Netflix’s Reed Hastings to Become Chairman, Dropping Status as an Executive Director

Netflix founder Reed Hastings has stepped down from his executive chairman role at the streaming service. He will now serve as chairman of the board and in a non-executive director position.

Hastings’ role change was announced in Netflix’s latest quarterly earnings report Thursday, with the streaming giant calling the move “part of the natural evolution of our leadership structure and succession planning.” Also included in the financials was the news that Netflix’s longest-standing independent director Tim Haley will not stand for re-election.

“For more than 27 years, Tim has been on this journey with us and his counsel and leadership have been a much valued part of our success,” Netflix said in a letter to shareholders. “We thank Tim for his long service and many contributions to the Netflix Board of Directors.”

Netflix reported Q1 revenue of $10.54 billion, up 12.5%, and earnings per share of $6.61 (compared with $5.28 a year prior). This January-to-March quarter marks the first quarter Netflix has stopped disclosing subscriber counts, as the company wants to focus the narrative on financials and user engagement.

On average, Wall Street analysts expected $10.51 billion in revenue and earnings of $5.66 per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.

Netflix says the revenue was driven primarily by membership growth and higher pricing. “Revenue was modestly above our guidance due to slightly higher-than-forecasted subscription and ad revenue (which is still very small relative to subscription revenue),” the company said.

For Q2, Netflix expect revenue growth of 15% “as we see the full quarter benefit from recent price changes and continued growth in membership and advertising revenue.”