LivingSocial cuts 20% of its staff

layoffs and hiring

LivingSocial will cut 20% of its workforce in a move that will affect 200 employees, the company said Wednesday.

"This action is difficult, yet it allows us to operate more efficiently, while focusing our investments into accelerating progress toward our mission of becoming a leading experiences marketplace," Gautam Thakar, the company's president and CEO, said in a statement.

The daily deals company said in the release that it would focus its efforts on becoming "an online destination for consumers to discover, share and gift experiences."

The LivingSocial layoffs follow a similar move by rival Groupon (GRPN), which cut 10% of its staff in September.

Those job cuts were part of Groupon's bigger plan to consolidate its technology systems and operations, and scale back some of its international operations.

LivingSocial employees who lose their jobs will be offered severance packages and outplacement support, the company said.

- Hope King contributed to this report.

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