Ted Sarandos was just named co-chief executive at Netflix and already he faces a difficult task: soothing investor anxiety about slowing growth at the video-streaming giant.
The company tapped its longtime chief content officer to take the top job, alongside current chief executive Reed Hastings, on a day when it delivered a disappointing subscriber forecast and sent its shares plunging as much as 15 per cent in late trading.
The world’s largest paid streaming service expects to sign up 2.5 million new subscribers in the third quarter, compared with the more than 5 million expected on Wall Street.
That’s a steep comedown from Netflix’s ferocious growth in the first half of the year, when pandemic-fuelled lockdowns sent consumers scrambling to sign up for the service. Netflix added 10.1m new paid customers in the second quarter, beating Wall Street’s average estimate of 8.27m. And the company finished the second quarter with almost 193m subscribers.
Netflix warned in April that its growth would slow in the coming months, but investors were hoping to be pleasantly surprised. They bid up the company’s shares to record highs in recent weeks. The stock is up more than 60 per cent for the year, vaulting Netflix’s market value past the likes of Walt Disney.
The change at the top was another curve ball for investors -- co-CEO arrangements often aren’t successful -- but Mr Hastings and Mr Sarandos have already worked together for decades and the title just made their existing partnership official, Netflix said.
Mr Hastings, 59, has run Netflix from its Silicon Valley base in Los Gatos, California. The 55-year-old Mr Sarandos, meanwhile, is more like the head of a studio, operating from Los Angeles.
The global pandemic has been a boon for Netflix, accelerating the shift toward online, on-demand TV and movies around the globe. With movie theaters, concert venues and sports arenas still closed to patrons in much of the world, people stuck at home have turned to Netflix and other streaming services for entertainment.
The company also scored big hits with original movies, including “Extraction” and “The Wrong Missy,” as well as reality TV shows “The Floor Is Lava."
Yet the company has warned that the surge in new customers makes it harder to maintain that pace.
“When we think about the guidance for the third quarter, we’re not thinking about it just in itself,” chief financial officer Spencer Neumann said on a call with analysts. “We just added 10 million members, which is the largest growth we’ve ever had in the second quarter.”
Netflix also downplayed concerns that it will run out of new content soon. While production halted in almost every country due to the pandemic, Netflix has said it already has the programming it needs for this year and the first half of 2021.
The streaming service has released more than 30 movies since mid-March, and has had particular success with star-driven action films like “Extraction” and “The Old Guard.”
“Extraction,” starring Chris Hemsworth, delivered the biggest audience of any Netflix original movie in its first four weeks.
“We want to have so many hits that you know when you come to Netflix, you can just go from hit to hit to hit, and never have to think about any of those other services,” Mr Hastings said on the call.
The second quarter results were unusual in that the US and Canada provided the largest boost in new customers. While that remains Netflix’s largest region, growth there has been slower of late because of how many people are already customers.
On a regional basis, the US-Canada market led with 2.94m new customers. Europe, the Middle East and Africa added 2.75m, bringing the total there to 61.5m. Netflix gained 2.66m customers in Asia and 1.75m in Latin America.
Second-quarter revenue rose to $6.15 billion (Dh22.6bn), beating the average of analysts’ forecasts. But earnings of $1.59 a share fell short.
The company also faces plenty of competition. In addition to contending with new streaming services from Apple, Disney, Comcast's NBCUniversal and AT&T's WarnerMedia, Netflix cited the TikTok video app as a rival on Thursday.
Netflix shares fell as low as $449.65 in after-market trading, putting an end to one of the biggest rallies of the year. The company’s valuation was almost $232bn at the close of trading on Thursday.
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The%20specs
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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Racecard
6.30pm: Mazrat Al Ruwayah Group Two (PA) US$55,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
7.05pm: Meydan Trophy (TB) $100,000 (Turf) 1,900m
7.40pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (D) 1,200m
8.15pm: Balanchine Group Two (TB) $250,000 (T) 1,800m
8.50pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (T) 1,000m
9.25pm: Firebreak Stakes Group Three (TB) $200,000 (D) 1,600m
10pm: Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 2,410m
The National selections: 6.30pm: RM Lam Tara, 7.05pm: Al Mukhtar Star, 7.40pm: Bochart, 8.15pm: Magic Lily, 8.50pm: Roulston Scar, 9.25pm: Quip, 10pm: Jalmoud
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
THREE
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SCHEDULE
Saturday, April 20: 11am to 7pm - Abu Dhabi World Jiu-Jitsu Festival and Para jiu-jitsu.
Sunday, April 21: 11am to 6pm - Abu Dhabi World Youth (female) Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Monday, April 22: 11am to 6pm - Abu Dhabi World Youth (male) Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Tuesday, April 23: 11am-6pm Abu Dhabi World Masters Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Wednesday, April 24: 11am-6pm Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Thursday, April 25: 11am-5pm Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Friday, April 26: 3pm to 6pm Finals of the Abu Dhabi World Professional Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
Saturday, April 27: 4pm and 8pm awards ceremony.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Brief scoreline:
Manchester United 0
Manchester City 2
Bernardo Silva 54', Sane 66'
Brief scores
Barcelona 2
Pique 36', Alena 87'
Villarreal 0
More from UAE Human Development Report:
The schedule
December 5 - 23: Shooting competition, Al Dhafra Shooting Club
December 9 - 24: Handicrafts competition, from 4pm until 10pm, Heritage Souq
December 11 - 20: Dates competition, from 4pm
December 12 - 20: Sour milk competition
December 13: Falcon beauty competition
December 14 and 20: Saluki races
December 15: Arabian horse races, from 4pm
December 16 - 19: Falconry competition
December 18: Camel milk competition, from 7.30 - 9.30 am
December 20 and 21: Sheep beauty competition, from 10am
December 22: The best herd of 30 camels
Prop idols
Girls full-contact rugby may be in its infancy in the Middle East, but there are already a number of role models for players to look up to.
Sophie Shams (Dubai Exiles mini, England sevens international)
An Emirati student who is blazing a trail in rugby. She first learnt the game at Dubai Exiles and captained her JESS Primary school team. After going to study geophysics at university in the UK, she scored a sensational try in a cup final at Twickenham. She has played for England sevens, and is now contracted to top Premiership club Saracens.
----
Seren Gough-Walters (Sharjah Wanderers mini, Wales rugby league international)
Few players anywhere will have taken a more circuitous route to playing rugby on Sky Sports. Gough-Walters was born in Al Wasl Hospital in Dubai, raised in Sharjah, did not take up rugby seriously till she was 15, has a master’s in global governance and ethics, and once worked as an immigration officer at the British Embassy in Abu Dhabi. In the summer of 2021 she played for Wales against England in rugby league, in a match that was broadcast live on TV.
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Erin King (Dubai Hurricanes mini, Ireland sevens international)
Aged five, Australia-born King went to Dubai Hurricanes training at The Sevens with her brothers. She immediately struck up a deep affection for rugby. She returned to the city at the end of last year to play at the Dubai Rugby Sevens in the colours of Ireland in the Women’s World Series tournament on Pitch 1.
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Dengue%20fever%20symptoms
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How to help or find other cats to adopt
Company%20Profile
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The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
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Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
How to help
Call the hotline on 0502955999 or send "thenational" to the following numbers:
2289 - Dh10
2252 - Dh50
6025 - Dh20
6027 - Dh100
6026 - Dh200
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
The Prison Letters of Nelson Mandela
Edited by Sahm Venter
Published by Liveright
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
