Netflix Lays Off 150 Employees Amid Subscriber Decrease

LOS GATOS, CA — Netflix laid off 150 people on Tuesday, a month after reporting a decrease in subscribers for the first time in a decade, the Los Gatos-based company announced.

The layoffs affect approximately 2 percent of the company’s employees based in the United States and Canada, according to Reuters.

“As we explained on earnings, our slowing revenue growth means we are also having to slow our cost growth as a company,” a Netflix spokesperson said in a statement, according to the Los Angeles Times. “So sadly, we are letting around 150 employees go today, mostly U.S.-based. These changes are primarily driven by business needs rather than individual performance, which makes them especially tough as none of us want to say goodbye to such great colleagues. We’re working hard to support them through this very difficult transition.”

Related: Netflix Users Leave Due To Price Increases, Declining Quality: Survey

In the first three months of 2022, around 200,000 subscribers left streaming giant Netflix, signaling potentially major changes in the rapidly growing and shifting streaming industry.

A survey of 1,000 internet users (both current and former Netflix subscribers) also found that most users say they left Netflix either due to increased prices, or because they felt its content quality had declined.

The company also said it would roll out an option this year for subscribers to pay less for a version of the service that came with ads.