{
  "id": 17959041,
  "title": "Virgin Media O2 to cut thousands of jobs in major cost-saving drive",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/03/virgin-media-o2-to-cut-thousands-of-jobs-in-major-cost-saving-drive",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-11-03T11:50:07.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Silicon Republic",
    "slug": "silicon-republic",
    "url": "https://www.siliconrepublic.com/business/virgin-media-o2-to-cut-thousands-of-jobs-in-major-cost-saving-drive"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Virgin Media O2, jointly owned by Liberty Global and Telefónica, is set to cut thousands of jobs as part of a major cost-saving drive. The company is facing a tough economic climate and a shrinking broadband market, and is also grappling with a debt of £22bn. The layoffs, which are expected to be a majority of non-customer facing roles, will reduce labour costs by 30% and save £300m by 2029. Virgin Media O2 has not disclosed the exact number of affected employees, but reports suggest it could be around 25% of its 16,000-strong workforce. The restructuring costs are estimated at £250m, which the company aims to repay within a year. These job cuts are part of a broader strategic overhaul across Virgin Media O2's units, including its fixed and mobile networks. The company expects to save approximately £800m by 2029, with around £400m delivered in 2027. Virgin Media O2 is creating a \"leaner, simpler organization\", concentrating resources and investment on fewer, larger opportunities, and increasing its use of AI tools to support faster decision-making and delivery. The company's CEO, Lutz Schüler, emphasized that these changes are necessary due to the macro-economic climate, intense competition, and shrinking broadband market, as well as rapid technological advancements. Virgin Media O2 plans to halt further fibre upgrades beyond its existing commitments, citing market economics. A Financial Times report suggests the company is close to a deal to use BT's fibre broadband network to host new customers.",
  "summary": "Reasons behind layoffs include a tough macro-economic climate and a shrinking broadband market, Virgin Media O2 said. Read more: Virgin Media O2 to cut thousands of jobs in major cost-saving drive",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 7,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "BBC News",
        "title": "Thousands of jobs at Virgin Media O2 to be cut",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/01/thousands-of-jobs-at-virgin-media-o2-to-be-cut",
        "published": "2026-11-01T16:57:14.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "MyJoyOnline Ghana",
        "title": "Thousands of jobs at Virgin Media O2 to be cut",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/02/thousands-of-jobs-at-virgin-media-o2-to-be-cut",
        "published": "2026-11-02T02:44:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "City AM",
        "title": "Virgin Media O2 job cuts could save £200m but fail to ease debt crisis",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/02/virgin-media-o2-job-cuts-could-save-200m-but-fail-to-ease-debt-crisis",
        "published": "2026-11-02T12:28:25.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "CNA - Business",
        "title": "UK's Virgin Media O2 to slash jobs, halt fibre roll-out",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/03/uks-virgin-media-o2-to-slash-jobs-halt-fibre-roll-out",
        "published": "2026-11-03T07:47:49.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Guardian Business",
        "title": "Virgin Media O2 to cut thousands of jobs as it plans £800m cost savings",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/03/virgin-media-o2-to-cut-thousands-of-jobs-as-it-plans-800m-cost-savings",
        "published": "2026-11-03T08:21:45.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Sky News",
        "title": "Virgin Media O2 to cut thousands of jobs in bid to reduce costs",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/03/virgin-media-o2-to-cut-thousands-of-jobs-in-bid-to-reduce-costs",
        "published": "2026-11-03T11:17:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}