Its online advertising revenue slid 18%, although it surpassed estimates. The move to reduce its workforce was the first since 2014 after layoffs rippling through the global tech sector finally hit the WeChat operator. [see_also_flex pos='right' post_id='217580′] The social-media and video game behemoth said it would need time to absorb regulatory actions that over the past year cut into its advertising and video gaming revenues and warned that China's Covid-19 restrictions could delay a recovery in its advertising business. Even before the macroeconomic turbulence, China's giant internet industry had resigned itself to a new era of sedate growth after a decade of free-wheeling expansion. Companies like Tencent are focusing on profitability over the market-grab of years past, after a sweeping government crackdown wiped more than US$1 trillion off Tencent and Alibaba combined market value in 2021.