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☆ Netflix is shifting strategy away from big-budget action flicks and big-name stars. Here's its new plan.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-14 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Dan Lin, Netflix's new film chief, wants to diversify its movie offerings. Dan Lin, the company's new film chief, now wants to change that, according to The New York Times. Netflix's previous film chief, Scott Stuber, left the company in January following clashes with bosses over what kinds of films to produce. AdvertisementLin quickly went to work reorganizing the company's film department, laying off 15 of its 150 film department staff, and reorganizing the department by budget rather than genre, according to the outlet. Lin also "indicated that Netflix is no longer only the home of expensive action flicks featuring big movie stars."

Persons: Dan Lin, —, Mark Wahlberg, Wahlberg, Critics, Robert P, Scott Stuber, Bela Bajaria, Bajaria, Lin Organizations: Service, Netflix, The New York Times, Business, Rotten, Times

☆ Netflix Names Dan Lin Its Top Movie Executive
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Nicole Sperling | More About Nicole Sperling | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Netflix said on Wednesday that the producer Dan Lin would replace Scott Stuber as the streaming company’s top film executive. Mr. Stuber was the head of Netflix Film for seven years before announcing last month that he would be leaving. During his tenure, he brought a bevy of Oscar-winning filmmakers to Netflix and helped the company push the rest of the entertainment industry into the streaming era. He will report to Bela Bajaria, Netflix’s chief content officer. “While I’ve been approached many times during my past 15 years at Rideback, I could truly never imagine leaving until Bela reached out with this incredible opportunity,” Mr. Lin said in a statement.

Persons: Dan Lin, Scott Stuber, Stuber, Oscar, . Lin, Bela Bajaria, I’ve, Bela, Mr, Lin Organizations: Netflix, Warner Bros, Rideback Productions Locations: Rideback

☆ Did Netflix's movie boss leave because he didn't want to make so many movies?
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Peter Kafka | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Netflix movie boss Scott Stuber, who joined in 2017, is leaving. AdvertisementOn Monday, when Netflix announced that Scott Stuber, their longtime film boss, was leaving to start his own production company, we wondered what the backstory was. Or, more accurately, one version of the answer: Stuber, who Netflix brought in to ramp up its movie business in 2017, was sick of making so many movies. Related storiesHe also wanted to get those movies into movie theaters, with wide distribution, before they came to Netflix. Sarandos and Bajaria—Stuber's boss since last January—wanted none of that, even though Netflix loses many coveted projects over the theater issue.

Persons: Scott Stuber, —, Ted Sarandos, Bela Bajaria —, — Kim Masters, Matt Belloni, Stuber, Here's, Bela Bajaria, He'd, Chris Nolan wouldn't, Oppenheimer, Belloni, Sarandos, Oscar Organizations: Netflix, Service, — Netflix, Hollywood, Apple, Sundance, Big Bad Locations: Puck, Hollywood

☆ Netflix to Stream W.W.E.’s ‘Raw’ in $5 Billion Deal
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-23 | by ( Gregory Schmidt | More About Gregory Schmidt | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Netflix reached a multibillion-dollar, 10-year deal for exclusive rights to W.W.E.’s flagship weekly wrestling show “Raw,” as the streaming giant broadens its offerings with more live content. The deal will bring “Raw” to Netflix starting in January 2025, Netflix and TKO Group, W.W.E.’s parent company, said in a statement. Netflix will also own the rights to stream W.W.E.’s other shows and specials outside of the United States. The agreement will cost Netflix more than $5 billion and will last for 10 years, with an option to extend an additional 10 years or opt out after five, TKO Group said in a regulatory filing. “By combining our reach, recommendations, and fandom with W.W.E., we’ll be able to deliver more joy and value for their audiences and our members,” Netflix’s chief content officer, Bela Bajaria, said in a statement.

