More proof you brick-n-mortar store owners can’t directly blame the internet/high-tech competition for your demise. Incomplete list of U.S. internet/high-tech/communications job destruction announcements in July 2017:

United Kingdom news media revealed that Google “…paid millions of dollars to academics at British and American universities for research that it hoped would sway public opinion and influence policy in favour of the tech giant.”

After five years Kaplan owned software coding school Dev Bootcamp shutting down all six U.S. campuses: “Despite tremendous efforts from a lot of talented people, we’ve determined that we simply cannot reach a sustainable business model without compromising our mission of delivering a high-quality coding education that remains accessible to a diverse population of students.”

California: AutoTrader.com shutting down its Manhattan Beach office, 19 jobs lost in September.  Freenet Digital Entertainment shutting down its Sherman Oaks operations in October.  In Glendale, YP-Yellowpages.com eliminating 35 jobs by the end of August. Electronics retailer Best Buy issued a shutdown WARN for a San Francisco store, 106 jobs gone by the end of September!  Japan based video game maker GREE International Entertainment suddenly shutdown its San Francisco operations, 63 jobs suddenly gone. Venice based mobile application Whisper suddenly laid off 14 people as part of a plan to use automation.  In Mountain View, Symantec suddenly laid off 20 people.  Symantec also WARNed that it will layoff another 14 people in September.  Cisco Systems laid off nine people in San Jose, without warning.  

Cupertino based data storage company Seagate eliminating 6-hundred jobs, apparently in addition to the planned 6-thousand-5-hundred job cuts announced last year!  The 6-hundred additional job cuts are an attempt to cut operating costs to counter Seagate’s declining revenues.   Irvine based software maker Kofax was sold and the new owner dumped an undisclosed number of employees into the street. San Francisco based Juicero finally realized nobody wants to pay 4-hundred-bucks for a juicer (even if it is ‘hi-tech’) so Juicero is cutting the price and 25% of its staff.  Germany based SoundCloud suddenly laid off 173 people and shutdown its office in San Francisco in an attempt to avoid bankruptcy!  After 18 years wearable tech pioneer Jawbone is dead and being liquidated (due to the fact its products didn’t ever work right), but some hopeful executives hope to resurrect it as Jawbone Health Hub.  Sports marketing company Competitor Group issued a shutdown WARN, 145 jobs gone by mid-November! California-Texas-Netherlands based space plane developer XCORP Aerospace suddenly laid off its remaining employees: “Due to adverse financial conditions XCOR had to terminate all employees as of 30 June 2017.”

Florida:  Tallahassee based automated gate opener GTO Access Systems warning of layoffs across the board as it shifts to ‘smart home’ engineering, and integration with California based parent company Nortek’s wireless security ops.  In Jacksonville, YP-Yellowpages.com eliminating 105 jobs by the end of September!

Iowa: Convergys issued a WARN for its call center in Sergeant Bluff, 152 people jobless by the end of September!

Kansas: Lexana based Perceptive Software has been sold and the new owner dumped an undisclosed number of employees into the street.

Maryland: Maker of electrical insulators Locke issued a WARN, 108 jobs gone by September!  Baltimore Sun Media Group shutting down 40 years old City Paper due to crashing advertising revenues.

Michigan: Local news media reported that storage battery maker EaglePicher Technologies laid off 250 people since May 2016 and administrators say the layoffs will continue due to “…strategically focusing our efforts in the areas where our customers need us to be focused in.”

Minnesota: Richfield based computer seller Best Buy eliminating 399 Geek Squad jobs!  At the same time administrators claim the tech retailer has 1-thousand job vacancies!

New York: Brooklyn-NYC based Vice Media laid off 60 people as part of its plan to focus more on international markets.  Media giant Gannett laying off 31 people in Binghamton, for “economic” reasons.  Latina Media Ventures laid off six people as news spread that the company is struggling to issue paychecks, supposedly some employees haven’t been paid for a month, an unnamed source reportedly said “Everyone is shell-shocked and outraged!”  LMEG Wireless issued a shutdown WARN for its Brooklyn-NYC ops, 151 jobs gone by mid-October!  Cloud-based Human Capital Management and Business Process Outsourcing company ADP issued a shutdown WARN for its Williamsville ops, 25 jobs gone by the beginning of October.   Germany based SoundCloud issued a layoff WARN, 53 jobs in NYC gone in October.

Ohio: Columbus based taxpayer funded online Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow eliminating 250 jobs due to crashing enrollments and being caught overcharging customers by a total of $60-million USD!  Cox Media Group shutting down printing ops in Franklin, 135 jobs lost!

Oregon: Washington based Microsoft shutting down its operations in Wilsonville, at least 124 jobs lost between September 2017 and January 2018!  Travel Tags-Western Graphics and Data issued a shutdown WARN for its Portland ops, 82 jobs gone starting in October.  Smartphone insurance company Asurion issued a shutdown WARN for its call center in Klamath Falls, 53 people jobless by mid-September.

Texas: Colorado based TeleTech eliminating 350 jobs due to halting its Heath Services and due to consolidation operations!  Direct Energy Solar-Astrum Solar eliminating 108 jobs in September,  as part of its plan to halt residential solar ops and shift to community solar power ops!  Dallas based online mortgage company Ditech eliminating nearly 5-hundred jobs after getting caught ripping off customers!

Washington: Smartphone maker LeEco issued a shutdown WARN for its Bellevue location, 25 jobs gone by mid-September.   Insurance software maker Vertifore shutting down ops in Bothell, 121 jobs lost as the company moves to Colorado!  Seattle based super computer maker Cray eliminating 190 jobs across the U.S.!  Cray is attempting to save money after a 61% crash in profits in 2016.  Redmond based Microsoft eliminating 3-thousand sales jobs as it shifts focus to cloud service products!

