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TV team, including head of TV Homaira Razi, exit in Yahoo7 cuts

Homaira Razi, head of TV at Yahoo7, and up to eight full-time staff in the TV team have lost their jobs off the back of Yahoo7’s re-structure last week, Mumbrella understands.

Razi had been with Yahoo since 2003, first joining as a support services representative. When Yahoo and Seven formed Yahoo7 in 2006, Razi became a digital producer. She has since held roles including digital and social media manager for TV, broadcast integration manager for primetime TV and, in 2016, was promoted to head of TV.


The television team was made redundant after an ambiguous press release was released saying the company was restructuring to increasingly use to the Oath technology platform.

In the release, Yahoo7 stated its editorial team would continue to deliver “premium, unique and engaging content in the news, sport and lifestyle verticals” and that its sales team would continue to give clients access to audiences through platforms such as Gemini and Brightroll.

Mumbrella also understands the roles of head of sport and head of news were merged, though it is still unclear which staff member – head of sport Cornell Vander Heyden or head of news Euan Black – will take on the new role.

The Guardian’s Amanda Meade has reported around two-thirds of the 180 to 200 staff will be made redundant in the coming months. 

Yahoo7’s future has been in doubt since US telecommunications giant Verizon completed its US$4.48b deal with Yahoo in the US on June last year.

At the time, Yahoo7 – which is now jointly owned by Verizon subsidiary Oath and Seven West Media – said the joint venture would continue and include a broader content set. Seven West Media, however, then said it would launch and market its own long-form video platform and streaming service– which has subsequently been revealed as 7 Plus.

Since 2014, Yahoo7’s revenue and profit have been under pressure with the ongoing weakness in online display advertising with 10% of the company’s workforce cut in a 2016 restructure.

Yahoo7 responded to the latest news: “Yahoo7 is currently within a legal consultation period as it works through the proposed changes with its people. The company is not able to make any further comment on the proposed changes during this period. Yahoo7 remains focused on continuing to create compelling and engaging content for their audience, and to deliver premium experiences and results for its clients.”

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