Google (NSDQ: GOOG), which just finished its $3.4 billion acquisition of DoubleClick and has publicly said will do some layoffs, will dispense with about 300 U.S. employees, reports NYT. This is the first such layoffs by Google since it started…the cuts represent about a quarter of DoubleClick’s U.S. workforce of about 1,200. Other overseas employees (about 300 of them) could see some layoffs in the future as well. Google had about 16,805 employees worldwide at the end of 2007, so not necessarily huge percentage wise.

Update: Google is selling off the search marketing unit of Performics, the online marketing firm that was part of DoubleClick. For obvious reasons: “It’s clear to us that we do not want to be in the search engine marketing business. Maintaining objectivity in both search and advertising is paramount to Google’s mission and core to the trust we ask from our users.” It says no buyer has been decided yet, but it has “received preliminary interest from a number of our current partners.”

The affiliate marketing part of Performics is not being sold off, and will be integrated into existing Google operations.

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