Pay cut for Microsoft CEO

Microsoft paid its chief executive Steve Ballmer 5.5 per cent less for the last fiscal year as the world's biggest software company suffered its first ever drop in annual sales.

Ballmer, CEO since 2000, earned a total of US$1,276,627 (NZ$1,810,304) for fiscal year 2009, which ended June 30, according to a filing with securities regulators on Tuesday. That is slightly below the previous fiscal year's total of US$1,350,834.

Ballmer's salary of US$665,833 was up slightly from last year, but his bonus was slashed by US$100,000 to US$600,000.

Even in good times, Microsoft has never made a splash with huge pay packages, although many of its employees and executives have become millionaires by owning Microsoft shares.

Ballmer himself owns about 408 million Microsoft shares, according to Tuesday's filing, worth more than US$10 billion.

- Reuters