ESPN, the self-proclaimed Worldwide Leader in Sports, will begin company-wide layoffs as early as Wednesday that will see approximately 350 positions, about 4.3 percent of the entire ESPN workforce, eliminated, according to Bloomberg. The review conducted prior to the layoffs involved "every job with a six-figure salary" at the network, per the The Big Lead.
ESPN even brought extra human resources people in from Burbank to assist with the transition. "It's gonna be ugly," a source told TBL.
ESPN, owned by Walt Disney, currently employs about 8,000 people worldwide. The company has been facing rising programming costs and a reduction in viewers over the past several years, which has prompted the layoffs. Disney announced in August that ESPN and their other cable network properties wouldn't meet company forecasts due to the loss of subscribers and "currency translation." Prior to the downturn and signing an agreement win the NBA, Disney held $44.2 billion in sports programming, the second-largest long-term commitment in the industry, behind only 21st Century Fox Inc.
ESPN has lost more than 4 million subscribers over the past four years, per researcher SNL Kagan - a figure which Disney Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Robert Iger said in August represented only a "modest" loss for the company.
ESPN has also parted ways with notable on-air personalities like Bill Simmons and Keith Olbermann over the past year. They remain committed to Grantland, the site originally built and maintained by Simmons, and the as-of-yet un-launched Undefeated, despite the looming changes.
