New name, new layoffs: Verizon Media Group eliminating 7% of staff

It was only a few weeks ago that we were telling you about the end of Oath — the Verizon-owned media conglomerate — and the beginning of the aptly-named Verizon Media Group. Now here we are, announcing that the newly-renamed company is laying off about 800 employees, or about seven percent of its staff.

The source of this information is an anonymous person who shared an email with CNBC. The internal memo was sent to employees by VMG CEO Guru Gowrappan.

In the email, Gowrappan says that “these were difficult decisions” but “now is the time to go on the offensive, go deep on our big priorities, and do everything we can to advance the business.”

Verizon didn’t confirm or deny the report when questioned by CNBC. “Our goal is to create the best experiences for our consumers and the best platforms for our customers,” a Verizon spokesperson said. “Today marks a strategic step toward better execution of our plans for growth and innovation into the future.”

Oath combined properties from Verizon-acquired AOL and Yahoo and Verizon Media Group is essentially the same albeit with a new moniker. Some of the more prominent properties under the VMG banner are Tumblr, HuffPost, and the still-around Yahoo.

You can read the full memo to employees from Gowrappan by clicking here.

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