TVA Group (Quebec) lays off over 500 employees
MONTREAL — The TVA Group says it is laying off 547 employees — nearly a third of its workforce — amid restructuring as the company contends with declining audiences and ad revenues.
The Montreal-based broadcaster says the shift involves overhauling its news division, ending its in-house entertainment content production and optimizing its real estate assets — including a reconsideration of the future use of its headquarters east of downtown.
Pierre Karl Péladeau, CEO of Quebecor Inc., which owns TVA, said in a press release that the subsidiary’s deficit is no longer sustainable.
The company aims to refocus its activities, reduce operating costs and continue to offer original Quebec content, Péladeau said.
The company attributed its financial strain to the proliferation of streaming services and the shift of advertising spending to web giants rather than legacy media.
“For over 10 years, TVA Group has been telling government bodies and regulators that the situation is urgent. Canada’s private media companies must be able to operate in a modernized ecosystem that can adapt to a borderless digital world,” said Péladeau.
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