AP source: Time Inc. to announce layoffs next week

NEW YORK - The publisher of People, Sports Illustrated and 20 other magazines plans to announce more layoffs next week as the advertising slump continues to weigh on the magazine industry, according to a person with knowledge of the plans.

The person said Time Inc. has not decided on the specifics, including how many jobs would be cut, and will make an announcement next week. That person was not authorized to speak publicly about the plans and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The New York Post reported that Time Inc. will lay off 540 employees, while The New York Times said the company was looking to cut $100 million in costs.

It is only the latest in a series of cutbacks among the major U.S. magazine publishers. The recession has put a huge dent in advertising budgets, and the toll of closings and layoffs continued to rise this month.

Forbes cut an undisclosed number of workers this week. Conde Nast said earlier in the month it will shutter four titles, including Gourmet, the country's oldest food magazine. Fortune, a Time property, is cutting its frequency to 18 issues a year from 25.

It won't be the first round of downsizing for Time Inc., a unit of Time Warner Inc. The company decided last October to cut more than 600 positions, or about 6 percent of its work force.

But the company's magazines have seen ad revenue continue to dive this year. The number of ad pages in Time magazine fell 16 percent in the July-September period compared with the year before, according to the Publishers Information Bureau. Ad pages fell 14 percent at Sports Illustrated and 15 percent at Southern Living.

The company's overall publishing revenue fell 22 percent in the second quarter to $915 million, mainly because of a drop in print ad sales.

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