Weighed down by $10.8 billion in debt and shrinking ad revs, Hispanic media giant Univision has pinkslipped 300 employees, roughly 6% of its workforce.
“While it is extremely difficult to lose valued employees, we are confident that the steps we are taking will make us more efficient in the short term and better positioned for growth in the long term,” a rep said.
Layoffs, implemented Friday, come in the wake of January’s court settlement with Univision’s longtime programming supplier, Mexican conglom Televisa.
The two companies were locked in a protracted battle over royalty payments, among other issues. Univision agreed to pay Televisa $25 million in cash for royalties, but since $21.5 million had been previously paid under protest, only the balance of $3.5 million was due.
In recent months, Univision, which commands close to 80% of the U.S. Spanish-language TV audience, has been quietly trimming its top-heavy executive ranks. Most recently, chief marketing officer Maryam Banikarim ankled and has not been replaced.
A consortium of equity investors, led by Haim Saban, acquired the company for $13.7 billion in 2006 and leveraged it with debt of nearly $11 billion. Other investors in the group include Madison Dearborn Partners, Providence Equity Partners, Texas Pacific Group and Thomas H. Lee Partners.
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