Wattpad, a Toronto-based storytelling platform owned by Naver’s Webtoon Entertainment, recently carried out another round of layoffs.
Around 30 jobs, approximately 15% of its workforce, were cut, according to a source familiar with the situation who spoke with TechCrunch. Local media outlets, including The Korea Economic Daily, reported that the layoff affected about 30 employees. A spokesperson for Wattpad did not respond to a request for comment before publication.
The decision is part of the company’s restructuring plan to reduce costs as its LA-based parent company aims to improve its finances ahead of an initial public offering in the U.S. as early as 2025 , the source indicated. Webtoon Entertainment has three storytelling subsidiaries: Wattpad in Toronto, Naver Webtoon in Seoul, and Line Digital Frontier in Tokyo.
This is the company’s second round of layoffs. Wattpad laid off 42 of its 267 workforce, or 15% of the staff, in March 2023.
Last October, Wattpad launched a new freemium model, “Wattpad Originals,” allowing writers to hide certain chapters behind a paywall and readers to access free content and try before they buy. Most recently, the company began offering “Premium Picks,” which gives Premium and Premium+ subscribers monthly access to five free Wattpad Originals.
In 2021, Naver acquired Wattpad, founded by Allen Lau in 2006, for $600 million to incorporate the storytelling platform into its publishing division.
We will update this piece as we learn more.
