CNN + customers “will receive a proportional refund of subscription fees,” the company said.
The decision was made by the new management after CNN’s former parent company, WarnerMedia, merged with Discovery to create Warner Bros. Discovery earlier this month.
The vision of the previous management team for CNN + contradicts the plan of the CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery David Zaslav to host all brands of the company in one streaming service. Some CNN + programs may end up living through this service. Other programs will shift to CNN’s core television network.
“In a complex market for streaming, consumers want simplicity and a comprehensive service that provides a better experience and greater value than stand-alone offerings, and for the company – a more sustainable business model to stimulate our future investment in great journalism and storytelling. stories, “said Discovery chief JB Perrette in a statement.
“We have a lot of exciting opportunities ahead of us in the streaming space, and CNN, one of the world’s leading reputable assets, will play an important role there,” Peret added.
Peret and CNN’s new CEO Chris Licht informed officials of the decision at a meeting Thursday afternoon. Licht told staff directly that this was a “uniquely nasty situation.”
Hundreds of CNN + employees could lose their jobs. Licht said in an inside note that “all CNN + employees will continue to receive pay and benefits for the next 90 days to explore opportunities at CNN, CNN Digital and elsewhere in the Warner Bros. family. Discovery.
Employees not employed elsewhere in the company will receive a minimum of six months’ compensation, he added.
Licht said at a town hall-style meeting with employees that “it was an incredibly successful start-up”, but simply incompatible with the merged company’s plans.
“It’s not your fault you took the carpet out,” he said, swearing to minimize the impact on staff.
An employee of CNN + in the town hall described the mood as “complete and complete shock”, which turned into despair.
“Initially, people were really crazy,” said the man, who requested anonymity to describe the situation candidly. “And then, towards the end of the match, it just turned into sadness. Each team just huddled with each other.”
During City Hall, Perrette expressed some disappointment with CNN’s “previous leadership,” which was led by Jeff Zucker until February, and WarnerMedia, which was led by Jason Killar until early April.
“Some of this could have been avoided,” he said, but “the previous leadership decided to just continue” with the planned launch of CNN + in March, despite the upcoming merger, he said.
The streaming service launched just two weeks before the merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery ended, much to the disappointment of Discovery’s management, which had a different strategy but could not legally communicate with CNN executives before the deal was formal.
Warner Bros. Discovery has billions in debt, much of it as a result of a merger deal, and executives are under pressure to find the $ 3 billion savings Wall Street expects from them.
Andrew Morse, executive vice president in charge of CNN + and all of CNN’s digital businesses, who works closely with Killar and Zucker, will leave the company after a transition period.
In a note to employees, Morse described his nine years at CNN as an “incredible journey” and said: “As the company enters an exciting period of change, it is clear that the vision the new management has for the future is different from what we had. This is good. It’s all part of the change. “
Licht told the town hall that he wanted Morse to stay, but he respected the decision.
Alex McCallum, product manager and general manager of CNN +, will manage CNN Digital and work with Licht “to set a leadership strategy for the future,” the company said in a statement.
On Thursday afternoon, CNN + staff, located on the 16th floor of the Hudson Yards, the network’s headquarters in New York, poured whiskey and wine for sympathy.
The decision to close CNN + just weeks after its launch marks a stunning end to the news streaming service. Executives touted the app as the most significant launch since Ted Turner founded CNN in 1980.
CNN had poured hundreds of millions of dollars into the new streaming app and attracted top talent from other networks for it, including NBC’s Casey Hunt and Fox News’ Chris Wallace.
The streaming service includes hours of daily live programming and weekly broadcasts.
This programming will continue to air until the end of the month.
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