Media: ProSiebenSat.1 announces job cuts - focus on Joyn

The television group ProSiebenSat.

Media: ProSiebenSat.1 announces job cuts - focus on Joyn

The television group ProSiebenSat.1 wants to cut jobs in a difficult economic environment and thereby reduce costs. At the same time, the new CEO Bert Habets relies on the in-house streaming platform Joyn. "In the future, our investment focus will be on the entertainment business," said Habets. In addition to advertising revenue, this also includes the production of program content.

Joyn, the ex-RTL manager, wants to expand Habets into a central contact point for media consumption. The plan is not new. The public broadcasters ARD and ZDF can already be seen on Joyn. The open invitation should therefore mainly go in the direction of Cologne to the competitor RTL, which is pushing its own project with RTL. When asked, the largest ProSiebenSat.1 shareholder, MediaForEurope, said they had taken advantage of the strategy update and were looking forward to the dialogue.

According to Habets, the organizational structures should be put to the test in the short term. The manager announced job cuts across the entire group. However, he did not give specific figures. It has already been decided that processes will be streamlined at the ParshipMeet Group. In particular, jobs in the US business of the ParshipMeet Group's video segment are under scrutiny, it said.

Tip instead of double tip

Habets wants to "tighten the organizational structure, reduce redundancies and thus increase efficiency." He has already taken the first concrete measures: Instead of the dual leadership, only Marc Schachtel is running the company. The previous co-boss Geoff Cook is leaving "by mutual consent". CFO Henning Rönneberg will also be responsible for the day-to-day business of the ParshipMeet Group.

In the past, ProSiebenSat.1 had considered going public with the dating portal provider. However, the corona pandemic and the Ukraine war thwarted this plan. An IPO is currently "not a realistic option," he said.

Meanwhile, uncertainty about the timely submission of the group's financial statements remains high. Because the first results of the investigation into regulatory ambiguities at the group's experience broker Jochen Schweizer Mydays can be expected at the end of April at the earliest, it said. As a result, a deadline according to the rules of the German Stock Exchange for the submission of the annual financial statements may not be met, so that there is a risk of being temporarily expelled from the MDax.

Despite the clouded prospects on the advertising market, ProSiebenSat.1 confirmed its medium-term sales growth target of an average of four to five percent per year. Habets also hopes for growth from "cooperation with various industry partners" and acquisitions.

NEXT NEWS