Amazon’s audiobook and podcast subsidiary, Audible, is making some changes to its workforce. Approximately 5% of employees will be facing layoffs. Audible CEO Bob Carrigan has attributed these changes to a challenging market environment and the need for increased efficiency.
However, these layoffs are not exclusive to Audible alone. Amazon, the retail, tech, and entertainment giant, announced larger restructuring efforts in late 2022, resulting in around 27,000 job losses so far. In January, significant layoffs were also announced by Amazon’s Twitch, Prime Video, and MGM Studios teams.
According to an unnamed source in Business Insider, there are expectations that management will adopt Amazon’s “unregretted attrition rate” policy, which could involve performance-based cuts.
This news comes at a time when Audible faces increasing competition in the audiobook space from Spotify. Spotify now offers an audiobook allotment to its premium subscribers, posing a considerable threat to Audible’s market share.
In a message to employees, Carrigan acknowledged Audible’s current strong position but emphasized the importance of becoming “leaner and more efficient.” He assured the affected employees that the company would support them during their transition to new opportunities. Carrigan also emphasized that these measures were necessary to strengthen the business for long-term sustainability.