Software Engineer (L5) - Websockets Infrastructure

At Netflix, we want to entertain the world and are constantly innovating on how entertainment is imagined, created, and delivered to a global audience. We currently stream content in more than 30 languages in 190 countries, topping over 260 million paid memberships, and are expanding into new forms of entertainment such as gaming and live experiences. Engineering teams within Netflix work hard every day to scale and innovate this content production and member experience in an ever-growing complex software landscape.

The Team:

We are looking for an experienced Software Engineer to join the Playback Lifecycle team, which builds and operates the device-facing APIs that drive Netflix's core streaming/playback functionality. The services and distributed systems developed by our team drive all aspects of the playback on the product - from the time a subscriber hits play to everything that happens during a playback session. These mission-critical systems are characterized by massive scale, low latency, and high availability. Engineers on the team are expected to design, develop, test, and operate our critical and high-performing systems.

Our team is uniquely positioned from an organizational perspective, serving as a pivotal link between client device teams and various server mid-tier systems. We play a central role in all key playback initiatives, including our recent ventures into Live streaming and Advertisement-supported streaming aspects of Playback. Consequently, our engineers are frequently engaged in forming cross-functional and cross-organizational alignment.

Role Overview:

As we look to adapt our services to meet the expanding product requirements, we have identified a need for a robust WebSocket backend infrastructure. This infrastructure should be capable of delivering reliable real-time notifications at a scale synonymous with Netflix. We want to onboard a senior engineer with demonstrable experience in building scalable and high-performing WebSocket servers in response to this need. The prospective candidate should be adept at considering and managing infrastructure and product-related challenges when developing the WebSocket solution.

We want to prioritize finding someone with specific WebSocket experience. Our primary development language is Java, but we welcome experience with other platforms; relevant experience on different platforms can be effectively transferred to our environment. The ideal candidate will have 6+ years of experience as a Software Engineer and experience building high-scale and critical backend systems.

Beyond technical skills, we're looking for a candidate with a positive and growth-oriented mindset who's driven to learn, grow, mentor and make a substantial impact. Strong interpersonal and project management skills are essential, as a significant part of the role involves interacting with internal and external partners.

Our compensation structure consists solely of an annual salary; we do not have bonuses. You choose each year how much of your compensation you want in salary versus stock options. To determine your personal top of market compensation, we rely on market indicators and consider your specific job family, background, skills, and experience to determine your compensation in the market range. The range for this role is $100,000 - $720,000.

Netflix provides comprehensive benefits including Health Plans, Mental Health support, a 401(k) Retirement Plan with employer match, Stock Option Program, Disability Programs, Health Savings and Flexible Spending Accounts, Family-forming benefits, and Life and Serious Injury Benefits. We also offer paid leave of absence programs. Full-time hourly employees accrue 35 days annually for paid time off to be used for vacation, holidays, and sick paid time off. Full-time salaried employees are immediately entitled to flexible time off. See more detail about our Benefits here.

Netflix is a unique culture and environment. Learn more here.

We are an equal-opportunity employer and celebrate diversity, recognizing that diversity of thought and background builds stronger teams. We approach diversity and inclusion seriously and thoughtfully. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, ancestry, national origin, caste, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, age, disability, medical condition, pregnancy, genetic makeup, marital status, or military service.