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Viz Media Restructures with Some Employee Layoffs
posted on by Egan Loo
The North American manga and anime publisher Viz Media is undergoing a restructuring that resulted in layoffs for a number of employees on Friday. CEO Hidemi Fukuhara gave ANN the following statement:
Viz Media is in the process of refining its focus and is restructuring to adjust to changing industry and financial market realities. VIZ feels confident that with these changes, the company will be more streamlined to face the current economic climate.
Viz Media is the publisher of Shonen Jump, Naruto, Pokémon, Dragon Ball, Vampire Knight, Bleach, Death Note, Rosario + Vampire, Gintama, NANA, Fullmetal Alchemist, One Piece, Ouran High School Host Club, and other popular manga and anime properties. Other companies in the North American manga industry such as Tokyopop have already laid off employees in the past year. A.D. Vision downsized its ADV Manga division in 2005, while Broccoli shut down its Broccoli International USA subsidiary in December.
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