Spotify has announced that it will be laying off 200 employees from its podcast division as part of a “strategic realignment” operation, following after the company axed 6% of its headcount to reduce costs earlier in the year.
The layoffs will see a further 2% of the company’s staff removed from their roles, with Bloomberg reporting that the shakeup will also be accompanied by “an executive shuffle.”
Spotify has spent heavily to expand its podcast unit in the last three years.
Sahar Elhabashi, vice president, head of Spotify’s podcast business, said in a statement that there are now 100 million podcast listeners on Spotify, representing 10% growth, and that consumption has grown more than 1,400%. However, as part of a “strategic realignment,” the company will shrink its workforce again for the second time this year.
The cuts were announced by Elhabashi on Monday. It is understood that those impacted will be provided with “generous severance packages.”
