[donkey687]

The decision is odd for ESPN in that...

The labor costs from the firings really couldn't have been so great. Let's say the average labor costs of the 100 being laid odd was $120,000. That's $12 million. But the network's subscriber fees fell, i believe, by 62 million last quarter or year or whatever. The point is the salaries pale in comparison to the drops in revenue and the rights fees. They cannot cut their way to success.

Disney is a public company and in every analyst call, ESPN's decline gets the most attention.  Investors are concerned and management has to do something so even if it is a drop in the bucket, it is something they need to do so they can say they are taking action.

[donkey687]

The decision is odd for ESPN in that...

The labor costs from the firings really couldn't have been so great. Let's say the average labor costs of the 100 being laid odd was $120,000. That's $12 million. But the network's subscriber fees fell, i believe, by 62 million last quarter or year or whatever. The point is the salaries pale in comparison to the drops in revenue and the rights fees. They cannot cut their way to success.

Disney is a public company and in every analyst call, ESPN's decline gets the most attention.  Investors are concerned and management has to do something so even if it is a drop in the bucket, it is something they need to do so they can say they are taking action.