Netflix strengthens ad ambitions with hire of Spotify’s Ed Couchman to lead UK sales

Netflix has made a strategic hire to strengthen its growing advertising business, bringing in Ed Couchman from Spotify to lead its UK advertising sales team. Couchman, who previously served as head of advertising sales for the UK and Northern Europe at Spotify since 2023, will join Netflix later this year. His appointment marks a key step in Netflix’s effort to mature its ad business from its early stages to what the company describes as "adolescence." Couchman brings extensive experience in digital and traditional advertising, having held senior ad sales roles at Snap, Meta, and British broadcaster Channel 4 before joining Spotify. He will report to Damien Bernet, Netflix’s VP of EMEA advertising, and take over from Warren Dias, whose departure was announced in May after two years in the role. Netflix’s ad strategy has gained momentum, with the company projecting it will roughly double its ad revenue in 2025—following a similar doubling in 2024. During its second-quarter earnings call, Netflix executives highlighted progress in rolling out its in-house adtech stack across all markets where it sells ads, as well as strong advertiser interest in live content such as comedy specials, wrestling, and boxing events. Co-CEO Greg Peters also noted that interactive ad formats and generative AI could unlock new growth opportunities. While Netflix does not disclose advertising revenue separately, the ad-supported tier reached 94 million monthly active users by June. In the UK, Netflix has already made notable gains in the ad market. Data from Barb, the UK’s viewing measurement body, showed Netflix had the largest share of viewers aged 16 to 34 among commercial video-on-demand platforms. Ofcom’s 2024 data confirmed Netflix as the most popular VOD service in the UK, with users spending an average of 22 minutes per day on the platform. Couchman’s move comes amid challenges at Spotify’s ad division, which recently lost its ad sales chief, Lee Brown, who joined DoorDash as chief revenue officer. Spotify stated that its ad business had not met growth expectations, prompting the leadership change. Netflix’s recruitment of a seasoned executive like Couchman underscores its ambition to expand its advertising footprint, particularly in key markets like the UK, where it already holds strong viewer appeal among advertisers’ preferred demographics.