Alex Mahon, boss at Channel 4, saw her pay jump by nearly a quarter to £1.5mln last year despite the broadcaster reporting a slump in profits.
Mahon was handed £750,000 in bonuses for her performance last year, while revenues slipped by 2% to £1.14bn and profits fell to £3mln from £101mln.
Finances are expected to be further strained as advertisers cut back on spending, leading to cuts in programmes and a reduction in episodes for some shows, with freelancers bearing the brunt.
Despite spending a record £713mln on content in 2022, Channel 4 said it will be switching its focus going forward, targeting 2bn streaming views a year by 2025, generating 30% of ad revenue from digital and making 10% of revenues from other sources than ads.
Streaming views in 2022 were 1.4bn, while digital made up 22% of total ad revenue and non-advertising contributed 11$ of overall income.
“Our increasingly diversified revenue base and strong balance sheet, combined with a focused approach to cost control and cash management, ensure that we can continue to prioritise investment that supports driving progress towards our 2025 strategic targets,” Channel 4 said, quoted in the Evening Standard.