NBCUniversal lays off about 450 in budget cuts

(AP) NBCUniversal is laying off about 450 people, or roughly 1.5 percent of its workforce of about 30,000, in a round of belt-tightening that began in September.

That's according to a person familiar with the matter.

Separate divisions within the entertainment giant owned by Philadelphia-based Comcast Corp. were asked to recommend how they could be more efficient.

The affected include about two dozen people laid off at The Tonight Show months ago; several dozen who worked on shows that were canceled at pay TV channel G4; and about two dozen in the DVD unit at film studio Universal Pictures.

Some of the affected employees were informed Monday. The person was not authorized to speak publicly and requested anonymity.

The layoffs were reported earlier by the entertainment industry website, Deadline.