Hastings To Exit Netflix Board, Revenue Jumps 16 Percent

Netflix Chairman and co-founder Reed Hastings will leave the company’s board when his term expires in June, the company said Thursday, saying he will not stand for re-election so he can focus on philanthropy and other pursuits.

Shares fell more than 8% in after-hours trading after Netflix issued disappointing guidance alongside its quarterly report. The results, Netflix said, were its first earnings since abandoning a deal to buy Warner Bros. Discovery’s studios and HBO Max.

Reed Hastings

Hastings, who led Netflix’s transformation from a DVD-by-mail service into a streaming giant, said his contribution was “a focus on member joy, building a culture that others could inherit and improve, and building a company that could be both beloved by members and wildly successful for generations to come.”

For the quarter, Netflix reported revenue of $12.25 billion, up 16.2% year over year, and net income of $5.28 billion, up nearly 83%, driven by subscriber growth, higher pricing and increased advertising revenue. In March, Netflix raised U.S. subscription prices: the ad-supported plan to $8.99, standard to $19.99 and premium to $26.99.

Netflix, the biggest subscription streaming video service, spent months in a fight to take over Warner’s studios and HBO Max. Netflix in December struck a deal to buy the entertainment assets for $72 billion. The pact, if cleared by regulators, would have added HBO Max to Netflix’s arsenal and would have expanded the company’s reach in theatrical movie releases.