Disney lays off hundreds of employees

Walt Disney Co. is laying off hundreds of employees as part of a cost-cutting measure, CBS News has confirmed.

"As our industry transforms at a rapid pace, we continue to evaluate ways to efficiently manage our businesses while fueling the state-of-the-art creativity and innovation that consumers value and expect from Disney," a spokesperson said in an email to CBS News on Monday. "As part of this ongoing work, we have identified opportunities to operate more efficiently and are eliminating a limited number of positions today."

Disney did not confirm the exact number of employees being dismissed, but indicated the cuts will be across several of the entertainment giant's units, including film and television marketing; TV publicity; casting and development; and corporate financial operations.

"We have been surgical in our approach to minimize the number of impacted employees," the spokesperson said.

This most recent round of layoffs follows cuts in March, when Disney let go 200 employees across ABC and its entertainment TV networks, according to Bloomberg News. The Burbank, California, company eliminated an even larger share of employees in April 2023, when it cut 7,000 positions as it underwent a "significant transformation," CEO Bob Iger said at the time.

Disney owns a bevy of companies across entertainment and media, including ESPN, ABC Entertainment, ABC News, Marvel, Disney+ and Hulu.

Disney shares were down 0.4% Monday afternoon following the layoff announcement.

The downsizing comes less than a month after the company reported $23.6 billion in revenue in Q2, a 7% increase from the same period the year prior.

"Overall, we remain optimistic about the direction of the company and our outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year," Igor said in a statement following the earnings report.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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