Warner Cuts More Than 5% of Studio Staff

LA Times ^ | 11/2/05 | Claudia Eller

[BurbankKarl]

Under pressure to slash costs, Warner Bros. Entertainment confirmed late Tuesday that it had fired 250 to 300 employees at its Burbank studio.

At least 100 additional people will lose their jobs in the studio's international operations, according to a senior company executive who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Warner's cuts are among the deepest by a studio this year and come as Hollywood is being forced to deal with spiraling costs while the once-hot DVD market cools off and TV syndication dries up.

Warner spokeswoman Sue Fleishman, who confirmed the layoffs on the Burbank lot, did not provide a breakdown of the cuts except to say that they affected all divisions, including Warner Bros. Pictures and its specialty film unit, Warner Independent Pictures. The company's television, home video, consumer products and corporate operations also were hit.

"We had to take some difficult measures to position the company for the future," Fleishman said. "We acknowledge that these decisions have affected people's livelihoods and to that end we examined every aspect of our business in order to cut costs responsibly and to keep staff reductions to a minimum."

The company, owned by Time Warner Inc., employs 8,000 worldwide. The layoffs in Burbank amount to at least 5% of the 4,500 Warner employees there.

[MNnice]

Bush's fault no doubt.

[TXBubba]

Flipping through the channels last night I noticed a new movie they are making called "7". Something about a category 7 tornado. Didn't they already make one almost like that called "Twister". Hollyweird has no new ideas.

[BurbankKarl]

Thats a television movie on CBS

[PAR35]

while the once-hot DVD market cools off

It doesn't make sense to buy DVDs made on a standard which is now obsolete. It doesn't make sense to buy a new machine until you see which standard will actually prevail. And only a fool would buy a TV at this point, as the old style ones will be useless in a few months, and the new style ones will be much cheaper in a year or so.

[kstewskis]

[BurbankKarl]

??? HDTV isnt til 2009 at the earliest.

>>>as the old style ones will be useless in a few months

[PAR35]

HDTV isnt til 2009 at the earliest.

Digital is already being broadcast in the larger markets. So, in one sense, it is already here.

2009 is one of the dates being batted around, but there is a lot of money pushing for an earlier conversion. (Everyone is for it except the consumers).

Here's one possible date:

The US Congress and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) mandated that TV stations convert to the digital TV standard by 2003 and that stations give up their analog TV spectrum by the end of 2006.
http://encycl.opentopia.com/term/Digital_television

Although 2007 is more likely.

Here's that pesky 2006 date again:

Stations in large cities began providing a digital signal in late 1998. WXXI is required to provide a digital signal by 2003 and will also maintain its current system of analog broadcasting until 2006
http://www.wxxi.org/dtv/faqindex.html

And where I live, we are only months away from 2006.

[aimhigh]

At least 100 additional people will lose their jobs

Another way to cleanse themselves of conservative employees.

[PAR35]

And here's what the government site says:

The target date for the end of the transition from analog to digital television signals is December 31, 2006.
http://www.dtv.gov/consumercorner.html#whencomplete