(AOF) – Netflix, whose share price climbed 6.1% before the stock market, announced a reorganization of its management. Online video service co-founder Reed Hastings (62) has said he is stepping down as chief executive. After twenty-five years at the helm of the Californian firm, he remains executive chairman. A duo, made up of his assistant, Ted Sarandos, and the chief operating officer, Greg Peters, will now pilot the company created in 1997, which was then a small mail-order DVD rental company.
“Ted and Greg are now co-CEOs. After fifteen years together, we have a great team and I have complete confidence in their leadership. Twice the heart, twice the ability to please teams and accelerate growth Proud to serve as Executive Chairman for many years to come,” Reed Hastings tweeted.
This announcement comes as the Californian firm, which had a disastrous start to 2022, announced its fourth quarter results. Netflix made $7.85 billion in revenue, but only made $55 million in net profit, well below the $257 million expected by the market. Operating profit fell from $630 million to $550 million.
But the group announced 7.7 million new subscribers in the fourth quarter (for a total of 230 million) a level well above its expectations (4.5 million).
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Sector analysis Communication and Media
French players well positioned in audiovisual production
Among the independent players, the Frenchman Banijay is the world leader with an expected turnover of 3 billion euros in 2022 in a market which represents 100 billion in revenue. Mediawan (backed by the KKR fund), whose turnover amounts to 1 billion euros, is the other main French player in the sector. The market is still very fragmented because according to the European Audiovisual Observatory, the top twenty production groups were responsible for only 38% of titles created in 2020. However, experts believe that the sector has entered a phase consolidation. Thus Banijay’s stock market listing aims to enable it to better participate in this movement.