Netflix added 8.5 million subscribers in its recent fourth quarter, helping the streamer pass a milestone — 200 million global subscribers. To commemorate the occasion, staffers were given Jan. 22 and Jan. 25 off.
Ahead of the free days, co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Reed Hastings hosted a virtual gathering with employees, during which Hastings’ screen froze, leaving Sarandos to take over and proving that even tech giants aren’t immune to tech issues.
Hastings kept up with his celebratory tradition of having a Denny’s steak dinner — the meal he ate the day Netflix hit 1 million subscribers, and again when it hit 100 million — tweeting that he ordered in via Denny’s on Demand.
The milestone helped Netflix exceed Wall Street expectations, and during a January call, the company reported that 83 percent of its new subscribers in 2020 came from outside the U.S. and Canada. During the fourth quarter, its biggest subscriber gains came from Europe, the Middle East and Africa, where it added 4.46 million paying members.
A version of this story first appeared in the Feb. 3 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.
