Going into 2023, Netflix remains the biggest titan among the streaming giants. This past year was a bit bumpy, with the number of subscribers noticeably falling this past spring, but the success of hits like Stranger Things Season 4 during the summer and Wednesday in the most recent quarter have helped propel a bounce back. Reflecting this, the company's top executives will be getting compensated quite well in the coming twelves months, as a trade report has revealed a pair of eight-figure pay packages.
Variety has the details of the contracts that Netflix co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Reed Hastings have in effect for the coming year, and both wealthy men are positioned to earn quite a lot of money. In Sarandos' case, the executive will be seeing his base salary shrink by $17 million – from $20 million to $3 million – but he will be eligible to earn that $17 million back as a performance bonus. He will additionally get $20 million in stock options, meaning he could be looking at a potential payout of $40 million for his work in 2023.
In addition to being co-CEO, Ted Sarandos is also the streaming service's chief content officer.
Reed Hastings, who is co-CEO and chairman of Netflix, will be paid a base salary of $650,000 and get $34 million in stock options.
These deals come as a result of a new SEC filing acquired by the trade says that a salary cap of $3 million has been put in place for the co-CEOS while a performance-based cash bonus program has been set up for the first time since the 2018 calendar year.
The company had an interesting year not only because of the roller coaster subscriber numbers in the first half of 2022, but because of the launch of a new Netflix subscription tier this fall – specifically one that allows users to opt in for advertisements in exchange for a reduced monthly cost. Netflix’s “Basic with Ads” plan costs $6.99 a month, while other options offered range between $9.99 (which offers streaming content in 720p quality) and $19.99 (which offers subscribers with 4K-ready devices to watch movies and shows in UHD and HDR).
It's one of multiple changes that we've seen come to Netflix. It was announced this past November that the streaming service is teaming up with Chris Rock for a live stand-up special – the first of its kind on the platform. A date for the event has not been officially set.
Between Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Apple TV+, HBO Max, Peacock, and Paramount+, the streaming world is rather wild right now, and we'll have to see what kind of innovation that the competition ultimately inspires. One this is for certain: Ted Sarandos and Reed Hastings are being paid a whole lot of money to try and keep their company on top of the heap.
