When it comes to having movies and television shows that people love, Netflix Inc NFLX co-CEO Ted Sarandos said there's no such thing as too much content in the ever-changing streaming sector.
What Happened: Netflix is no stranger to innovation, going from a DVD-by-mail service to one of the largest streaming platforms globally.
The company continues to evolve and the need to appeal to all customers and fans isn't lost on Sarandos.
"People often ask me if we need so many movies and TV shows on Netflix. I always answer with an emphatic yes. People have such different and eclectic tastes that you can't afford to program for just one sensibility," Sarandos said at the Royal Television Society conference in London, as reported by Variety.
Sarandos added that the streaming company has to "love it all" and offer dramas, indie films, true crime, romantic comedies, stand-up comedy, documentaries and reality television.
The Netflix CEO added that it's important to always be innovating and always focus on the consumer.
"Think about it not as critics, not as media executives, think about it from the perspective of a fan."
During his speech, Sarandos recalled how his job as a video rental store clerk provided lessons on appealing to movie fans and making sure Netflix provides recommendations to its users.
"I loved recommending something new or unexpected to our customers. That experience taught me to think about putting the audience first."
Sarandos also channels legendary Apple Inc co-founder and former CEO Steve Jobs, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter. During his speech in London, Sarandos recalled Jobs saying that cannibalizing is a successful business trait and a key to growth, as if you don't cannibalize your business, someone else will.
In the early days of Netflix's streaming efforts, the CEO noted that the company’s biggest competitors were piracy and its own DVD business.
Why It's Important: The comments from Sarandos come as Netflix continues to evolve, adding an ad-supported plan to increase its customer base and allow more consumption of its original and acquired content.
Netflix is also pushing deeper into live content with comedy specials, live sports and special events.
Sarandos also highlighted how Netflix customers win with the company's pricing and release window strategy.
"Today, our members can watch a world of entertainment for a fraction of the price of a box set of ‘The Sopranos' in 2007. And they don't have to wait two months for all the episodes of a show to come out or for a film to finish its theatrical run," Sarandos said.
Sarandos said consumers don't care about release windows, and Netflix's scale helps the company avoid having to show movies in theaters.
"It's unique to Netflix that we have enough scale. We can uniquely spend $200 million on a film and have enough scale of viewership to put it directly on Netflix without trying to recover some of the economics in the theater, which I think is a fairly inefficient way to distribute some movies."
While speaking in London, Sarandos also highlighted how Netflix has expanded its footprint in the country and some of its biggest hits have been produced in the United Kingdom. Sarandos said "Fool Me Once," "Baby Reindeer," "Bridgerton" and "The Gentlemen" reached a combined 360 million households and were the top four shows for the streaming giant.
Netflix will release its audience engagement report on Thursday, which could provide deeper clues into what content is working best.
NFLX Price Action: Netflix stock is up 1% to $701.32 on Tuesday, versus a 52-week trading range of $344.73 to $711.33. Netflix stock is up 50% year-to-date in 2024.
Read Next:
Photo: Shutterstock
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Comments
Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about.
