Last year, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick ranked among the "most overpaid" chief executives in the US, according to shareholder advocacy website As You Sow, which said that he earned more than $28.5 million in 2019. That was tops among games industry CEOs, although only good enough for 45th place on the overall list, which is a whole different problem that we won't get into here. 92 percent of Activision shareholders voted in favor of his astronomical pay package.
This year, CtW Investment Group, which "works with union-sponsored pension funds to enhance long-term stockholder value" and is a "substantial" Activision Blizzard shareholder, is pushing back on Kotick's future compensation package. In a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, executive director Dieter Waizenegger called on shareholders to vote against a proposed "Say-On-Pay" approval of executive compensation at the upcoming annual shareholders meeting.
"Over the past four years, Activision Blizzard CEO Robert Kotick has received over $20 million in combined stock/option equity per year. These equity grants have consistently been larger than the total pay (the sum of base salary, annual bonus, and equity pay) of CEO peers at similar companies," Waizenegger wrote. "Specifically, over the past four years, Kotick has received $96.5 million cumulatively in combined stock/option awards alone. In just 2019, he received over $28 million in combined equity, primarily consisting of options (over $20 million) that are substantially 'in the money'. Read Full Article - PC Gamer, June 9, 2020