AMC Networks says that it expects to have restructuring charges of between $350 million and $475 million, “in light of ‘cord cutting’ and the related impacts being felt across the media industry as well as the broader economic outlook.”
Those charges include the company-wide layoffs announced earlier this week, as well as hundreds of millions of dollars in write-downs related to TV programming.
The company disclosed the writedowns in a securities filing Thursday.
The topline figure includes organizational and severance costs of between $50 million and $75 million, reflecting layoffs at the company. And it will also include “strategic programming assessments leading to content charges of approximately $300 million to $400 million.”
It was not immediately clear which titles are impacted by the write-down, but AMC says that “the programming assessments pertain to a broad mix of owned and licensed content, including legacy television series and films that will no longer be in active rotation on the Company’s linear or digital platforms.”
“The Company may realize some future licensing and other revenue associated with some of the owned titles,” it added.
The company adds that the restructuring plan is ongoing and may lead to “further strategic assessments of programming that could result in additional charges,” but that the “restructuring initiatives under the Plan are expected to be substantially completed by the end of 2023.”
AMC Networks has had a difficult week, with CEO Christina Spade stepping down after less than three months on the job, and chairman Jim Dolan warning employees in a note that “large-scale layoffs” were coming. “We are primarily a content company and the mechanisms for the monetization of content are in disarray,” Dolan wrote.