The only thing that’s up at Viacom is CEO Philippe Dauman’s pay package.
The New York media giant revealed Friday that Dauman’s total compensation rose 22 percent, to $54.2 million, in the year ended September, up from $44.3 million in the prior fiscal year.
His higher pay came during a period when the company’s share price, profits and ratings have all taken a hit. The company is also under fire from shareholders who complain executives are overpaid.
Dauman’s total compensation included $4 million in salary, $28.4 million in stock awards — including a one-time $17 million award tied to his contract renewal — $7.5 million in stock options and a $14 million cash bonus, according to a regulatory filing.
He also rang up $263,525 in “other compensation,” including $220,361 for the use of a corporate jet.
The details of his pay — disclosed in a proxy statement after the close of markets as a major snowstorm bore down on the East Coast — show that Dauman did better than the company initially tried to spin it.
Earlier in the week, Viacom said his pay amounted to just under $37 million — but made no mention of the $17 million renewal award. It also played up the fact that his bonus was slashed 30 percent to $14 million — at his request.
On Friday, the company said the contract award was first disclosed in last year’s proxy statement and that the amount vests over three years.
“[The] ultimate value of the award will depend on the stock price at vesting,” Viacom said in a statement to Bloomberg News.
At least one rival media chief was shocked that Viacom would suggest its CEO had taken a pay cut when the reverse was true.
The $17 million contract renewal bonus could also rankle staff. One source said Viacom cut bonuses across the board this year.
Even founder and Executive Chairman Sumner Redstone saw his pay slashed by 85 percent to $2 million last year in light of his “reduced responsibilities,” the company said.
Viacom has faced growing questions about the health of the 92-year-old media mogul and whether he is still fit to run the company, home to the Paramount movie studio and cable networks including Comedy Central, MTV and Nickelodeon.