As part of a major restructure, Yahoo intends to cut off more than 20% of its 8,600 employees.
The veteran tech company is restructuring its advertising division, which by year’s end will have lost more than half of its staff.
Nearly 1,000 employees will be affected by the cuts by the end of the week.
As firms battle a decline in demand, increasing inflation, and rising interest rates, Yahoo is the latest digital company to announce job losses.
“These decisions are never easy, but we believe these changes will simplify and strengthen our advertising business for the long run, while enabling Yahoo to deliver better value to our customers and partners,” a spokesperson told the reporters.
According to Yahoo, who has been owned by private equity firm Apollo Global Management since a $5 billion takeover in 2021, the decision would allow the company to concentrate its efforts and investments on its DSP, or demand-side platform, or primary ad business.
The layoffs are part of a broader effort by the company to streamline operations in Yahoo’s advertising unit.
It comes at a time when many advertisers have reduced their marketing budgets in response to all-time high inflation rates and ongoing recession uncertainties.
“The new division will be called – simply – Yahoo Advertising. In redoubling our efforts on the DSP on an omni-channel basis, we will prioritise support for our top global customers and re-launch dedicated ad sales teams towards Yahoo’s owned and operated properties – including Yahoo Finance, Yahoo News, Yahoo Sports and more”, the Yahoo spokesperson added.
According to a report released on Thursday, February 9, layoffs in the US reached a more than two-year high in January as the once-reliable technology sector eliminated positions at the second-highest rate ever as it prepared for a potential recession.
Author-Roberta Appiah
