Time Inc cuts almost 300 jobs as digital investment rises

by Staff, Brand Republic 19-Jan-07, 08:30

NEW YORK - Time Inc is to cut almost 300 jobs as it restructures and prepares to expand its digital activities.

In all, 289 jobs are going including 172 on the editorial side and 117 on the business side, according to Time Inc, the publishing arm of media giant Time Warner.

Flagship magazine Time, the company's international news magazine, is one of those hit with 40 jobs lost as bureaus are shut down in Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta and jobs are also cut at its Washington office.

Earlier this month, Time changed its publication date from Monday to Friday and relaunched its website in a hope of bring the two closer together.

Last year, Time Inc closed the print version of Teen People, but kept the website running. The closure of that title echoed moves by other publishers such as Hachette Filipacchi, which closed ElleGirl, but retained the website, while Emap in the UK closed Sneak.

The cuts will affect some of Time Inc's biggest titles including its profitable People magazine, which is losing its bureaus in Washington, Miami, Chicago and Austin. Sports Illustrated has also been hit by job losses, which are spread across 150 magazines in total, bringing the company's headcount down to around 11,000.

One of the reasons those two magazines have been hit so hard is that Time Inc is ending the practice of using several correspondents to report and write a single article.

The 172 editorial jobs cut works out at over 5% of Time Inc's worldwide editorial staff of 3,300.

Ann Moore, the chairwoman and chief executive of Time Inc, said: "Progress brings change and we need to continue to evolve to meet the cost pressures and challenges presented by our rapidly shifting industry.

"While we continue to invest in our core magazines, we are also focused on transforming our workforce and broadening our digital capabilities in order to become a truly multi-platform publisher."

She added that Time Inc had moved forward online, developing many of its sites into what she called "strong and popular brand vehicles, while others are relaunching new designs with fresher content".

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