AX DROPS ON JOBS AT NBC; SPENDING ON `ER,' STARS HURTS PROFITS.Byline: Dave McNary Daily News Staff Writer A long-feared job-cutting ax fell Thursday at NBC NBC in full National Broadcasting Co. Major U.S. commercial broadcasting company. It was formed in 1926 by RCA Corp., General Electric Co. (GE), and Westinghouse and was the first U.S. company to operate a broadcast network. as the network announced plans to eliminate as many as 300 jobs, or nearly 5 percent of its 6,500 employees. Officials at NBC, the most watched television network, blamed soaring costs. ``Increased competition for programming and talent has increased our costs on the network side significantly,'' said NBC President Robert Wright Robert Wright is the name of:
NBC, which has seen its overall viewership slip as cable television gained popularity, said all divisions will be affected, but entertainment and news programming departments will see less severe cuts. Spokeswoman Cassie Kantor said no figures were available for NBC's operations in Burbank, where about 900 employees work at the West Coast headquarters and KNBC-TV. ``The reality is that the media landscape is changing,'' said Kantor. Analysts believe that NBC's rising costs, notably its deal to pay $13 million per episode of ``ER,'' and flat ad revenues will slice operating profits this year to a range between $300 million and $350 million range from last year's estimated $500 million. Its schedule no longer includes ``Seinfeld'' or pro football, and it is paying hefty salaries to ``Mad About You'' stars Helen Hunt Helen Elizabeth Hunt (born June 15, 1963) is an Emmy-, Golden Globe- and Academy Award-winning American actress, perhaps most widely known for her role in the television sitcom Mad About You. and Paul Reiser Paul Reiser (born March 30, 1957) is an American actor, author and stand-up comedian, best known for his role in Mad About You. Biography Born to a Jewish-American family, Reiser attended the East Side Hebrew Institute on the Lower East Side of Manhattan and , and newscasters Tom Brokaw Thomas John Brokaw (born February 6, 1940 in Webster, South Dakota) is a popular American television journalist, Previously working on regularly scheduled news documentaries for the NBC television network, and is the former NBC News anchorman and managing editor of the program , Katie Couric, Geraldo Rivera and Jane Pauley. Barry Hyman of Ehrenkrantz King Nussbaum noted NBC is following the lead of CBS (Cell Broadcast Service) See cell broadcast. , which has announced plans to cut as many as 300 jobs, and Walt Disney Co.'s ABC ABC in full American Broadcasting Co. Major U.S. television network. It began when the expanding national radio network NBC split into the separate Red and Blue networks in 1928. , which has cut its development budget. Hyman said tougher times likely lie ahead for NBC, since parent General Electric has strict profit targets. ``The cuts at NBC have been a long time coming, but they're also only the beginning,'' said Hyman. ``Their costs are out of control. The traditional business model no longer works as it once did, so NBC is going to have to take more dramatic steps, like cost-sharing with affiliates.'' |
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