Netflix, headquartered in Los Gatos, is preparing to cut about 5% of its workforce, according to a report first published Friday by the news outlet Puck and confirmed by separate sources to the Los Angeles Times. An announcement could come as early as next week, Reuters reported, citing Puck.
Netflix declined to comment to both Reuters and the Times, and the company had not announced any cuts as of Friday.
How many jobs
Netflix had about 16,000 full-time employees at the end of last year, Reuters noted. One source told the Times the cuts could reach about 800 people and would include the creative team, among them staff working on feature films. It would be the company's largest round of layoffs since 2022, when Netflix cut 150 workers in May and about 300 more, roughly 3% of staff, in June after losing subscribers for the first time in more than a decade.
The reports did not say how many of the affected jobs are in the Bay Area. Netflix also has large operations in Los Angeles and overseas.
Why now
Investors have been watching how much time people spend on the service. Viewing hours rose only about 2% in the first half of 2026 from a year earlier even as content spending climbed, the Times reported. Co-CEO Ted Sarandos said at a Bloomberg event last week that the company is "not growing as fast as I want us to."
Competition is part of the picture. YouTube held 14.2% of U.S. TV streaming time in July versus 7.8% for Netflix, according to Nielsen figures cited by the Times. Netflix shares closed Friday at $70.30, down about 2% on the day and 43% from a year ago.
Netflix has been expanding into advertising, live events and games, though it has also trimmed its games business, closing its Night School studio in August and moving to shut its Moonloot studio in Helsinki.