Walt Disney Co. is laying off several hundred employees, including at Pixar Animation Studios and National Geographic, a company spokesperson said Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Pixar is eliminating less than 10% of its staff, and the cuts are concentrated mostly in production and operations, according to a person familiar with the matter who declined to be named.<\/p>\n
At National Geographic, dozens of people have received layoff notices, though many will have an opportunity to move to a different role, according to another person familiar with the matter. Affected positions are across National Geographic\u2019s television section, as well as editorial and digital.<\/p>\n
The Burbank media and entertainment giant began notifying affected employees Tuesday morning.<\/p>\n
In addition to Pixar and National Geographic, certain corporate functions were also affected by the layoffs, as was ESPN, which cut several well-known on-air analysts and reporters<\/a>.<\/p>\n Most of the ESPN layoffs were tied to the recent acquisition of the NFL Network, ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in a memo to staff.<\/p>\n This is Disney\u2019s third round of layoffs and is part of a broader corporate restructuring signaled earlier this year<\/a> by Chief Executive Josh D\u2019Amaro. At the time, he said the company needed to be more agile and technologically-enabled due to the fast pace of the industry.<\/p>\n In January, Disney consolidated its marketing division, followed a few months later by cuts across multiple sectors<\/a>, including its TV and movie studios, ESPN and its product and technology unit.<\/p>\n