Netflix taps Disney veteran Peter Rice as chief content officer, replacing Bela Bajaria

Netflix announced Thursday that former Disney executive Peter Rice will become its chief content officer, replacing 10-year company veteran Bela Bajaria. Rice will run the global content organisation, covering scripted and unscripted series, film and live events.

Bajaria joined Netflix in 2016 to build an unscripted division and work on licensing and studio co-productions, and later rose to lead the global content team with a focus on live sports strategy. She oversaw a $20 billion content budget and shows including "Stranger Things," "Wednesday," "Bridgerton," "Squid Game," "Adolescence" and "Beef," plus films such as "Frankenstein" and "KPop Demon Hunters." She also drove Netflix's push into live sports and events, including deals with WWE and the NFL and programmes like "The Roast of Tom Brady."

Cost cuts and slowing engagement

The leadership change lands days after Netflix cut roughly 1,000 jobs, about 6% of its staff — its biggest round of layoffs since 2022, when the company posted its first quarterly subscriber decline in more than a decade.

BMO Capital Markets analyst Brian Pitz wrote in a research note published Friday that the cuts look more like structural changes to the cost base than a response to near-term subscriber trends. Wall Street is braced for further turbulence: "The sudden departure of Bajaria likely signals to us that user engagement may have remained soft throughout [the third quarter]," Pitz wrote.

In July, Netflix said viewership grew just 2% in the first half of the year, with the service short of shows that generate widespread buzz. Co-CEO Ted Sarandos conceded at last month's Bloomberg Screentime conference that the company is "not growing as fast as I want us to."

Nielsen reported in July that Netflix accounted for 7.8% of TV viewership, while YouTube took nearly double that share at 14.2%. Netflix has responded by expanding into live sports, documentaries and video games. Wells Fargo analyst Steven Cahall warned last month that the risk of recasting Netflix as a broader content hub is missing breakout originals, calling hits "a must for the stock to work again."

Rice's track record

Rice was most recently chairman of Walt Disney Television and chairman of general entertainment, managing broadcast and streaming channels including ABC, Disney Channel, Hulu and FX Networks. He oversaw production of more than 300 shows, among them "American Idol," "Modern Family," "Abbott Elementary," "The Bear," "Only Murders in the Building" and "Shogun," and headed coverage of the Super Bowl, NBA Finals and FIFA World Cup. Disney collected roughly 300 Primetime Emmy nominations and nearly 60 wins across its networks and platforms in 2021 and 2022.

Netflix's Emmy haul has slipped, from a record-tying 44 trophies in 2021 to 16 this year, its smallest in a decade.

Before Disney, Rice was president of 21st Century Fox and CEO of Fox Networks Group, and served as Fox's lead executive on the Hulu board. As president of Fox Searchlight Pictures he worked on releases including "Slumdog Millionaire," "Juno," "Little Miss Sunshine" and "Sideways." After Disney CEO Bob Chapek ousted him in mid-2022, he became an independent producer, with credits including "Saturday Night" and "28 Years Later." He is developing a film adaptation of the video game "Elden Ring."

Netflix is also getting an executive with theatrical experience as it weighs further deals. Late last year it agreed to buy Warner Bros. Discovery's film studio and streaming assets but was outbid by Paramount Skydance, which completed the acquisition in early October. Wedbush analyst Alicia Reese wrote Thursday that Rice's long tenure at Fox and then Disney gives him insight into studio consolidation, relevant "if Netflix chooses to go after another studio."

Netflix reports fiscal third-quarter earnings on Tuesday.

Source: CNBC.