Maker Studios To Lay Off About 10% Of Its Employees

Maker Studios is trimming its staff. The multi-channel network, fresh off its $500 million acquisition by Disney, will lay off about 10% of its 380 employees.

The job cuts, which were first reported by Variety, will be completed as early as this week and will be spread across all of the company’s divisions. It is the second time in as many years that Maker has chosen to lay off a significant number of its employees. In May 2013, it cut  between 30 and 40 jobs, citing an “evolving” business. A Maker statement has provided a similar rationale for the fresh round of layoffs:

“Maker’s business is constantly evolving, and we routinely reassess our internal resources and make strategic adjustments, reducing staff in some areas while actively hiring in others.”

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Maker’s layoffs come ten weeks after the company announced its sale to Disney. The price tag for that transaction could rise as high as $950 million if certain performance standards are met. The deal has also set off a wave of interest in other MCNs; in particular, several companies have eyed Fullscreen

and some have reportedly offered similar-sized deals to the one Maker received.

Maker Studios ranked fourth among all YouTube networks in the latest Comscore US Online Video Rankings. Given its status as one of the preeminent MCNs in the online video industry, Maker still seems fairly healthy as a company despite its recent round of restructuring.