Pop TV Undergoes Layoffs Following Move To ViacomCBS Entertainment & Youth Brands Group

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As Deadline reported yesterday, ViacomCBS is currently going through its second round of layoffs following the CBS-Viacom merger in early December.

There are significant staff reductions at Pop TV, which was part of CBS Corp. and was recently folded into the ViacomCBS Entertainment & Youth Brands Group, run by Chris McCarthy. The layoffs are result of the integration.

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Pop President Brad Schwartz just sent out an internal memo addressing the cuts. Stressing that he will continue to run Pop going forward, he noted that “we are saying goodbye to some close friends and talented colleagues.” Along with Schwartz, other members of his senior team are also staying on, sources said.

Pop is heading into the series finale of its flagship series Schitt’s Creek on April 7 and the network debut of One Day At A Time.

This is the second round of layoffs at ViacomCBS; the first payroll cut was implemented shortly after the Viacom-CBS merger was completed in early December. More pink slips are expected in the coming weeks for an estimated combined headcount reduction of about 100 over the February-March period.

The latest layoffs come on the heels of ViacomCBS’ first post-merger earnings report. It saw the combined company swing to 4Q loss, which was attributed to merger-related expenses and various operating items.

Here is Schwartz’s memo:

Hi everyone,

Before joining ViacomCBS, we operated as a standalone company and we were therefore staffed accordingly. As we integrate Pop into the larger ViacomCBS Entertainment & Youth Group, filled with some of the most powerful brands in the industry, a lot of the work is being centralized across the portfolio to truly unleash our collective strengths and maximize the power of our content.

To that end, Pop will continue to be an important part of the business but, unfortunately, we are saying goodbye to some close friends and talented colleagues.

We have built something very special that you should all be immensely proud of. We did the impossible. In less than five years, we went from being a TV Guide Network with a listing scroll still on 30% of our screens, to an Emmy-nominated network with a million+ viewer hit, a breakthrough brand, and two of the most critically praised and culturally-significant shows on television.

Moving forward, I’ll continue to run Pop and work alongside Chris as part of the Entertainment & Youth senior leadership team across the brands.

I thank you dearly for the heart and soul you have brought to everything we do.

With sincere thanks, respect and appreciation,

Brad

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