Teuton layoffs begin at MTV

Kirch next in cutbacks

LONDON -- Pinkslip fever is slowly but surely making its way to Germany. Following major layoffs internationally, MTV's German outpost said Monday it was laying off 25 employees and closing its Frankfurt sales office.

Meanwhile, reports suggest that German media giant the Kirch Group intends to cut up to 1,000 of its 7,000-strong workforce. An IPO is just around the corner and the company is merging its free TV arm, ProSiebenSat 1 Media, with its core holding, KirchMedia. Its major rival, Bertelsmann, is also streamlining for an eventual IPO.

MTV faces competish

MTV Deutschland honcho Catherine Muhlemann said tough competition and moves to streamline operations are the reasons for its cuts. As part of restructuring, MTV Deutschland is centralizing operations; infrastructure is set to be moved from London to Germany.

The news comes as rival channel Viva unveiled plans to relaunch its second music web, Viva 2, as Viva Plus next year in cooperation with shareholder AOL Time Warner. Company's Dominik Kaiser was recently named managing director.

The German media sector has yet to witness the major layoffs caused by the economic slump elsewhere. Majority of the recent cuts have come in reaction to the falling Neuer Markt, with companies like Kinowelt and EM.TV scaling back as their fortunes fell.

Like elsewhere, advertising has slumped in Germany, with the ProSiebenSat 1 Media, one of two leading channel groups, reporting revenues down 4.5% in the first nine months.