Netflix’s 4Q subscribers surge, long-time CEO passes baton

Netflix’s subscriber growth is surging again, providing an early sign that its shift to include ads in a cheaper version of its video streaming service is helping to combat tougher competition and attract cost-conscious customers grappling with inflation. “Frankly, more and more, they have already been leading the company.” Insider Intelligence analyst Paul Verna interpreted the new leadership as another step in Netflix’s evolution from its roots as a technology company led by a mathematical whiz in Hastings to an entertainment service led by Sarandos, who has long negotiated deals with Hollywood studios, and Peters, who oversaw the expansion into advertising. Last year’s subscriber downturn, unprecedented since Netflix separated its streaming and DVD-by-mail services in 2011, prompted management to embrace advertising for the first time. Bolstered by its holiday-season uptick, Netflix now boasts nearly 231 million worldwide subscribers – more than any rival in an increasingly crowded field of video streaming competition that includes the likes of Amazon, Hulu, Google’s YouTube, Walt Disney Co. and Apple, the world’s richest company. The slowdown prompted Netflix to stop its long-standing practice of projecting how many subscribers it expects to gain from one quarter to the next, an attempt to lessen investors’ focus on that number.