By Adam Satariano, Ari Levy and Ronald Grover
Dec. 29 (Bloomberg) — Netflix Inc. Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos bypassed Hollywood to jump-start the company’s online film-rental business last year. Now he has to convince the studios the company is a friend and not a foe.
Chief Executive Officer Reed Hastings is counting on Sarandos to cut deals with studios giving Netflix rights to show more films over the Web. Sarandos, 45, says he is willing to write big checks after Netflix went around Walt Disney Co. and Sony Corp. to gain access to movies from the Starz network.
“We have to fight against their fear that we’ll destroy the ecosystem,” Sarandos, a former video-store clerk, said at a Dec. 16 panel discussion. “We’re not destroying anything. We’re creating a new opportunity.”
