Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard, has agreed to extend his executive employment agreement, according to an 8-K form filed on April 28th. This extension would see Kotick remain in a leadership role at the company behind Call of Duty and World of Warcraft until March 31st, 2023.
Kotick, who has been running Activision for 30 years, also agreed to decrease his base annual salary by 50%, from $1.75 million to $875,000, as well as reducing his maximum annual bonus. But Kotick — who was criticized for laying off hundreds of Activision Blizzard employees in the midst of a global pandemic while retaining his own multi-million dollar bonuses — likely won’t have to adjust his style of living with this decrease in salary. The contract extension has provisions for Kotick to earn an annual bonus for the fiscal years of 2021 and 2022, in sum of up to a maximum of 200% of his reduced base salary.
What’s Next For Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick?
The 8-K form also mentions that Kotick will have access to “long-term equity awards” which manifest as stock units, with the exact amount these units are worth being determined by the company accomplishing pre-set financial performance milestones. In layman’s terms, Kotick is still a very rich man, and will likely continue to get richer in the foreseeable future, with only the slightest reduction in the rate at which his wealth accumulates.
Under Kotick’s management, Activision Blizzard has grown in value from under $10 million to over $70 billion, and total shareholder return has grown by over 8,100% between 2000 and 2020. It is unclear if any of this windfall will lead to former employees getting their jobs back, or current employees receiving any raises or additional benefits themselves.
READ NEXT: Is Apex Legends Worth Playing in 2021?
Some of the coverage you find on Cultured Vultures contains affiliate links, which provide us with small commissions based on purchases made from visiting our site. We cover gaming news, movie reviews, wrestling and much more.
