Activision execs reap payday from recent mega-merger
Just in case you weren't feeling a particularly strong sense of class envy today, the Financial Times is reporting that Activision's two top executives will be receiving "change of control" payments to the tune of $40 million, as part of the deal that will see Vivendi merge their Vivendi Games unit into Activision. Both Robert Kotick, Activision Chairman and CEO, and Brian Kelly, co-chairman, will receive bonuses totalling $10 million each as well as 363,637 shares of the newly formed company, worth about $10 million on the market today.
While some industry analysts have looked at the deal as an attempt to catch up with EA's runaway growth, particularly in the MMO sphere, one mustn't ignore the immediate financial windfalls for the men at the very top of the company as a motivating factor. One can only hope they'll be down counting their money in time to start developing some more MMO properties for the new year.
[Via The Escapist]
