US based Vice Media to lay off several hundreds, to stop website publishing

Vice media has decided to put a stop to publishing content on its website and lay off "several hundred" people from its staff of over 900 employees over the next week, reported Associated Press.

Layoffs by Vice Media

Vice Media's CEO Bruce Dixon in a memo said that it was no longer cost-effective for Vice to distribute digital content, including news, and that now the company would lay more emphasis on the other channels of distribution.

"With this strategic shift comes the need to realign our resources and streamline our overall operations at Vice," Bruce Dixon, chief executive of Vice Media Group, told employees in a memo, copies of which were posted online by several Vice reporters.

"Regrettably, this means that we will be reducing our workforce, eliminating several hundred positions", he added.

Employees affected by the layoffs will be notified early next week.

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Millennial-focused and known for its edgy news and lifestyle content, Vice had been among the rising stars of a new breed of digital media firms but struggled as advertising revenues shrank.

This also signals to the financial problems plaguing the media industry in the US. lmost all big legacy media brands like The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Vox Media and The Los Angeles Times have announced job cuts. Meanwhile digital platforms like Messenger, BuzzFeed News and Jezebel have shut down in the US.

Vice Media's Future plans

CEO Dixon also added that the company will partner with established media companies to distribute their digital content.

"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," said Dixon.

Vice media was valued at a stunning $5.7 billion six years ago, but ended up filing for bankruptcy last May. The next month a group of creditors led by Fortress Investment Group picked up the company for a relative song, at $350 million.

Many digital media startups have been unable to convert enthusiasm for their brand into the kinds of revenues that investors had projected. A slowdown in the online advertising market and tightening of credit conditions last year made the situation increasingly challenging for relatively young media companies like Vice