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Quokka Sports, Inc. (Nasdaq: QKKA) fell 7/16 to 1 5/16 Thursday after the Internet sports entertainment company said it will cut 90 of its 460 employees and take a US$1.8 million to $2 million charge to fourth-quarter results.
The San Francisco, California-based company said the job cuts are necessary to bring costs in line after a string of recent acquisitions. Over the past year, Quokka acquired Total Sports, Inc. and MountainZone.com, in addition to a 71 percent interest in Golf.com.
"This has been a tremendous year for Quokka," said president and chief executive officer Alvaro Saralegui. "We have achieved a scale in our business through our acquisitions, experience and technology development that now allows us to achieve significant growth in audience and revenues while lowering costs."
Quokka aims to turn a profit "early in 2002," Saralegui said.
Quokka makes money through sponsorship sales for its sports entertainment sites. The company, which worked with the NBC television network to bring last summer's Olympic Games to the Internet, will operate the official site of the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic Organizing Committee.
The company also operates FinalFour.net, which provides Internet coverage of the NCAA basketball tournament, and a site for the spring PGA golf season.
Quokka said it is also working on interactive television products with DirecTV that are scheduled to be introduced next year.
"I am confident in our abilities to execute our mission to change the way the world experiences sport," said Saralegui. "Our business opportunities are robust as we head into the 2001 sports seasons."
Still, company shares remain near a 52-week low, having fallen from a high of
18 3/4.
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