LOS ANGELES, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Netflix co-founder Reed
Hastings is stepping down as chief executive of the streaming
video pioneer but will remain at the company as executive
chairman, he announced on Thursday.Greg Peters, who was serving as chief operating officer and
chief product officer, will become co-CEO alongside Ted
Sarandos, Hastings said in a blog post.Hastings said he had been increasingly delegating management
to Peters and Sarandos for more than two years. Sarandos was
elevated to co-CEO in July 2020."It was a baptism by fire, given COVID and recent challenges
within our business," Hastings wrote."But they’ve both managed incredibly well, ensuring Netflix
continues to improve and developing a clear path to reaccelerate
our revenue and earnings growth. So the board and I believe it’s
the right time to complete my succession," he added.Netflix has been under pressure from restrained consumer
spending and competition from Walt Disney Co, Amazon.com
Inc and others spending billions of dollars to make TV
shows and movies for online audiences.In the first half of 2022, Netflix shocked Wall Street by
losing customers. The company returned to growth in the second
half.Hastings, 62, said he planned to work with Sarandos and
Hastings as executive chairman for "many years to come."Netflix also promoted Bela Bajaria to chief content officer.
(Reporting by Lisa Richwine and Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles
Editing by Kenneth Li and Matthew Lewis)