HBO Max Removes 70 Employees—Warner Bros. Discovery Preparing for Next Streaming Platform?

Isaiah Richard, Tech Times 15 August 2022, 10:08 pm

HBO Max is facing a restructuring from its parent company, and it already removed 70 employees in the process, and it is a total of 14 percent of its staff that it recently reduced. There are anticipated changes in the recent merger of the two companies, now known as Warner Bros. Discovery, with the recent confirmation of the streaming platforms' merger next year.

HBO Max Restructures, Removes 70 Employees

(Photo : ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images)
A Warner Media logo is displayed in Manhattan, New York on May 17, 2021. - AT&T said May 17, 2021 it was spinning off its WarnerMedia unit and combining it with Discovery, creating an independent firm that could take on industry leaders such as Netflix in the fast-growing streaming sector.

According to a report by Variety, HBO, and HBO Max chief content officer Casey Bloys confirmed that the company is restructuring its streaming platforms and removed 70 employees in the process. It is 14 percent of the current workforce from HBO Max, and it is the company's decision to lay off the employees.

Initial expectations for the employee layoffs were larger, but it only removed 14 percent of its workforce for its latest ventures for the company. Bloys said that the layoffs were not made due to employee performance with the company, but rather a difficult decision to remove them as it focuses on the restructuring of the service.

Is This in Preparation for Discovery Plus Merger?

The layoffs were in preparation for the Discovery Plus merger with HBO Max, and it will bring a new platform that would offer both the content available on each platform before. According to The Verge, the affected individuals from the recent restructuring came from the reality unit, casting, and content acquisitions teams.

Warner Bros. Discovery and its New Management

Earlier this year, there have been rumors and speculations of a merger between Warner Bros., the multimedia company that owns DC Comic's Extended Universe and its heroes, among other titles from the company, with Discovery.

The deal took place recently, and it put a massive $43 billion price on the famous educational channel that brings mostly scientific and informative documentaries among other titles.

The media merger of these two tycoons is a massive move for them, especially as each has its streaming platforms namely HBO Max and Discovery+.

Warner Bros. Discovery, the new name of the company, recently confirmed that it will bring a new streaming platform that would combine HBO Max and Discovery+ into one app, by 2023.

Now, preparations are underway and one of the most significant actions made towards it is to lay off a percentage of the employees over at HBO Max and make way for people from Discovery+. There are unknown elements to come in the future, especially with what is to be the name of the new platform, and how they are to tackle content with different focus and highlights.

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Written by Isaiah Richard