Persons: ”, we’ll, Bela Bajaria Organizations: Netflix Locations: United States

WWE's weekly television show “Raw” will move to Netflix next year as part of a major streaming deal. “Raw,” which debuted in 1993, has produced 1,600 episodes to date and features wrestlers such as Cody Rhodes, Becky Lynch, Seth Rollins and Rhea Ripley. “We are excited to have WWE Raw, with its huge and passionate multigenerational fan base, on Netflix,” Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria said in a prepared statement. WWE, which is part of TKO Group Holdings Inc., said Tuesday that “Raw” will air on Netflix starting in January 2025. This will be the first time that WWE will air on the network in prime time.

Persons: “, Cody Rhodes, Becky Lynch, Seth Rollins, Rhea Ripley, Bela Bajaria, Mark Shapiro, ”, Dwayne “, ” Johnson, Johnson Organizations: Netflix, USA Network, WWE, Punk, Holdings Inc, World Wrestling Entertainment Inc, NBCUniversal, NBC Locations: U.S, Canada, America, Fox

(Both men already hold sizable amounts of Alibaba stock.) Alibaba itself bought back $9.5 billion worth of stock last year, reducing its share count by over 3 percent. The stock purchases will probably bring attention back to Ma, a former English teacher who helped start Alibaba as an e-commerce platform. Ma, who hasn’t held a management role at Alibaba or Ant in years but remains a lifetime partner in the Alibaba Partnership, now largely focuses on Bill Gates-style philanthropy. And she’s expected to take swipes at Trump’s economic record as president.

Persons: Tsai, Ma, Alibaba, Ant, hasn’t, Bill Gates, Nikki Haley, Donald Trump, Eric Rosengren, Robert Kaplan, Kaplan, Rosengren, Archer, Daniels, Vikram Luthar, Scott Stuber, Spike Lee, Martin Scorsese, Jane Campion, Stuber, Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s, Bela Bajaria, Biden’s, Janet Yellen, Lael Brainard, they’re, Biden, ” Ray Fair Organizations: Pool Management, Alibaba, Brooklyn Nets, New York Liberty, Nets, Boston Fed, Dallas Fed, Republican, Biden, Yale, Times Locations: U.S, Hong Kong, China, Ma, Beijing, ’, Paris, New Hampshire, Dixville

☆ Why did the powerful head of Netflix's movie studio just leave?
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Peter Kafka | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

If you do work in movies, you almost certainly have heard of him: He's the guy in charge of Netflix's movie division, and for years, Netflix's movie division made a lot of movies, at a time when lots of studios were shrinking. Now that's changing, and now Stuber isn't going to be at Netflix anymore: Netflix says he's leaving to start his own media company. And a few months after that, when Stuber's name was floated as a possible contender to run Amazon's movie business, he didn't seem long for the place. Now, Stuber said, Netflix was going to cut its output in half so it could make things better things. Asked for comment, a Netflix spokesperson supplied quotes from Stuber, Sarandos, and Bajaria saying nice things about each other.

Persons: Scott Stuber's, Stuber, Ryan Reynolds, Martin, Scott, Reed Hastings, Ted Sarandos, Greg Peters, Bela Bajaria, We'd Organizations: Netflix, Business, Universal, Stuber, Hollywood, Variety Locations: Hollywood, Stuber

☆ Inside Netflix's growing M&A machine, who's leading it, and what insiders think the streamer could buy next
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

It then delved further into M&A to kickstart its games business. And the streamer hasn't completely abandoned its build-from-within strategy, as it also announced plans last fall to build its own gaming studio in Finland. He recently was elevated to the Lstaff, a group of 25 Netflix business heads who debate its biggest initiatives. (Netflix ended up doing a partnership in 2019 with that company, Studio Dragon, and its parent CJ ENM.) But leadership has been steadfast that Netflix's M&A mantra hasn't changed.

