Canada's Quebecor Cuts 500 Newspaper Jobs, Plans Paywalls

HALIFAX, NOVA SCOTIA - Quebec media group Quebecor Inc. said Tuesday it will cut 500 jobs at its Sun Media Corp. newspaper division, and close two printing plants in Ontario.

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The move to slice $45 million in annual costs will include Quebecor following the rival Toronto Star and Globe and Mail newspapers by introducing paywalls at its daily publications to drive revenues in a soft advertising market

"Although our circulation revenue has stabilized due to strategic pricing increases, the advertising sector continues to experience declines through the news and media industry," Quebecor CEO Pierre Karl Peladeau said Tuesday.

The 500 job cuts represents around 10 percent of the Sun Media Corp’s current workforce.

Quebecor last year launched the right-wing Sun New TV network as a 24/7 news channel to leverage content from its traditional newspaper chain.

Quebecor also operates Groupe Videotron, Quebec’s cable giant, and the TVA French language TV network.

News of job cuts and paywalls came as Quebecor on Tuesday reported lower earnings for the third quarter, on increased revenues, especially from its telecommunications division in Quebec.