Warner Media Layoffs Could Affect TNT And AEW

According to a story by The Wall Street Journal, Warner Media is expected to cut operating costs by 20%. This cut is expected to mean 1000s of jobs being cut including people employed at TNT or who are connected to TNT programming.

COVID has impacted the company by hurting movie ticket sales. However, a huge reason behind the cuts is the decline in revenue from cable subscriptions and the effect this has had on ad revenue.

A WarnerMedia representative had the following to say:

“Like the rest of the entertainment industry, we have not been immune to the significant impact of the pandemic,. That includes an acceleration in shifting consumer behavior, especially in the way content is being viewed. We shared with our employees recently that the organization will be restructured to respond to those changes and prioritize growth opportunities, with an emphasis on direct-to-consumer. We are in the midst of that process and it will involve increased investments in priority areas and, unfortunately, reductions in others.”

The article doesn’t specifically mention AEW, but did say TNT and TBS avoided disaster when the NBA and MLB decided to have their seasons. The live sporting events got eyes back on the channel.

However, television ad revenue has not recovered, and profits will continue to take a hit as rights fees for sports are set to increase. What does this mean for AEW? Well, probably not a ton in the short term.

In the long run, the network might not be as interested in paying rights fees if the company is making a profit for the channel. AEW is doing well in key demos and overall on cable. So, if the price is right, they should be fine, but they will have to maintain or show growth in viewership as we move forward.

• WarnerMedia
• cuts
• TNT
• AEW

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