ABS-CBN Corp. will let go of around 200 employees, or 7 percent of its workforce, even after receiving fresh capital from its parent group, as weak advertising and consumer spending continue to weigh on the media company’s recovery efforts.
‘After careful review, we have made the difficult decision to implement a retrenchment program to keep ABS-CBN on strong financial footing,’ the company said in a statement. ‘We know this will deeply affect our employees and their families, and we intend to manage this the way we have always done-with compassion for our Kapamilya.’
The retrenchment comes despite its efforts to raise P6 billion in fresh capital last month.
ABS-CBN acknowledged the fresh funding, saying the ‘new investments are a vote of confidence in the future of the company and will help ABS in our journey towards recovery and new successes.’
The Kapamilya network, however, cited a difficult year for the content industry, saying the Middle East conflict, high inflation, and low economic growth have dampened advertising and consumer spending.
‘These events have affected our recovery efforts and we expect these challenges to continue.’
Despite the job cuts, ABS-CBN said its content business continues to grow, with its shows, films, music, and events reaching more audiences across platforms in the Philippines and abroad. ‘We are in the process of re-building and re-creating ABS-CBN towards a new future as a global storytelling company.’
‘We are truly grateful to all our Kapamilyas for their dedication, passion, and service to the company and the Filipino people.’
ABS-CBN saw its net loss more than double in the first semester, as the absence of election-related advertising, weaker consumer sentiment, and a thinner slate of films and live events dragged down revenues.
The listed media conglomerate reported a consolidated net loss of P1.83 billion for the January-to-June period, wider than the P852-million loss it booked in the same period last year.
Consolidated revenues fell 17 percent to P6.88 billion, with the company attributing most of the drop to its Cable TV and Broadband businesses.
Excluding political advertising and one-off items in both years, the segment’s recurring net loss narrowed by 1 percent, while recurring earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) rose 2 percent.
The company expects revenues to recover in the second half.
The retrenchment is the latest chapter in ABS-CBN’s long recovery from the loss of its congressional broadcast franchise in 2020, which forced it off free television and led to the separation of close to 6,000 employees.
The network has since pivoted to content provision, distributing its programs across digital platforms and rival networks.