• January 24, 2001

AOL Time Warner will lay off more than 2,000 workers in an effort to consolidate operations, it was announced yesterday. The affected divisions of the newly merged company will be its America Online Internet operation, Time Inc. magazines, the New Line Cinema film studio and the Warner Music Group, as well as at the company's headquarters. The cuts come after the company announced that 400 jobs would be eliminated at its cable news network, CNN.

Employees at Chicago-based interactive agency marchFIRST heard similar news, as the company laid off 550 staffers Tuesday. The company said the move was necessary because neither its November layoffs of 1,000 workers nor its recent cash infusion of $150 million in private funding have succeeded in turning marchFIRST's financial situation around. Also cutting back is ISP Excite@Home, which yesterday announced layoffs of about 250 workers, or 8% of its work force.

- AdWeek IQ