Rovio proposes pay cuts for chairman and owner amid financial worries
Investor disappointing and sub-par game performances spell salary shake-up at Angry Birds firm
Finnish games firm Rovio is planning to slice the earnings of two senior board members in the midst of its latest financial turmoil.
Reuters reports that the developer, best known for its Angry Birds frachise, proposes to cut the pay for both Kaj Hed, the company's owner and vice chairman, and Mika Ihamuotila, chairman.
Hed will see his monthly earnings drop from €10,000 ($12,420) to €7,500 ($9,315). Meanwhile, Ihamuotila's pay will drop to €9,500 ($11,800) from €12,000 ($14,905). Other board members will retain their pay of €5,000 per month.
The news follows Rovio's latest financial results which, despite setting new company records for the second year in a row, fell below shareholder and investor expectations.
Rovio's revenues rose to €297.2 million, with games accounting for €248 million, and its 2018 revenues are expected to rise to anywhere between €260 million and €300 million.
However, this was not shareholders has hoped for, who were especially disheartened by the firm's three most recent releases. Angry Birds Match, Angry Birds Evolution and Battle Bay all fell short of expectations.
The Finnish studio's share price plummeted in the wake of its results, and the company was forced to close its London studio after just a year of operations. Exacerbating matters was the departure of games boss Wilhelm Taht, who left for personal reasons.