Netflix’s new gaming chief shakes up the division with a hire from Epic and layoffs

Grand Theft Auto V is one of a few Netflix gaming hits.

Netflix’s new games boss is shaking things up. Alain Tascan, who became president of games in July, has brought in Jeet Shroff for a newly created role as a VP over games tech and portfolio development.

Shroff, like Tascan, came from Epic Games, where he was VP of games development. At Netflix, he’s charged with promoting consistency across its portfolio of games, both licensed and homegrown. Netflix has released more than 100 games since it started building a games library in 2021, and Shroff’s hire is a recognition that they all need to meet Netflix’s standards — whether they come from inside the company or not.

Along with hiring, Tascan has also made some cuts. Netflix’s games division conducted layoffs last week. Two people close to Netflix estimated the figure was in the dozens while a third said it was under 35. These people asked for anonymity because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly about the cuts.

Tascan’s oversight of games has come as Netflix still faces questions about its investment in the format from the Wall Street community and company insiders alike. Three years in, the effort has produced few hits, with some exceptions like 2023’s hit “Oxenfree II” and “GTA Trilogy.” And only a tiny percent of Netflix’s subscribers had played its games as of 2023, per data from analytics firm Apptopia.

Netflix recently changed up its gaming leadership by hiring Tascan and moving Mike Verdu, the gaming veteran it originally hired to build the division, into a new role this summer.

Games is one of Netflix’s two newer areas of investment, along with advertising, under co-CEO Greg Peters. Peters said during Netflix’s Q2 earnings call that Netflix was happy with the progress it’s seen, with engagement on games tripling in 2023. He added that while games’ impact on the business is small, it’s also a small part of Netflix’s content investment overall. (Netflix hasn’t disclosed how much that investment is.)

Netflix leadership has consistently said that the goal of games is to retain subscribers to its streaming services. That could explain why, to date, it hasn’t introduced advertising as a way of monetizing them.

The streamer has been testing letting people play its games on their TVs, which would eliminate the friction people face having to download separate mobile games from an app store to play them.

Lately, Netflix has also been releasing games based on its popular TV shows like “Squid Game” and “Too Hot To Handle,” banking on their built-in audiences.