U.S. Tech/Communications breakdown, June 2017: “…A LOT OF EXPERIMENTATION.”

More proof you brick-n-mortar store owners can’t directly blame the internet/high-tech competition for your demise. Incomplete list of U.S. internet/high-tech/communications job destruction announcements in May 2017:

California: In San Jose, Cisco Systems continues killing jobs, this times 250!   China based ‘smart’phone maker LeEco (aka Le Technology) eliminating 90% of its jobs and shutting down operations in San Diego!  CNBC reported that even employees who had the day off were asked to ‘phone in’ to an emergency meeting, due to LeEco sales crashing & burning.  The Sacramento Bee-sacbee.com suddenly laid off an undisclosed number of people.  France based maker of automation (robots which replace humans in the workplace) and electronic spy gear (surveillance equipment) Schneider Electric-Pelco eliminating 2-hundred jobs in Clovis, blaming global competition!  Local news media said at one time Pelco in Clovis employed at least 2-thousand people, but is currently down to less than 1-thousand.  Apple Mirage issued a shutdown WARN for its Rancho Mirage location, 45 jobs lost by July.   Gannett Publishing Services issued a shutdown WARN for its Camarillo location, 38 jobs lost in July.  KSCI issued a layoff WARN for its TV ops in Los Angeles, 58 jobs gone by July.  Marvell Semiconductor continues to issue layoff WARNs for its operations in Aliso Viejo and Santa Clara. Symantec continues issuing layoff WARNs for its Mountain View ops, this time 24 jobs gone by the end of June.  Lumina Media issued a shutdown WARN for its Irvine location, 58 jobs lost by mid-July.  Nippon based Hitachi Data issued a layoff WARN for Santa Clara, 48 jobs lost by mid-July.  Charter Communications shutting down ops in Palm Desert, 206 jobs lost by mid-July! ‘Cloud ready’ Riverbed Technology suddenly laid off 61 people.  

Florida: Saint Petersburg based coupon printer/distributor ValPak laying off 40 graphic artists, as a result of being taken over by Californian owned Platinum Equity.

Georgia: NexxLinx eliminating 236 jobs in Duluth!

Indiana: Spectrum shutting down its Evansville call center, 20 jobs lost as Spectrum shifts to fewer, but supposedly larger, call center ops.

New Jersey: Gannett Satellite Information Network issued a WARN for its Neptune ops, 88 jobs lost by July.

New York: ‘Peer to peer’ e-commerce Etsy eliminating at least 80 jobs due to its biggest investors accusing Etsy administrators of mismanagement.  NYC based Sports Illustrated laid off five people due to declining revenues.  The New York Times is trying to get its editors to voluntarily quit (buyouts) as part of a plan to consolidate editing operations.  Texas based ViaTech Publishing halting printing ops in Bay Shore, 51 jobs lost by mid-August.  Ancient tech company Xerox continues killing jobs, this time 177 warehouse employees in Webster will become unemployed between now and March 2018!  B&H Foto and Electronics moving from Brooklyn-NYC to New Jersey, 57 jobs lost in August.  In Amherst, Sykes laying off 71 people between September and November.   ‘Automated online marketplace’ Merchant Cash and Capital issued a shutdown WARN for its NYC ops, at least 74 jobs lost by August.

North Carolina: NettLinx shutting down its Jacksonville operations, 280 jobs lost due to the unexpected loss of a major client!

Ohio: Bankrupt e-commerce focused clothing retailing group TradeGlobal eliminating 112 rue21 jobs in West Chester, only two years after claiming it would be creating “hundreds” of new jobs! TradeGlobal is the parent company of failed rue21 clothier.   By the way, rue21 is now officially bankrupt busted.

Oregon: SolarWorld Americas issued a shutdown WARN for July, saying “This employment action will likely result in the termination of employment of approximately 500 regular employees and possibly up to a total of 711 regular employees at the Company Facility.”  For some odd reason state employment officials (Oregon Rapid Response Activity Tracking System) posted the jobs losses as being 360, even thought SolarWorld’s letter clearly states 5-hundred to 711!   SureID suddenly laid off 160 people after losing a tax-sucking U.S. Navy contract!

Pennsylvania: Direct mail book and magazine seller Rodale continues to eliminate jobs, numbers being undisclosed.   It’s part of the company’s plan to ‘wind down’ its direct mail business and shift to “revenue streams…vital to…our long term growth.” 

Tennessee: For the second time in less than six months Convergys conducting mass layoffs at its Clarksville call center, this time 160 jobs gone by mid-July due to crashing call volumes!

Texas:  In Fort Worth, California based Ingram Micro Mobility continues killing jobs, this time 140 smartphone repair jobs being eliminated by the end of August! Last year Ingram Micro Mobility killed more than 9-hundred jobs due to crashing sales.  World Wide Technology shutting down its Lewisville operations, 156 jobs gone by mid-July due to “market conditions”!

Virginia: Roanoke Times laid off 53 people as part of its plan to outsource printing ops. Illinois based LSC Communications halting book printing ops in Salem, 140 jobs lost beginning in July!

Washington: Seattle based Napster parent Rhapsody laid off an undisclosed number of people, blaming internet competition.  Video game maker PopCap revealed it laid off an undisclosed number of employees.  Video game maker Electronic Arts issued a layoff WARN, 45 jobs gone by July.

U.S. Tech/Communications breakdown, April 2017: “OUR DIGITAL REVENUE IS NOT GROWING FAST ENOUGH”