Square-Enix Directors Take Voluntary 15% Pay Cut

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When Squaresoft was in its prime during the PlayStation days (oh, just accept it, Nintendo fans), there was no more respected developer as far as Sony followers were concerned. These days, Square-Enix has difficulty getting on the good side of any PlayStation 3 owner, but as a citizen of the world, perhaps they'll get some respect for this...

Financial forecasts suck and stocks just keep falling; even the supposedly recession-proof video game industry is experiencing the backlash of a troubled economy. A lot of big corporations want to try to save money by cutting salaries that aren't their own, but Square-Enix is taking a more noble approach: according to Kotaku, president Yoichi Wada explained how he will take a voluntary 15% price cut, along with the other two directors of the company:

"In recognition of the latest results, we're cutting the remuneration of three executive directors by 15 percent. The three directors are myself, our Vice-President Keiji Honda, and Director and Chief Financial Officer Yosuke Matsuda. This reduction is for an indefinite period. In the meantime, we intend to stand up straight and push ahead with reforms."

Now, one could be pessimistic and say, "well, it's not like any of these guys will be in bread lines any time soon," but perhaps it's better to realize that 15% is significant when you make that much money. And besides, the gesture should be appreciated, even if those hit hard by these trying times may not be so impressed. Either way, it's something that more head honchos ought to do, and at the very least, it's a nod of recognition towards the bad economy.

3/6/2009 Ben Dutka

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