Netflix has begun laying off employees at its editorial website Tudum, a fansite launched under the streaming giant’s marketing arm late last year.
At least 10 full-time employees and contractors working in the editorial department were laid off Thursday, a person familiar with the matter told The Hollywood Reporter. It’s not immediately clear if more layoffs are expected across the division.
“Our fan website, Tudum, is an important priority for the company,” a Netflix spokesperson told THR.
Netflix first launched Tudum in December as an editorial site for consumer-facing content about Netflix series and films such as Bridgerton, Stranger Things, Love Is Blind and Selling Sunset. The streamer recruited a number of top entertainment journalists and writers to fill its editorial extension.
The layoffs come shortly after Netflix reported on April 19 that it lost 200,000 subscribers in the first quarter. As a result, executives conceded that Netflix would need to explore an ad-supported subscription tier and would begin to “pull back” its spend to stay within its margins.
Netflix insiders speaking to THR earlier this week noted that there has been a noticeable slowdown in hiring at the streamer. Before Thursday, some Netflix employees said they had been anxiously awaiting news of layoffs at the company to cut costs.
Mia Galuppo contributed to this report.