Entertainment and productivity software house The Learning Co has begun the integration process following its acquisition of Broderbund Software Inc (CI No 3,437), by announcing it will let about 500 employees go and consolidate certain facilities. The staff cuts, which come only a week after the acquisition closed, will be carried out primarily at Broderbund’s manufacturing facility in Petaluma, California and at its Novato, California operations. The Petaluma plant will be closed in mid-November and several Novato facilities will be consolidated at one location. The restructuring actions are expected to result in overall cost savings to the combined company of about $50m per year. But that comes with a price tag, as TLC announced it will incur a one-time charge for the third quarter of roughly $15m stemming directly from severance costs, in addition to other restructuring charges. The company says that its moves are part of a three-tier strategy to restore the Broderbund brand to prominence and profitability by reducing operating costs, expanding channel distribution and leveraging development synergies to extend product lines. The decline in TLC’s share price from about $25 in June, when the deal was announced, to $19.3125 on Friday, has shaved nearly $100m off the original $420m value of the transaction.