Persons: Here's, Reed Hastings, It's, it's, who's, what's, Roald Dahl, Dahl, Peter Rabbit, Spry, Harry Potter, execs, Spencer Wang, Michael Porter, Spencer Neumann, who'd, Neumann, Wang, Greg Peters, Ted Sarandos, Bela Bajaria, Scott Stuber, Mike Verdu, Jay MacDonald, Digiday, Ana Milicevic, Hastings, Sarandos, CJ ENM, Mario Organizations: Netflix, stoke, Paramount, Night School, Spry Fox, Disney, Warner Bros, DC Comics, Digital Capital Advisors, MLB, Surf League, Street Journal, Microsoft, Sparrow Advisers, MGM, Amazon, Mario Bros, Activision Blizzard, Epic Games, UBS Locations: Finland, New Jersey, Hollywood

☆ Meet Netflix's elite 'Lstaff' — the 25 top execs who help make the company's biggest decisions, from its push into advertising to its gaming expansion
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Lucia Moses | Ashley Rodriguez | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Netflix has a top team of business leaders who debate and drive the company's biggest decisions. This "Lstaff" includes co-CEOs Greg Peters and Ted Sarandos plus execs leading new areas like gaming and ads. When Netflix is faced with a big, agenda-setting decision, it convenes a special team of business heads to debate the issue at hand. This group, which numbers 25, has helped shape major company moves like its expansion into mobile games and advertising. Scroll down to read about the people on Netflix's Lstaff, listed in alphabetical order, and the perspective each brings.

Persons: Greg Peters, Ted Sarandos, —, Reed Hastings, Bela Bajaria, Scott Stuber, Kim —, Vernā Myers, Jeremi Gorman, Mike Verdu, Spencer Wang Organizations: Netflix, New Zealand Locations: Korea, Japan, Southeast Asia, Australia, New

☆ Netflix ad tier has nearly 5 mln monthly active users
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Lisa Richwine | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LOS ANGELES, May 17 (Reuters) - Netflix Inc's (NFLX.O) recently launched ad-supported tier reaches nearly 5 million active users per month, executives said on Wednesday in a pitch that emphasized the breadth of its programming to potential advertisers. On Wednesday, Netflix made its first presentation to advertisers at the annual ritual known as the upfronts, where networks aim to lock in ad commitments for upcoming shows. Jeremi Gorman, Netflix's president of worldwide advertising, said that global monthly active users had reached 5 million. Monthly active users count all adult profiles used on one account with ads. Netflix reported 232.5 million paying subscribers around the world as of the end of March.

One of the really interesting questions here – this will be fascinating – the core of linear TV is sports rights. When you look at the size and scope of the linear TV business, it's huge. Patrick T. Fallon | Afp | Getty ImagesByron Allen, Entertainment Studios founder and CEO: I think linear TV will exist for a very, very long time. Simmons: I believe Apple, out of nowhere, will start making their own awesome televisions that have Apple TV embedded in them. We are witnessing early stages of this dynamic with deals like "NFL Sunday Ticket" on YouTube and the MLS deal with Apple TV.

☆ Netflix insiders applaud new co-CEO Greg Peters, 'the only real visionary' in the C-suite, but scratch their heads over what other exec changes mean for the company
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Elaine Low | Lucia Moses | Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Netflix's elevation of Greg Peters to co-CEO shows the importance of its advertising sales effort. But Bela Bajaria's rise to content chief has caused some confusion about the future of the TV and film organization. The Netflix veteran now shares the role with current co-CEO Ted Sarandos, as company cofounder Reed Hastings steps down and settles into an executive chairman position. The move made a lot of sense to industry insiders, and even publicly, Netflix had been signaling the ascension for some time. Netflix insiders said Bajaria's new title underscored the importance of TV versus film in the streaming wars.

☆ Netflix founder Reed Hastings is giving up CEO role
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Rebecca Picciotto | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

Netflix’s Reed Hastings is giving up his CEO role but will remain on as chairman, the company announced along side its earnings report Thursday. Greg Peters, most recently Chief Operating Officer, will assume the post of co-CEO in Hastings’ place. Sarandos was promoted to co-CEO alongside Hastings in July 2020, the same time that Peters was appointed to his COO role. The succession announcement comes alongside the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report. The succession announcement comes alongside the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report.

