Netflix has hired two senior executives from Snap to head up its new advertising sales business.

Jeremi Gorman was named president, worldwide advertising and Peter Naylor was tapped to be VP, advertising sales. Both executives will be joining the company in September.

Earlier this year, Netflix, which became the dominant streamer with no commercials, has lost subscribers the last two quarters. It announced plans to add a lower-price ad-supported tier in order to re-ignite growth.

Also: Analyst: Adding Commercials Will Boost Netflix Subscribers by 6% and Earnings by 20% in 2025

“Jeremi’s deep experience in running ad businesses and Peter’s background in leading ad sales teams together will be key as we expand membership options for consumers through a new ad-supported offering,” said Greg Peters, Netflix’s COO.

In July, Netflix made a deal with Microsoft to provide the tech infrastructure for its advertising business.

Also: Netflix: Microsoft Relationship Is About Advertising For Now

Gorman had been chief business officer at Snap since 2018. Previously she was head of global field sales for Amazon Advertising.

“I am thrilled to be joining Netflix to help build the advertising business and a world-class advertising team from the ground up. We're just at the beginning, but look forward to delivering the best experiences for Netflix members and the advertising community, of which I have proudly been a part for over 20 years,” Gorman said.

Naylor had been VP of sales, America, for Snap. He joined Snap in 2020 after serving as senior VP of ad sales for Hulu for six years. Before that, he was executive VP, digital advertising sales at NBCUniversal.

"It has been great to see the excitement amongst the advertiser community about Netflix's upcoming ads-supported offering. I’m excited to be joining the team and look forward to helping our advertisers connect with Netflix members around the world,” Naylor said. ■

Peter Naylor, long-time head of ad sales at Hulu, has been named VP, Americas at Snapchat, a new position, effective early May.

Naylor’s departure follows The Walt Disney Co. acquiring control over Hulu, having acquired stakes in the streamer from former co-owners 21st Century Fox and Comcast.

Hulu CEO Randy Freer stepped down in January as Disney moved to more tightly integrated Hulu into its direct-to-consumer group, which also oversees Disney+. Disney named Kelly Cambell as president of Hulu in February. She had been Hulu’s CMO.

At Snapchat, Naylor will be reporting to Jeremi Gorman, who joined the company in 2018 as chief business officer. He will be responsible for driving Snapchants growth in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

As part of this new structure, Luke Kallis, VP U.S. Advertiser Solutions, and Dominic Rioux, VP Emerging Advertising Solutions, will report to Naylor, as will. Matt McGowan, GM for Canada.

David Roter, who leads agency efforts as VP Global Agency Partnerships NY, and Claire Valoti, VP International, will continue to report to Jeremi.

Before joining Hulu, Naylor was executive VP of digital media sales for NBCUniversal.

Peter Naylor, long-time head of ad sales at Hulu, has been named VP, Americas at Snapchat, a new position, effective early May.

Naylor’s departure follows The Walt Disney Co. acquiring control over Hulu, having acquired stakes in the streamer from former co-owners 21st Century Fox and Comcast. 

Hulu CEO Randy Freer stepped down in January as Disney moved to more tightly integrated Hulu into its direct-to-consumer group, which also oversees Disney+. Disney named Kelly Cambell as president of Hulu in February. She had been Hulu’s CMO.

At Snapchat, Naylor will be reporting to Jeremi Gorman, who joined the company in 2018 as chief business officer. He will be responsible for driving Snapchants growth in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

As part of this new structure, Luke Kallis, VP U.S. Advertiser Solutions, and Dominic Rioux, VP Emerging Advertising Solutions, will report to Naylor, as well. Matt McGowan, GM for Canada.

David Roter, who leads agency efforts as VP Global Agency Partnerships NY, and Claire Valoti, VP International, will continue to report to Jeremi.

Before joining Hulu, Naylor was executive VP of digital media sales for NBCUniversal.

"Things are good at Hulu," Peter Naylor, senior VP of advertising sales at the programmer, said Monday, citing an expanding base of subscribers watching the service longer than they did a year ago.

"We're going to the market with a growing audience," Naylor told B&C senior content producer Jon Lafayette in a keynote chat at the NewBay Advanced Advertising event in New York when asked about the service's prospects headed into the upfront auctions of commercial hours. Versus a year ago, he said, subscribers who get Hulu's ad-supported offerings are up 40% and their engagement with the service is up 49%, though he did not give out the specific numbers. “We’re having more people watching for more time than ever,” he said. The median viewer age is 31, he said, and Hulu's IP-based platform lends itself to targeting viewers by household or by separate profiles within the home.   

At last year's upfront presentation, Lafayette noted, Hulu introduced its Hulu with Live TV (virtual MVPD) offering with a mix of channels for $39.99 per month. Naylor said subscribers getting that service also get the subscription video-on-demand service for which Hulu charges $7.99 when sold separately, with ad support. Hulu has found that "over half of the consumption in the quote-unquote live product is actually on demand," he said. While events, sports, news and series occasions like the finale of The Bachelor are watched live, viewers are happy to watch scripted fare at unscheduled times. "What that tells me is the fugure of TV is a blend of live and on demand,” he said.

Hulu's 2018 upfront will take place at the recently branded Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden and will feature announcements of new shows and celebrity appearances and more of an emphasis on Hulu's advanced advertising capabilities.

He cited a recent promotion with Fandango that enabled Hulu customers watching a commercial for the Tomb Raider raider movie in theaters to buy a ticket via remote. Asked if it sold a lot of tickets, Naylor said "a lot might be a generous description," but said the effort was part of educating audiences to expect to be able to interact directly with advertising -- as marketers used to wish for using the classic example of buying the sweater Jennifer Aniston was wearing in Friends. 

Naylor also said The Handmaid's Tale, the breakthrough original drama that returns for a second season in late April, will have dedicated sponsors this time after picking up Emmy and Golden Globe awards for its first season. Hulu licenses most of its shows and can't sell ads directly against them, Naylor said, but can do so for its originals.