Netflix To Open A Production Hub In New York

A recent report from CNN reveals that Netflix is looking to invest $100 million to create a production hub in New York City, which a statement on the New York State website says will bring in hundreds of jobs. The company’s new offices will be based in the city’s Flatiron District and will apparently take up to 100,000 square feet of space.

Jobs that are being created include content acquisition, development, production, legal, and publicity as well as marketing positions. In Manhattan alone, Netflix is planning to construct an expanded office which will create “127 high-paying executive” positions. A report from Tech Crunch reveals this new corporate office will be built at 888 Broadway.

Included in the expansion will be six sound stages built in Brooklyn’s East Williamsburg neighborhood for which the online streaming service has leased 161,000 square feet for development.

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo said the city is proud to house the new production hub in New York, adding “we look forward to the jobs, economic activity and world-class productions this project will bring.”

“Netflix is innovative, creative and bold – just like New Yorkers – and the expansion of this cutting-edge company in New York once again demonstrates the Empire State is open for business.”

Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul said that the creation of the hub will help the city advance its “tech and entertainment industry” and help grow the economy as a whole for the state of New York. The planned development of the offices and sound stages further Governor Cuomo’s commitment to support New York’s entertainment sector and create “strong jobs across the state.”

The Empire State Development Corporation also offered Netflix $4 million in tax credits over the next 10 years. However, to receive the incentive, the company must create the 127 jobs it’s promising by 2024 and retain them for at least five years. The potential is to create thousands of jobs in total within this time frame.

Netflix is currently the world’s most popular online video streaming service. It was started in 1997 and was originally a DVD rental service by mail before moving into digital film and TV in 2007. Some of its most popular shows include the prison drama Orange Is The New Black, the U.K-created Black Mirror, and Stranger Things.

The website currently boasts 148.8 million subscribers worldwide – with the U.S. accounting for about 60 million of those users – and is expecting to hit 150 million soon. As of 2018, the company has a net income of around $1.2 billion.