MUMBAI: According to data released recently, layoffs in entertainment jobs seems to have slowed down significantly.

In July, just 125 layoffs at media companies were announced compared to 708 in June. This shows that July has recorded the lowest number of layoffs so far this year, according to the data.

It may be noted that in the past six years, the media sector recorded lower number of job losses in March 2005 when 111 layoffs were announced. There was as much as 2,853 layoffs in July 2009 and 2,168 layoffs in July 2008.

The data Challenger, Gray & Christmas breaks down the US economy into 25 sectors among which ‘media‘ lost the fourth fewest jobs last month.
 
The company lists "entertainment/leisure" as a separate category that includes theme parks, movie theaters, hotels and casinos. Those industries laid off 680 people in July.

Also related to media and entertainment is the "telecommunications" category, which includes the cable and satellite TV companies. That category lost 1,199 jobs in July.

Disney, which shut down its Zemeckis Studio and laid off 450 workers, got rid of 400 jobs at ABC News and closed most of its ESPN Zone restaurants, causing another 294 layoffs.
Sony Pictures, which laid off 450 people in a restructuring.

Time Warner Cable, which laid off 350 in a restructuring.

Netflix, which cut 160 jobs in a consolidation.
Cinram, which cut 482 jobs in cust-cutting measures.
All 25 categories combined lost 41,676 jobs in July, bringing the total to 339,353 so far this year, 64% fewer jobs lost than in the same seven months last year. California is No. 1 in jobs lost, with 55,122 so far this year, and New York, at 52,481, is second worst.

Combining the categories of media, entertainment/leisure and telecommunications, 2001 was the worst year this decade, when 317,777 jobs were lost. Last year, a comparatively small 44,068 jobs were lost in those three categories combined and so far this year just 17,204 jobs were shed.