CNBC
Netflix announced on Thursday that Bela Bajaria will step down as chief content officer, with former Disney executive Peter Rice set to take her place effective October 26.
Rice has extensive experience in the entertainment sector, most recently overseeing Disney's cable channels, news programming, and major sports event coverage.
"Peter is one of the most effective at-scale operators in the entertainment industry," stated co-CEO Ted Sarandos. "I’m excited to welcome him to Netflix as Chief Content Officer as we continue to scale and deliver members more of the stories they love.”
Before joining Disney, Rice held significant roles at 21st Century Fox and Fox Searchlight Pictures. Netflix characterized him as "one of the entertainment industry's most respected creative executives." In his new position, Rice will manage the company’s global content organization, which includes scripted and unscripted series, films, and live events.
"[Netflix has] shown again and again that they're willing to take chances on distinctive voices and fresh ideas, and I'm excited to work with the team to help bring even more great stories to members everywhere," he remarked in a statement.
Bajaria, who has been with Netflix for nearly a decade, most recently led the company’s global content team, directing efforts focused on the company's live sports strategy aimed at creating events around popular games and tournaments.
"I'm incredibly grateful for everything she's done to help Netflix entertain the world," Sarandos said in his statement.
This announcement follows a significant restructuring within Netflix, which recently implemented layoffs affecting roughly 6% of its workforce, amounting to about 1,000 jobs. Despite a more than 20% decline in shares this year, the company’s stock price remained relatively stable in after-hours trading on Thursday.
Netflix is scheduled to report its next quarterly earnings on Tuesday.
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