☆ Netflix founder Reed Hastings is giving up his CEO role
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Rebecca Picciotto | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Netflix co-founder and CEO, Reed Hastings, is in Sydney to meet with executives of other subscription streaming services, February 25, 2022. Netflix founder Reed Hastings is giving up his CEO role but will remain on as chairman, the company announced alongside its earnings report Thursday. Hastings co-founded Netflix in 1997. Sarandos was promoted to co-CEO alongside Hastings in July 2020, the same time that Peters was appointed to his COO role. Scott Stuber, who was previously the head of global film, will step in as chairman of Netflix Film.

☆ Netflix will air SAG Awards in another step into live broadcasting
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Rebecca Picciotto | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Netflix will exclusively air this year's Screen Actors Guild Awards show in its first partnership with an awards show and its next step into live broadcasting. The SAG Awards, which will take place Feb. 26, will air live on Netflix's YouTube channel, but not the streamer's own platform. Netflix aims to broadcast the awards show on its actual service in 2024, according to a company spokesperson. Since 2007, the SAG Awards has aired on both TNT and TBS, channels owned by Warner Bros. Discovery parted ways with the SAG Awards in May as the newly merged company restructured.

Insider identified 75 of the most powerful execs at the streamer, in an interactive org chart. Product chief Greg Peters took on additional duties as chief operating officer and has since broadened his purview to include gaming. Former PepsiCo exec Sergio Ezama joined in 2021 to become Netflix's chief talent officer. Insider identified 75 of the most powerful executives now at Netflix. They include C-suite executives finance chief Spencer Neumann, as well as business leads like Bajaria and movie boss Scott Stuber.

☆ In a first, Netflix will stream the SAG awards
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Jordan Valinsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —Netflix will air a live awards show for the first time, marking the streamer’s latest expansion into live programming and further cementing its influence in Hollywood. Beginning in 2024, the Screen Actors Guild Awards will be live-streamed globally on Netflix as part of a new, multi-year partnership. This year’s 29th Annual SAG Awards will stream live for the first time on Netflix’s YouTube channel on Sunday, February 26 at 8 pm ET. The Academy of Country Music Awards switched from CBS to Amazon’s Prime Video in 2022 and will once again stream live on the service this year. Adding live events could help Netflix (NFLX) stand out against rivals as it fights to keep adding subscribers in an increasingly crowded market.

☆ Netflix to live-stream Screen Actors Guild Awards
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Bing GuanJan 11 (Reuters) - Netflix Inc (NFLX.O) will live-stream the annual Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards beginning in 2024, as it explores bringing live programming to its service. The streaming giant stepped in to carry the SAG Awards, which had lost its broadcast home on cable networks TNT and TBS. Netflix will stream this year's ceremony on its YouTube Channel and, next year, stream the awards show to subscribers via Netflix's service. Nominees will be announced at 7 a.m. Pacific time on Wednesday and the 29th Annual SAG awards take place on Feb. 26. Netflix is in the early days of testing live broadcasts, as it contemplates bringing live sports to the platform.

☆ Netflix isn't interested in (just) becoming HBO anymore
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Travis Clark | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos says the company wants to be "equal parts HBO and FX and AMC" and more. In 2013, he said that Netflix's goal was "to become HBO faster than HBO can become us." Bela Bajaria, Netflix's head of global TV, put it more bluntly: The company wants to "replace all television." When it first broke into original programming, Netflix went after the sort of prestige TV that HBO is known for; one of the earliest examples is scooping up "House of Cards," which HBO was also interested in. In 2013, the same year the show premiered, Sarandos told GQ, "The goal is to become HBO faster than HBO can become us."

