In a new SEC filing, Roku stated that it intends to reduce 200 jobs in the United States as it braces for economic headwinds. The business expects to incur a non-recurring charge of $28 to $31 million as a result of the staff reduction, mostly due to severance payments, employee benefits contributions, other related expenses, and notice pay “where applicable,” according to Roku.
According to the corporation, the majority of the restructuring expenditures will be incurred in Q4 2022, and the job cutbacks, including cash payments, would be “largely complete” by the end of the first quarter of 2023.
Roku shares fell roughly 3% in pre-market trade.
“Due to the current economic conditions in our industry, we have made the difficult decision to reduce Roku’s headcount expenses by a projected 5%, to slow down our [Operating Expenses] growth rate. This will affect approximately 200 employee positions in the U.S. Taking these actions now will allow us to focus our investments on key strategic priorities to drive future growth and enhance our leadership position,” Roku said in an official statement.
The disappointing news follows Roku’s third-quarter results, in which the company warned investors that it expects an unsatisfactory fourth quarter, with total net revenue projected to be $800 million, a 7.5% decrease year over year.
Many tech and media businesses, including Warner Bros. Discovery, Disney, Paramount Global, Amazon, Snap, Spotify, Twitter, and Meta, have lately laid off employees. Amazon was the most recent corporation to announce significant layoffs yesterday. Meta lay off 13% of its workforce last week, affecting 11,000 people.
