Time Warner Execs Have $216 Million at Stake in AT&T Case
- Justice Department’s lawsuit imperils post-merger payouts
- CEO Bewkes’s payments valued at $111 million as of Monday
Jeffrey Bewkes, chairman and chief executive officer of Time Warner Inc., from left, speaks with Randall Stephenson, chairman and chief executive officer of AT&T Inc., and Gene Kimmelman, president and chief executive officer of Public Knowledge, before a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee hearing in 2016.
Photographer: Andrew Harrer/BloombergTime Warner Inc.’s top five executives were due for a combined payout of as much as $216 million in their sale of the company to AT&T Inc. U.S. government efforts to block the deal put that lucrative reward in limbo.
The executives, including Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Bewkes, will get the money if they leave within two years of closing a merger. The Justice Department is suing to stop the $85.4 billion transaction, arguing it gives AT&T too much power in the media industry. AT&T has vowed to fight in court, meaning a judge may ultimately decide the outcome unless the sides settle.