France’s top-selling newspaper to cut jobs

RENNES

Ouest-France has seen losses mount as daily print circulation fell to around 600,000 last year (AFP Photo)

France’s biggest-selling newspaper, the regional daily Ouest-France, will cut 156 jobs according to union sources, joining the ranks of press groups being hammered by falling sales and ad revenue.

Many local papers had fared better than national French dailies in resisting the industry-wide erosion of print editions, which command more lucrative advertising rates, as readers migrated to online editions.

But Ouest-France, which covers a swath of western France including Brittany, Normandy and the Pays de la Loire, has seen circulation drop by 5 or 6 percent annually in recent years, to a daily average of around 600,000 last year.

It had announced a costcutting plan to stanch mounting losses and had expected to cut 10 percent of its reported 1,500-strong headcount, but so far the plan had not led to job cuts for journalists.

The new plan will include 116 job cuts in the newsroom, union sources told AFP.

The paper aims to return to profit in 2028, after posting a loss of nearly 9 million euros ($10 million) last year.