It’s less about profit and more about sustained growth. During the COVID lockdowns publishers saw a big bump in cash flow due to increased sales and subsidies. That caused them to hire new employees en masse among other investments because in the corporate world there is no such thing as leaving money unspent. Money needs to earn more money because capitalism and shareholders.
After the lockdowns, that extra cash flow receded quickly. The response from publishers to keep their growth rate from also falling is to lay off employees and reduce risks.