:

Memo: Paramount starts layoffs to reduce costs; sources say ~800 employees, or an estimated 3% of its headcount, are getting cut across all divisions — Paramount Global, amid a swirl of M&A discussions, is laying off about 800 employees worldwide — an estimated 3% of its headcount — as it looks to trim costs.

Alexandra Steigrad / New York Post:

Sources: CBS News was hit with job cuts affecting 20 people, including Catherine Herridge, who is in a legal battle to protect sources of a 2017 Fox News story — Several CBS News reporters were caught up in layoffs at Paramount Global that claimed 800 jobs, including one who is embroiled …

Discussion: The Wrap, The Desk, @alexsteigrad and Reuters

Selome Hailu / Variety:

Nielsen and Adobe Analytics: Super Bowl 2024 averaged 123.4M viewers across CBS and streaming services, making the game the most-watched US telecast ever — The Feb. 11 Super Bowl game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers brought in an average of 123.4 million viewers …

Mark Stenberg / Adweek:

Axel Springer announces its first US leadership team, a 10-person group that includes Politico Europe co-founder Gabriel Brotman, a sign of its US ambitions — The 10-person cohort includes five new hires and points toward centralization — German media company Axel Springer announced …

Discussion: PRWeek, @nickpacilio, Mark Stenberg on LinkedIn, Zia Daniell Wigder on LinkedIn, @markstenberg3 and Axel Springer SE

Bloomberg:

A look at Adobe's careful adoption of AI, pushed by Dall-E and Midjourney, as it tries to differentiate its tools by emphasizing brand safety and IP protections — Dall-E and Midjourney pushed the Photoshop behemoth to develop Firefly, a suite of AI tools. Will creatives get on board?

Discussion: @austincarr, Andy Rosen on LinkedIn, Danielle Sacks on LinkedIn, The Adobe Blog and @sethcjayson@threads.net, more at Techmeme »

Kristin Robinson / Billboard:

The Mechanical Licensing Collective sues Pandora for allegedly failing to adequately pay and report monthly royalties, including for its ad-supported tier — This is the first time the mechanical licensing organization has filed a lawsuit against a streaming service.

Discussion: Inside Radio, Radio & Television …, The Desk, Music Business Worldwide, RouteNote Blog, CMU and Digital Music News

Georg Szalai / The Hollywood Reporter:

Q&A with Marc Jury, the CEO of African streamer Showmax, on doubling down on originals, working with Comcast, the appeal of the English Premier League, and more — Marc Jury discusses the appeal of the English Premier League, the challenges of serving 44 markets across sub-Saharan Africa …

Todd Spangler / Variety:

Memo: SiriusXM plans to cut ~160 jobs, or ~3% of its workforce, after laying off 475 employees, or ~8% of its workforce, in March 2023 — SiriusXM is eliminating about 160 jobs, a move to cut expenses that represents a layoff affecting just under 3% of the satellite radio and audio streamer's workforce.

Discussion: Advanced Television, @axios, @thataldendiaz, Music Ally, Seeking Alpha, The Hollywood Reporter, Billboard, Axios, RAIN News, The Wrap, Digital Music News, The Desk, Deadline, Inside Radio and Barrett News Media

Chris Vallance / BBC:

The BBC says its iPlayer streaming service will stop supporting PC and Mac program downloads in March 2024, citing cost and low usage, but mobile is unaffected — The BBC's iPlayer streaming service is to end downloads for users who watch on desktop or laptop computers.

Matthew Keys / The Desk:

TVNewsCheck, which covers the TV broadcasting business, says it is suspending updates to its website and newsletters but will continue its events and webinars — TV NewsCheck, a popular online publication that covers the television broadcast industry, says it will temporarily stop publishing new articles …

Discussion: MediaPost, Ethan Holland on LinkedIn and TVNewsCheck

Peter Beaumont / The Guardian:

Al Jazeera correspondent Ismail Abu Omar and photojournalist Ahmad Matar were seriously injured during an Israeli airstrike on northern Rafah in the Gaza Strip — Correspondent Ismail Abu Omar and photojournalist Ahmad Matar allegedly targeted by IDF — An Al Jazeera correspondent …

Discussion: Committee to Protect …, Al Jazeera and CAIR

Leo Schwartz / Fortune:

Source: DCG sold CoinDesk for between $70M to $80M in November 2023 after buying it for $500K in 2016 — When CoinDesk published a suspicious balance sheet of Sam Bankman-Fried's trading firm in November of 2022, it set off a chain of events that would upend every corner of the crypto industry—including its own.

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