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Netflix Hires Steve Wilson to Lead Podcast Acquisitions
Confirmed
In Short: Netflix has hired former Apple Podcasts executive Steve Wilson to lead its podcast acquisitions, signaling a more serious push into the podcasting space.
Wilson's hiring comes at a time when Netflix is expanding its podcast offerings. The streamer currently carries more than 60 video podcasts, including true-crime shows and talk shows, as reported by Variety and The Hollywood Reporter.
Netflix has also licensed podcasts from iHeartMedia and Barstool, and launched its own podcasts, such as 'The Pete Davidson Show,' according to Media Play News and The Hollywood Reporter. Wilson's role suggests a more aggressive strategy in podcasting, particularly as the company recently announced plans to cut about 6 percent of its workforce, or about 1,000 people.
Wilson left Apple in 2020 and joined QCode as Chief Strategy Officer, overseeing partnerships, marketing, distribution, and content strategy, as reported by Deadline. His expertise in podcasting and content strategy is expected to help Netflix navigate the competitive landscape.
Netflix's move to hire Wilson follows a period of restructuring and layoffs, as the company aims to be more disciplined about where it prioritizes its people and resources, according to Variety. The layoffs, which began earlier this month, are the largest staff reduction at Netflix since 2022.
Wilson's hiring also comes amid a broader consolidation in the entertainment industry. Paramount Skydance recently acquired Warner Bros. Discovery, and the FCC approved the acquisition, stipulating that foreign investors could not hold voting stock, as reported by Straitstimes (Singapore).
The acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery by Paramount Skydance is expected to settle an antitrust lawsuit that sought to block the merger, according to reports on Monday. The deal, which was pursued by Paramount a little more than a year ago, follows Ellison's $8.4 billion acquisition of Paramount through Skydance, as reported by Flickdirect.
Wilson's role at Netflix will be crucial in helping the company compete in the crowded podcasting market, where Apple has more than $200 billion in cash and is poised to increase its fiscal largess following the implementation of President Trump’s corporate tax cuts, according to Media Play News.
What's confirmed
- Wilson spent 15 years at Apple, working across editorial, partner relations and marketing.
- Variety reported in September that Netflix carries more than 60 video podcasts.
- Netflix has also licensed podcasts from iHeartMedia and Barstool, as well as launched its own podcasts, including “The Pete Davidson Show,” among others.
What's still developing
- Netflix also began streaming Charlamagne Tha God's live show, The Breakfast Club, in May.
- RELATED: Reed Hastings On Netflix Shakeup, YouTube Rivalry And How Streamer Can Go Back To “Being Thrilling” Earlier this month, Netflix laid off 6% of its global staff, about 1,000 jobs.
- Wilson joins initially as a consultant, with Netflix facing competition from YouTube, which is offering creators millions of dollars to stay on its platform, while podcasting remains a small part of Netflix’s content spending.
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- The streamer’s original lineup of video podcasts currently includes true-crime show “Murder With My Husband”; talk show “The Pete Davidson Show” hosted by the “Saturday Night Live” alum; pop-culture interview show “Shut Up Evan” hosted by Evan Ross Katz; “The Puzzle Room With David Kwong”; and “Allegedly,” a true-crime podcast from NBC News correspondent Ellison Barber.
- “Our mission — to entertain the world — is ambitious, and delivering on it requires us to be disciplined about where we prioritize our people and resources,” the co-CEOs said in the memo, a copy of which was obtained by Variety.
- In July, attorneys general from 12 states, led by California Attorney General Rob Bonta, sued to block the Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition, arguing that combining the companies would reduce competition across film, television and streaming.
- The October 6 closing ends the acquisition process but begins a new period of court-enforceable commitments.
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- Paramount said the merger will have the scale and resources necessary to deliver premium content to audiences worldwide.
- It also said foreign investors can have no voting stock and “will not have any influence, direction, or control over or provide any commentary or guidance on Paramount’s content decisions, company management”, or access to non-public data on US citizens.
- Her departure follows the exit of her former boss, Paramount Chair of Direct-To-Consumer Cindy Holland, on the eve of Paramount’s acquisition of Warner Bros.