☆ How Netflix has changed the global entertainment industry
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( Ashley Rodriguez | Elaine Low | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Since Netflix began its worldwide expansion in 2016, the streaming service has rewritten the playbook for global entertainment — from TV to film, and, more recently, video games. Still, Netflix's impact on the global TV industry is undeniable. More on Netflix's effect on global TV:The streamer's executive team was rebuilt with a global focusIn recent years, Netflix reoriented its leadership around its new global model. Peters also hired a new talent chief with international experience, former PepsiCo executive Sergio Ezama, to lead Netflix's global workforce. More on Netflix's corporate structure:Netflix has seen its first wide layoffs, though it continues to growThe corporate restructuring hasn't been without obstacles.

☆ HBO is No. 1 as 14 TV insiders rank the streamers where they want to sell shows: Apple's a big spender and 'there's a sheen when you're a Hulu show,' but there's 'fear in the air' at Netflix
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Elaine Low | Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +19 min

"It's definitely been not the most exciting and robust year," said one TV agent at a major agency. Around 70 people at HBO and HBO Max have been let go this year, and their comedy development teams have merged. While WBD doesn't break out streamer-specific figures, it said on Thursday's earnings call that HBO Max, HBO, and Discovery+ have a combined 94.9 million subscribers, ensuring that any show on HBO Max has the chance to get a lot of eyeballs. They'll also take smaller swings in the genre department, do things at a lower budget," said the second TV agent. Echoed the first TV agent: "You pitch and sell to them if no one else wants it."

☆ 14 TV insiders rank the streamers where they want to sell shows now as Apple TV+ closes in on HBO Max amid turmoil at Warner Bros. Discovery
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Elaine Low | Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +19 min

☆ Netflix insiders reveal how the streamer uses data to drive creative decisions, with 'contentious' debates over renewals and reliance on a sometimes 'flawed science'
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( Elaine Low | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Discussions about renewing shows can be "contentious" between creative execs and data analysts. "When you want to buy a project, they will do an analysis and do a budget ballpark on it," one former Netflix exec told Insider. Compared to similar teams at traditional production companies and Hollywood studios and networks, Netflix's CS&A execs have more of a front-row seat in creative discussions, insiders said. At legacy studios, deciding whether or not to greenlight a show or acquire a film is "much more of a gut instinct," said a second former Netflix exec. That can be particularly useful when assessing whether to acquire certain IP, said a third former Netflix exec.

☆ Netflix has an elite 'Lstaff' team of 25 execs who help make the company's biggest decisions. Here are its members, from the streamer's content chief to partnership leads.
▼ + stars: | 2021-09-09 | by ( Ashley Rodriguez | Lucia Moses | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Netflix has a special team of business leaders who debate and drive the company's biggest decisions. This "Lstaff" helped shape moves like the decisions to open a Canada office and invest capital in Black-led banks. Meet the 25 Netflix execs who make up the Lstaff below. When Netflix is faced with a big, agenda-setting decision, it convenes a special team of business heads to debate the issue at hand. Scroll down to read about the people on Netflix's Lstaff, listed in alphabetical order, and the perspective each brings.

Persons: Netflix execs, —, Ted Sarandos, Greg Peters, Reed Hastings, Bela Bajaria, Scott Stuber, Kim —, Vernā Myers, Jeremi Gorman, Mike Verdu, Spencer Wang Organizations: Netflix, New Zealand Locations: Canada, Black, Korea, Japan, Southeast Asia, Australia, New

Netflix has overhauled key leadership, naming a co-CEO, talent chief, and heads of TV and marketing. Insider identified 71 of the most powerful execs at the streamer, in an interactive org chart. Insider identified the 71 of the most powerful executives now at Netflix, following the recent executive changes. Netflix has many leaders — not all of whom are included here — but the chart below gives an inside look at who to watch in 2021. The executive shuffle came as Netflix's global audience reached 209 million paid subscribers in March, driven mainly by international viewers.

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