RSSRealNetworks lets 130 go
By Angela Gunn | Published December 5, 2008, 8:20 PM
As a company exec noted in a blog post this week, RealNetworks is on track for record revenue this year. In the same post, the company announced it's laying off around 130 employees, or 7.5% of staff.
Bill Hankes, VP of corporate communications for Real, said that the cuts "are part of a budgeting process that is intended to bring expenses in line with current and prospective economic realities." A memo sent internally to staff indicated that the cuts would be divided among the Seattle headquarters, other US locations, and worldwide operations, roughly in proportion to the employees at each of those three locations.
All divisions of the company are believed to be affected, as are between two and three dozen contractors and consultants.
In the memo sent internally, CEO and chairman Rob Glaser said that not all of the cuts are related to the economy; some were a natural result of the consolidation of acquisitions made over the past year or so. Recent Real acquisitions include WiderThan, Sony NetServices GmbH, Exomi Oy, and Trymedia.
RealNetworks' stock closed up for the week on the NASDAQ exchange, at $3.78. Its most recent quarterly report indicated a Q3 GAAP loss of $4.5 million, or 3 cents/share. In the Q3 earnings call, Glaser noted that Real has $400 million in the bank and no debt, and that the low cost of Real's consumer offerings meant that sales of music, games and such were likely to be more resilient in the current economy that sales of bigger-ticket items.
The holiday party at the company's Seattle headquarters has also been canceled.
I didn't know they even had 130 employees, much less 1730! I thought it was one guy writing crappy software in an old warehouse.
Ooo... SNAP!
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|It's healthy for a company to occasionally downsize 10% of its workforce (in this case, 7.5%). Real will probably be hiring throughout 2009, and cutting lower-performing employees will make room for higher-caliber candidates more deserving of their jobs.
When you see a company announce a small layoff, then that's good news. It means the company's management is being responsible to its shareholders.
This may be seen as harsh and unkind, but the world does not owe anybody a living, and Real does seem to be acting humanely. Other companies will have a security guard stand in your office while you watch them pack your things in a box, and then escort you out the door.
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|I hope RealNetworks close down. They are not that different from spyware companies.
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|Awwwww. The adware infested Real player and their proprietary formats suck a fat ass.
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|Does RealNetworks have a heart?
It's on track for record revenue this year, yet laying off 130 when they have the least chance to find a new job?!
Since they have the money, they should hire talents on the cheap!
That's it! No more RealNetworks products for me.
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|No "company" has a heart. Companiess have shareholders that expect return for their investment. Real probably expects revenue to drop dramatically or this econ crisis to hit them hard.
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|It's more like lemming action 'everyone else is cutting, so I should cut too'.
Everyone is hitting hard by this crisis. Clearly, the company lacks real leadership and longterm vision.
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|That's what all the businesses are doing. Those companies who try to retain all their staff and continue operating like nothing is happening are the ones who end up folding. You can try to be "one against the crowd, the unique one" but you will fail.
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|Many American companies practice that; not just RealNetworks.
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|Geeze, an actual common sense comment among all this drooling - I'm shocked.
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