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http://www.theage.com.au/business/fairfax-to-shed-1900-staff-erect-paywalls-20120618-20ix1.html
Fairfax to shed 1900 staff, erect paywalls
Chris Zappone
June 18, 2012 - 9:59AM
Fairfax Media will cut 1900 staff and erect paywalls on the websites of its two main metropolitan newspapers as it adjusts to shrinking advertising revenue.
Fairfax sells part of Trade Me
Fairfax, publisher of this website, will also shift to compact-sized versions for those two newspapers, The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, from the first quarter of 2013.
The job cuts will come over three years and generate annual savings of $170 million by 2015, Greg Hywood, Fairfax's chief executive officer, told staff in an announcement this morning.
Some 20 per cent on the job cuts will be in editorial, Mr Hywood said, without elaborating.
"The period ahead will be difficult as we move through the redundancies," Mr Hywood said.
The moves, part of a broader restructure occurring in the media sector, will also entail the closure of the printing facilities in Chullora, NSW and Tullamarine, Victoria by June 2014.
Shares in the Fairfax has dropped 87 per cent over the past five years, as traditional business models in media have been hit by a shift of advertising to online formats.
'Legacy' media
Fairfax said that both the SMH.com.au and theAge.com.au websites were launched when "almost all" of the metro media departments content was delivered through printed newspapers.
"They have legacy presses with significant surplus capacity which is no longer required," Mr Hywood said.
"The changes announced today have been selected after considering the merits of a full range of structural alternatives, including a demerger," said Mr Hywood. "The package of strategic initiatives is bold, and several are difficult, particularly as they will impact on some of our people."
"However, we believe that they are in the best interest of Fairfax, our shareholders, and ultimately the majority of our people," he said.
"They are necessary to ensure Fairfax retains its position as a leading independent media company and a key voice in our markets," said Mr Hywood.
More soon
Fairfax to shed 1900 staff, erect paywalls
Chris Zappone
June 18, 2012 - 9:59AM
Fairfax Media will cut 1900 staff and erect paywalls on the websites of its two main metropolitan newspapers as it adjusts to shrinking advertising revenue.
Fairfax sells part of Trade Me
Fairfax, publisher of this website, will also shift to compact-sized versions for those two newspapers, The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, from the first quarter of 2013.
The job cuts will come over three years and generate annual savings of $170 million by 2015, Greg Hywood, Fairfax's chief executive officer, told staff in an announcement this morning.
Some 20 per cent on the job cuts will be in editorial, Mr Hywood said, without elaborating.
"The period ahead will be difficult as we move through the redundancies," Mr Hywood said.
The moves, part of a broader restructure occurring in the media sector, will also entail the closure of the printing facilities in Chullora, NSW and Tullamarine, Victoria by June 2014.
Shares in the Fairfax has dropped 87 per cent over the past five years, as traditional business models in media have been hit by a shift of advertising to online formats.
'Legacy' media
Fairfax said that both the SMH.com.au and theAge.com.au websites were launched when "almost all" of the metro media departments content was delivered through printed newspapers.
"They have legacy presses with significant surplus capacity which is no longer required," Mr Hywood said.
"The changes announced today have been selected after considering the merits of a full range of structural alternatives, including a demerger," said Mr Hywood. "The package of strategic initiatives is bold, and several are difficult, particularly as they will impact on some of our people."
"However, we believe that they are in the best interest of Fairfax, our shareholders, and ultimately the majority of our people," he said.
"They are necessary to ensure Fairfax retains its position as a leading independent media company and a key voice in our markets," said Mr Hywood.
More soon