Netflix Hires Former Universal Television President
October 05 2016 - 12:40PM
Dow Jones News
Streaming video giant Netflix Inc. is beefing up its programming
team by naming Bela Bajaria vice president of content, a
wide-ranging role that will include developing original shows and
acquiring the rights to existing ones.
A former president of NBCUniversal's Universal Television, Ms.
Bajaria worked closely with Netflix on such shows as "Master of
None" and "The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt," both of which are
produced by the NBC production unit. She succeeds Sean Carey who is
leaving the company.
In her new role, Ms. Bajaria will lead Netflix's licensing of
television shows and movies from the major Hollywood studios and
networks.
Netflix has been spending heavily on both acquired content and
original series and movies. The company has said it would spend
more than $5 billion creating and buying content this year. It is
becoming more aggressive in acquiring television series from
broadcast and cable networks and securing international rights. For
example, the company recently bought international rights to a new
"Star Trek" series that CBS will be streaming on its digital
platform CBS All Access next year.
Given its importance to the profitability of shows—Netflix
commitments can help ensure a show is in the black even before it
airs—the streaming service is looking to have a say in the
production process. In announcing Ms. Bajaria's hiring, the company
said it wants to move "spending away from traditional licensing
into co-production and development partnerships with studios and
networks."
"We know we have found the perfect executive to lead this new
effort," said Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos, to whom
Ms. Bajaria will report. She will assume her new position on Nov.
1.
On the creative front, Ms. Bajaria will oversee development of
original unscripted content for Netflix. The service has had great
success with documentaries and recently launched a talk show from
Chelsea Handler. Ms. Bajaria is being tasked with pushing Netflix
further into the unscripted world with regular series.
Ms. Bajaria left Universal Television earlier this year after
clashing with executives at the studio's sister network NBC. While
Universal Television had become very successful selling shows to
Fox and CBS, its output for NBC wasn't as strong, which became a
sticking point. Prior to NBC, Ms. Bajaria held senior programming
posts at CBS.
Write to Joe Flint at joe.flint@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 05, 2016 12:25 ET (16:25 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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