Yahoo Originals Department Shuttered
Cast members of Yahoo's cancelled original "Community." Photo by Flickr/Gage SkidmoreYahoo’s original programming division was laid off on Wednesday, including its head Ian Moffitt. The move, which happened during company-wide layoffs, is perhaps the final nail in the coffin for Yahoo’s original video ambitions. The company confirmed Mr. Moffitt’s departure but declined to elaborate.
Mr. Moffitt, who was formerly an executive at Machinima and Berman Braun, joined the company in mid-2014. Under his oversight, Yahoo produced several full-length TV shows including “Other Space” and the resurrected sitcom “Community.” Four other staffers were in the team, said a person familiar with the situation.
But Yahoo’s efforts failed to get much traction. Last fall, the company took a $42 million writedown on some of its original programs. In September the executive who oversaw all Yahoo’s media efforts, Kathy Savitt, left for movie studio STX. Earlier this year Yahoo shuttered its video streaming platform Yahoo Screen.
Tom Dotan joined the Information in 2014 covering the media, advertising and streaming video businesses. He is based in San Francisco and can be found on Twitter at @cityofthetown.