Netflix Has Spent $270,000 on Lobbying Since Q4 2010
Netflix over the past year has stepped up its presence in Washington, D.C., spending $270,000 on lobbying since the fourth quarter of 2010, according to research firm First Street Research Group.
The streaming-video and DVDs-by-mail provider began lobbying in 2005 on one issue -- rate reform at the U.S. Postal Service -- now lobbies on six different issues. Those include the Video Privacy Protection Act (which Netflix wants changed so it can share subscriber information with third-party sites such as Facebook);Network Neutrality; Internet bandwidth caps; and postal issues.
In November 2010, the company set up its own internal lobbying shop headed by Michael Drobac. And Netflix posted a position for senior manager of government relations to work in Washington and may hire more staff, the Washington Post reported this week.
