Greg Peters
| Greg Peters | |
| Nationality | American |
|---|---|
| Occupation | Business executive |
| Title | Co-CEO of Netflix |
| Known for | Co-CEO of Netflix |
Greg Peters is an American business executive who serves as co-CEO of Netflix, the global streaming entertainment company. Peters assumed the co-CEO role in 2023 alongside Ted Sarandos, following a career at Netflix that spanned multiple senior leadership positions across the company's product, technology, and business operations.[1] In his role as co-CEO, Peters has been instrumental in shaping Netflix's corporate strategy during a period of significant transformation in the media and entertainment industry, including the company's pursuit of large-scale acquisitions. As of early 2026, Peters and Sarandos have been leading Netflix's effort to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery in a deal valued at approximately $83 billion, one of the largest proposed transactions in media history.[2] The proposed acquisition has drawn competing interest from Paramount Global, led by David Ellison, setting the stage for one of the most consequential corporate battles in the entertainment sector.[3]
Career
Netflix
Greg Peters built his career at Netflix through a series of progressively senior roles that encompassed the company's product development, technology infrastructure, and business strategy. Over the course of his tenure, Peters gained extensive experience in the operational and strategic dimensions of the streaming business, positioning him as a key figure in the company's executive leadership.
Appointment as Co-CEO
In 2023, Peters was elevated to the position of co-CEO of Netflix, sharing the role with Ted Sarandos.[1] The co-CEO structure at Netflix represented a continuation of the company's leadership model, which had previously featured founder Reed Hastings sharing executive authority. Peters' appointment reflected his deep institutional knowledge and his contributions to Netflix's growth as a global streaming platform. In the co-CEO arrangement, Peters and Sarandos have divided responsibilities, with Peters focusing on areas including product strategy, technology, and business operations while Sarandos has concentrated on content and creative strategy.
Warner Bros. Discovery Acquisition
The most significant corporate undertaking of Peters' tenure as co-CEO has been Netflix's pursuit of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), a deal that, if completed, would represent one of the largest media transactions in history. Netflix's bid for Warner Bros. Discovery was reported to be valued at approximately $83 billion, encompassing the conglomerate's film and television studios as well as its streaming service, HBO Max.[2]
Peters and Sarandos have been actively engaged in lobbying regulators and investors to secure approval for the deal.[2] The acquisition effort has been complicated by a competing bid from Paramount Global, led by David Ellison, which has sought to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery as an alternative to the Netflix transaction.[3] In early 2026, Paramount sweetened its offer for Warner Bros. Discovery to above $30 per share, intensifying the bidding contest.[3]
Peters has been vocal in his criticism of Paramount's competing bid. In remarks reported by The Hollywood Reporter in January 2026, Peters stated that Paramount's bid for Warner Bros. "doesn't pass the sniff test," signaling Netflix's confidence in the superiority of its own offer and questioning the strategic rationale behind Paramount's proposal.[4]
The proposed deal has generated significant attention within the media industry. A report by consulting firm KPMG noted that media deal values surged to $250 billion in the preceding year, driven in significant part by the Netflix-Warner Bros. transaction and a broader industry trend toward premium content consolidation.[5] The KPMG report characterized the dealmaking environment as one focused on "quality, not quantity," with "fewer deals but far bigger swings."[5]
Within Warner Bros. Discovery itself, reporting by Variety in February 2026 indicated that the mood among many staffers had shifted in favor of the Netflix acquisition over a potential Paramount takeover. According to the report, a majority of Warner Bros. Discovery employees were supportive of Netflix's deal, which they viewed as offering greater stability and strategic alignment compared to the Paramount alternative.[6]
In February 2026, Warner Bros. Discovery set a date for a shareholder vote on the Netflix deal while simultaneously seeking to extract a "best and final" offer from Paramount. As reported by The Hollywood Reporter, Netflix gave Warner Bros. Discovery a seven-day window to engage with Paramount in an effort to resolve outstanding concerns and potentially secure a higher competing bid before the vote proceeded.[7]
Strategic Vision and Public Statements
In January 2026, Peters participated in an in-depth interview with technology and business analyst Ben Thompson on the Stratechery platform. The interview covered Peters' perspectives on Netflix's engagement strategy and the rationale behind the Warner Bros. acquisition.[1] The conversation provided insight into Peters' approach to the streaming business, including how Netflix measures and prioritizes viewer engagement as a core metric for success.
Peters' public statements during this period reflected a strategic focus on content consolidation and global expansion as central pillars of Netflix's growth strategy. The Warner Bros. Discovery deal, in particular, represented an effort to bring together Netflix's global streaming distribution platform with Warner Bros.' extensive library of intellectual property, including franchises associated with HBO, Warner Bros. Pictures, and other entertainment properties.
