Netflix to rein in movie output, slash jobs in restructuring push

By Scott Kanowsky 

Investing.com — Shares in Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:) inched higher in premarket U.S. trading on Friday after Bloomberg News reported that the streaming giant is overhauling its film division.

Movie unit head Scott Stuber is aiming to rein in the number of titles the company produces to ensure that the films are of higher quality, according to Bloomberg. Netflix has typically far outpaced its peers in Hollywood in terms of annual movie output, churning out around 50 pictures per year.

As part of the restructuring, the group will bring together its divisions that make small and medium-sized feature-length projects, Bloomberg reported. The move will result in some layoffs, as well as the departure of long-time executives.

Decision-making inside the company will now be more centralized, Bloomberg said, as Stuber looks to encourage more top-level collaboration. Previously, Netflix went on a hiring spree to staff several relatively-autonomous segments that were tasked with producing movies with small-, medium- and large-range budgets.

The changes come after Netflix axed hundreds of jobs last year in an effort to offset slowing subscriber growth through cost cuts. It has also offered customers a cheaper streaming plan with advertising and cracked down on account sharing between users, all in a bid to boost revenues.