Netflix is shaking up its executive leadership as the company seeks to further build a version of its streaming service that is supported by advertisements.
This week, the company said Amy Reinhard (pictured) will take over as president of its ad business following the sudden departure of Jeremi Gorman, who served in the same role for a little over a year.
In a statement on Wednesday, Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters thanked Gorman for her work, acknowledging that she essentially built the streaming service's advertising business from the ground up, which "built the foundations we need to succeed, adding world-class brands to Netflix and an incredible team."
But, moving forward, Peters said Reinhard's "strength in TV and film" — she most recently worked as the vice president of studio operations at Netflix — were "critical for the success of our ads business."
"In her nearly seven years at Netflix, Amy has proven to be an exceptionally strong leader, with a deep understanding of the entertainment business and consumer tastes as well as the ability to build lasting partnerships across the industry," Peters said.
The change-up comes several days after Nielsen announced Netflix was to use its Nielsen One Ads product, which enables marketers to receive key insights into the reach and return of their campaigns on Netflix and compare them to key performance metrics on other video platforms.
After more than a decade of offering commercial-free streaming access to its library of TV series and films, Netflix launched its ad-supported tier last year as a way to offer a lower-price option to budget-conscious subscribers while simultaneously generating additional revenue from its content.
In May, Netflix reported it had around 5 million customers on its ad-supported tier in countries where it is available. The company has a target of getting 40 million customers on the ad-supported plan by the end of this year.
In a statement on Wednesday, Gorman said she found personal satisfaction in "scaling businesses from the early stages, which I have done many times, [and] none more exciting than Netflix."
"We’ve built a world-class team and laid the foundations needed to create a forever ads business. The stories at Netflix are second-to-none, and brands are eager to be a part of that zeitgeist," Gorman said. "Working alongside Amy on the leadership team for the past year, I’ve seen her operational excellence and entertainment expertise firsthand, which will help enable brands to benefit from ‘The Netflix Effect’ in new and remarkable ways."
Also this week, Netflix said it was promoting two of its executives to oversee its technology and product teams.
Elizabeth Stone, who joined Netflix three years ago to lead the company's data and insights team, will serve as the streamer's chief technology officer. Eunice Kim, the head of Netflix's consumer product innovations team, was promoted to chief product officer at the company. Both executives have lengthy resumes working for other technology companies, including Google, Adobe and Lyft.
"Elizabeth and Eunice have strong track records at Netflix and more broadly within the technology industry," Peters said. "Together they will be leading a hugely important part of our service, so I’m excited to see all the ways in which they can improve the Netflix experience, making it even easier for people to find the right movie, series, or game at the right moment."