GoPro slashes 200 jobs, closes entertainment unit

GoPro is slashing 15 percent of its workforce and shuttering its entertainment division as it scrambles to stem losses.

The action-camera maker said Wednesday that 200 of its 1,700 workers will leave the company — including President Tony Bates, who headed Skype before joining GoPro three years ago to expand its media operations.

Bates said in a statement that working at GoPro had been an “incredible experience” and that he was leaving a company that’s now “deeply focused on its core business and profitability.”

Looking to build a media business, GoPro in July had added former NBCUniversal exec Lauren Zalaznick to its board. In May, it tapped Red Bull to provide “point-of-view” images from extreme-sports contests.

With the job cuts, GoPro expects to cap operating expenses at $650 million next year in a bid to turn a profit — an elusive goal for Chief Executive Nick Woodman, the surfer-turned tech exec.

In a Wednesday webcast, financial chief Brian McGee said the cuts should “yield some income leverage” next year.

GoPro shares rose 2.8 percent to $10.10 in afternoon trading.

Still, the stock is down more than 50 percent this year on a slew of disappointing headlines, as the company has struggled to demonstrate the appeal of its cameras beyond its core of adrenaline-addicted snowboarders, mountain-bikers and skaters.

Earlier this month, GoPro’s new Karma drones got recalled because they were “falling out of the sky,” McGee admitted Wednesday.

Elsewhere, GoPro’s Hero action cameras face increased competition from innovative rival products, including surround cameras like the Allie and 360fly. The cameras for iPhones and Samsung smartphones, meanwhile, continue to improve.