Today, Facebook announced the addition of Netflix Chairman and CEO Reed Hastings to its Board of Directors.
The announcement is quite interesting, considering rumors of Facebook getting ready to launch a music product, movie studios renting movies through the social network, and rumors of a potential IPO.
“Reed is an entrepreneur and technologist who has led Netflix to transform the way people watch movies and TV,” said Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook. “He has built a culture of continuous rapid innovation, something we share and work hard to build every day.”
“Facebook is propelling a fundamental change in how people connect with each other and share all kinds of content,” said Hastings. “I’m looking forward to working with Mark and the rest of the board to help Facebook take advantage of all the opportunities ahead.”
Hastings is quoted as saying earlier this month, “We’re working now to figure out the right integration with Facebook.” He did mention privacy controls, which is probably a good thing, considering the user backlash the company has experienced in the last week or so since its big redesign.
Even since the redesign, Netflix announced it was removing avatars, nicknames, and bios associated with reviews. Could this stuff soon just tap into Facebook profiles? Why not?
Hastings is also on Microsoft’s board, and has been on the boards of various non-profits.
Facebook’s board now consists of Zuckerberg, Hastings, Marc Andreessen of Andreessen Horowitz, Jim Breyer of Accel Partners, Donald E. Graham, chairman and CEO of The Washington Post Company, and Peter Thiel of Clarium Capital and Founders Fund.
