Earnings calls tend to be dry, data driven affairs, but Netflix’s recent stock surge appears to have given Reed Hastings an excuse to cut loose a little.
The company’s CEO broke up analysts on Wednesday when he took a potshot at rival HBO.
Asked about whether or not he agreed with Richard Plepler’s recent comments that he doesn’t care if subscribers share HBO Go passwords, Hastings offered to give out the HBO CEO’s log-in information.
“It was an interesting comment, I suppose,” Hastings said. “So I guess Plepler, the CEO of HBO, doesn’t mind me sharing his account information. So it’s Plepler@HBO.com and his password is Netflix Bitch.”
Also read: Netflix Trounces Wall Street Estimates in Q4, Stock Surges
Plepler argued during an interview at a Buzzfeed Brews event that password sharing does not adversely impact the premium channel because younger users accessing parents’ or friends’ HBO Go accounts will eventually have the money to pay for their own subscriptions.
He said the streaming service is a “terrific marketing vehicle for the next generation of viewers.”
Also read: Is Netflix Luring Away HBO and Showtime Customers?
Netflix is riding high after its earnings crushed Wall Street’s expectations, sending its stock soaring 19 percent to $390.99 in after-hours trading.