Activision CFO promoted to COO

Activision Blizzard's Thomas Tippl has seen quite the pay grade increase recently. In November, the publisher revealed as part of a Securities & Exchange Commission filing that the Austrian-born chief financial officer had received a 40 percent raise in 2009, bumping his base salary from $535,000 to $750,000. Now, Tippl's coffers stand to grow a bit deeper, thanks to a new raise as the result of a promotion.

According to a recent SEC filing, Tippl resigned his current position as chief corporate officer at the company last week and was elected to the position of chief operating officer. Tippl will continue to serve as Activision Blizzard's CFO until a replacement has been found to fill the role.

Effective March 23, Tippl's annual base salary grew to $850,000. The executive can also receive an annual bonus "targeted" at 120 percent of his base salary, a figure that hinges upon his performance and that of the company. Tippl is also eligible to receive--pending compensation committee approval--225,000 performance shares, with the option to purchase an additional 525,000 common stock and 350,000 restricted shares. According to Forbes, the executive received over $1.4 million in Activision stock options in 2008, bringing his total compensation for that year to $3.23 million.

Tippl joined Activision as its CFO in 2005. Prior to his appointment to the position, he served in various capacities at Procter & Gamble, which creates consumer products ranging from Duracell batteries to Crest toothpaste.