Activision CEO Bobby Kotick will remain at the publisher for at least the next two years—but that role is about to come with some serious paycuts.
According to Kotick's latest employment extension agreement with the SEC (spotted by Wowhead), the Activision boss has agreed to reduce his base salary by 50 percent, with his generous bonuses similarly halved. The agreement claims that these changes were made to bring Kotick's pay in line with company targets, stating that the new structure better "reflects shareholder feedback, incorporates market best practices, and continues to directly connect pay to performance".
Indeed, Kotick's pay has become particularly contentious in recent years. Last month, an investment group slammed a pay package that would've seen the CEO receive almost $200 million in bonuses. A year earlier, that same group suggested a typical Activision employee would only make one third of a percent of what Kotick earned.
- Bobby Kotick says he'd never have raised World of Warcraft's subscription by even a dollar because 'it's a prickly audience, you don't wanna do too much to agitate them'
- Bobby Kotick reckons the Warcraft film was 'a terrible idea' for Blizzard, and in the end 'was one of the worst movies I've ever seen'
These earnings came across as particularly inequitable following Activision Blizzard's mass firings. After reporting a record year, the publisher laid off roughly 8 percent of its workforce, making around 500 employees redundant. More recently, Activision laid off around 50 esports personnel as it moves away from live events.
With these changes, Kotick's salary has gone from $1,750,000 to $875,000. But even with this cut, the CEO is still eligible for hefty bonuses up to 200 percent of his base salary (another $1.75 million on top). Kotick might've taken a pay cut, but he's very, very well off.
