Adobe cuts more jobs

The job cuts will be the second round this year at Adobe

Adobe Systems intends to cut 680 full-time jobs, the equivalent of about nine per cent of its global workforce, following a lingering sales slump.

The layoffs, which were disclosed in a regulatory filing with the US Securities & Exchange Commission, are the second round to take place in the past year.

In December 2008, the firm announced a headcount reduction of 600, or about eight per cent, due to lower than expected demand for its recently launched Creative 4 suite of products. The suite includes Illustrator and Photoshop and accounts for more than 60 per cent of the firm’s total revenues. A new version is due to be released next year.

But the cuts will only affect staff members that were Adobe employees before it made its $1.8bn purchase of web analytics specialist Omiture in September. The knife is expected to fall most heavily at headquarters in San Jose, California. Currently, more than 7,000 people work for the company.

Headcount reductions of about nine per cent were previously announced for Omniture employees, which had about 1,200 personnel when the firm was acquired.

Omniture’s software tracks the performance of web sites and online marketing campaigns. Adobe’s aim is to integrate the technology with its own media and web site design software to enable customers to create online campaigns more easily.

But the new severance programme means that the vendor will take a $65m to $71m (£40m to £43m) charge in pre-tax expenses during its next fiscal quarter. The charge will include costs related to severance pay and shutting offices. Adobe also expects to report additional charges linked to the purchase of Omniture.