In December, Netflix management indicated that, pending a successful entry into the Canadian market, it would push forward with international expansion outside North America. The company’s foray into Canada has been very successful and, accordingly, the company appears to be on a hiring spree in preparation for moving across the Atlantic. Reports out of Netflix’s Los Gatos, California HQ indicate that the company recently has posted several senior managerial positions specifically for Europe and is looking for individuals fluent in European languages.
In Netflix’s recent earnings call for the first quarter of 2011, the company’s CEO Reed Hastings was asked about expanding into at least two international markets in 2012. “If we continue to see the kind of success that we’ve seen in Canada,” he responded, “we think it will be very smart for us to move at least that fast.”
If Netflix does enter the European market, then it will go up directly against Lovefilm, a provider of DVD-by-mail and video streaming services that was recently acquired by Amazon for $312 million.
