Netflix Taps Bozoma Saint John as Chief Marketing Officer

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Bozoma Saint John has been unveiled as streaming giant Netflix’s new chief marketing officer.

She succeeds Jackie Lee-Joe, who was in the position for just over a year and is exiting for personal reasons.

Saint John, who begins her new role in August, comes from entertainment conglomerate Endeavor, the Los Angeles-based company, which operates major Hollywood talent agency WME. There, she’s been chief marketing officer since 2018.

She has also held a number of senior positions at leading tech firms, including chief brand officer at Uber and head of global consumer marketing at Apple Music and iTunes.

Ted Sarandos, chief content officer at Netflix, described Saint John as “an exceptional marketer who understands how to drive conversations around popular culture better than almost anyone.”

“As we bring more great stories to our members around the world, she’ll define and lead our next exciting phase of creativity and connection with consumers,” he said in a statement.

Saint John added that she was pleased to be joining Netflix, “especially at a time when storytelling is critical to our global, societal well-being. I feel honored to contribute my experience to an already dynamic legacy, and to continue driving engagement in the future.”

In addition to a number of high-profile corporate positions during her near-20-year career, Saint John recently cofounded a successful social media campaign focused on magnifying Black women’s voices: #sharethemicnow saw actress and Goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow, soccer star Megan Rapinoe and a number of other white celebrities handing over their Instagram accounts for the day to prominent Black women, including Teen Vogue editor Lindsay Peoples Wagner and Saint John.

According to Netflix’s most recent set of financial results, it added 15.8 million subscribers in the first quarter, smashing Wall Street estimates. This pushed the total up to 183 million subscribers and was no doubt boosted by social-distancing measures being implemented around the world due to the coronavirus. It faces increased competition, though, from the likes of Quibi, Disney Plus, Apple TV Plus, HBO Max and NBC’s Peacock.

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