Sky to cut 1,000 jobs

Pay TV operator Sky is looking to cut about 1,000 jobs in the UK this year as customers more away from satellite reception to digital streaming distribution of the company’s services.

According to multiple reports, Sky will talk to staff who could be affected by the job cuts, which will represent about 4% of the company’s UK workforce.

Installation engineers and staff involved in traditional distribution of the company’s services are likely to be affected.

Sky has progressively moved away from satellite through the launch of products such as Sky Stream, its streaming device, and Sky Glass, its integrated smart TV, as well as via the Now TV OTT offering.

The latest round of job losses at Sky comes hard on the heels of news that terrestrial public broadcaster Channel 4 plans to make cut its headcount by about 18%.

Channel 4’s strategy, dubbed Fast Forward, will focus on the shift to streaming and digital growth, with a reduction in operational costs as it closes a number of linear channels.