Global Expansion Initiatives
Under the co-CEO leadership of Peters and Sarandos, Netflix has continued to pursue international expansion. In February 2026, the company announced the opening of a new office in Mexico City, an event that underscored Netflix's ongoing investment in Latin American content production and operations. The opening was attended by Francisco Ramos, Netflix's Vice President of Content for Latin America, and Manola Zabalza, Secretary of Economic Development for Mexico City, among other officials.[8] The new office reflected Netflix's broader strategy of establishing a physical presence in key international markets to support local content creation and strengthen relationships with regional talent and governments.
Legacy
Greg Peters' impact on Netflix and the broader streaming industry is most clearly evident in the company's strategic direction under his co-CEO tenure. His elevation to the co-CEO role in 2023 marked a transition in Netflix's leadership from the founding era under Reed Hastings to a new phase focused on operational maturity, global scale, and strategic consolidation within the entertainment industry.[1]
The pursuit of the Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition, which Peters has co-led with Sarandos, represents a defining chapter not only for Netflix but for the media industry as a whole. If completed, the deal would create a combined entity controlling one of the largest libraries of film and television content in the world, along with a global streaming distribution network serving hundreds of millions of subscribers. The scale of the proposed transaction — reported at approximately $83 billion — places it among the largest corporate acquisitions ever attempted in the entertainment sector.[2]
Peters' leadership style, as reflected in his public statements and interviews, has emphasized data-driven decision-making, viewer engagement as a guiding metric, and a pragmatic approach to competitive dynamics in the streaming market.[1] His pointed criticism of Paramount's competing bid for Warner Bros. Discovery demonstrated a willingness to engage directly in the public discourse surrounding major corporate transactions, a departure from the more reserved posture that Netflix executives had sometimes adopted in earlier years.[4]
The media industry's broader trajectory toward consolidation, as documented by KPMG's analysis of deal values reaching $250 billion, provides context for the significance of Peters' strategic choices. Under his and Sarandos' leadership, Netflix has positioned itself at the center of this consolidation wave, seeking to acquire premium content assets rather than relying solely on organic content development.[5]
As the Warner Bros. Discovery deal process continued to unfold in early 2026, with competing bids, regulatory scrutiny, and shareholder votes still ahead, the outcome stood to shape not only Peters' legacy but the structure of the global media landscape for years to come.[7][3]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "An Interview with Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters About Engagement and Warner Bros.".Stratechery.2026-01.https://stratechery.com/2026/an-interview-with-netflix-ceo-greg-peters-about-engagement-and-warner-bros/.Retrieved 2026-02-24.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Ted Sarandos, Greg Peters Fight to Lock in Netflix's Warner Bros. Discovery Deal".Observer.2026-02-20.https://observer.com/2026/02/netflix-wbd-acquisition-ted-sarandos-greg-peters-playbook/.Retrieved 2026-02-24.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "Paramount Sweetens Offer For Warner Bros. Discovery".Deadline.2026-02-24.https://deadline.com/2026/02/paramount-sweents-offer-warner-bros-discovery-1236733836/.Retrieved 2026-02-24.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Netflix Co-CEO Greg Peters Says Paramount's Bid for Warner Bros. "Doesn't Pass the Sniff Test"".The Hollywood Reporter.2026-01.https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/netflix-greg-peters-rips-paramount-bid-warners-sniff-test-1236482712/.Retrieved 2026-02-24.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Media Deals Value Surges to $250 Billion Last Year, Driven by Netflix-Warner Bros., Premium Content".The Hollywood Reporter.2026-02-21.https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/media-deals-value-2025-netflix-wbd-kpmg-1236510534/.Retrieved 2026-02-24.
- ↑ "Inside Warner Bros. Discovery, Mood Among Many Staffers Shifts in Favor of Netflix Sale vs. Paramount Takeover".Variety.2026-02-20.https://variety.com/2026/tv/news/inside-warner-bros-discovery-in-favor-of-netflix-vs-paramount-1236667570/.Retrieved 2026-02-24.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Warner Bros. Discovery Sets Date for Netflix Deal Vote, Looks to Pry "Best and Final" Offer From Paramount".The Hollywood Reporter.2026-02-18.https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/warner-bros-discovery-netflix-vote-date-paramount-talks-1236506745/.Retrieved 2026-02-24.
- ↑ "Netflix Opens New Office in Mexico City".About Netflix.2026-02-18.https://about.netflix.com/en/news/netflix-opens-new-office-in-mexico-city.Retrieved 2026-02-24.