Vice Media Group will stop publishing on its website and is planning to lay off hundreds of employees next week, the company's CEO Bruce Dixon has announced in a memo. He blamed cost-effectiveness as a major reason behind this drastic move by the American-Canadian digital media house.
"We create and produce outstanding original content true to the Vice brand. However, it is no longer cost-effective for us to distribute our digital content the way we have done previously," he said.
He revealed that the company is transitioning to a "studio model" and as a part of this change, no content will be published on vice.com. "Moving forward, we will look to partner with established media companies to distribute our digital content, including news, on their global platforms, as we fully transition to a studio model," he added.
“As part of this shift, we will no longer publish content on vice.com, instead putting more emphasis on our social channels as we accelerate our discussions with partners to take our content to where it will be viewed most broadly,” he continued.
Talking about Refinery29, another media brand owned by Vice Media, Dixon revealed it will "operate as a standalone diversified digital publishing business, creating engaging, social-first content."
He said the company heads "are in advanced discussions to sell this business, and we are continuing with that process."
On reducing the workforce, Dixon said the "decision was not made lightly".
"With this strategic shift (transition to studio model) comes the need to realign our resources and streamline our overall operations at Vice. Regrettably, this means that we will be reducing our workforce, eliminating several hundred positions. This decision was not made lightly, and I understand the significant impact it will have on those affected," he added.
Dixon said the staff, who will be laid off, will be informed beforehand: "Employees who will be affected will be notified about the next steps early next week, consistent with local laws and practices."
It must be noted the news about the layoff comes less than a year after the company was rescued from bankruptcy. Last May, Vice Media Group was on the verge of filing for bankruptcy, and in a bid to avoid the declaration, it was looking for a buyer for the company.
