[RT] Verizon is expected to lay off around 2,100 workers after concluding its acquisition of Yahoo. The cuts will come from duplicate jobs in its AOL unit which will be combined with Yahoo to form a new company called Oath.Verizon is expected to cut more than 2,000 jobs as a result of its $4.48 billion acquisition of Yahoo, according to reports from Rooters and TechCrunch on Thursday. A day earlier, Recode reported that sources said only up to 1,000 jobs would be lost.
Verizon will combine its Yahoo unit with its AOL unit, which it acquired in 2015 for $4.4 billion. The new company will be rebranded as Oath and will be led by AOL Chief Executive Officer Tim Armstrong, according to Rooters.
"Oath’s strategy is to lead the global brand space. With access to over 1 billion consumers upon close, we will be positioned to drive one of the most important platforms in the consumer brand space. Consistent with what we have said since the deal was announced, we will be aligning our global organization to the strategy," an AOL spokesperson told TechCrunch.
Verizon is expected to downsize staff at their AOL and Yahoo units by around 15 percent once the merger is finalized. Around 14,000 employees currently work at the two units, according to Rooters.
The merger between the two companies is expected to create redundancies in several departments, such as human resources, finance, marketing and general administration, according to Recode.