As the CBS Viacom owned Channel Ten TV network was telling broadcast and operational staff in Australia that they had to move to a nine day fortnight because of the financial impact of COVID-19 (coronavirus) it was revealed that former network boss Joe Ianniello had been given a whopping A$205 million golden exit parachute as the Coronavirus epidemic was taking hold in the USA.

News of Ianniello’s massive compensation payout was revealed in a filing made on Friday night at the US Securities & Exchange Commission.

The filing shows he netted a salary of A$4.67 million and $141.23 million in severance payments provided for via an employment contract with the network.

Under that contract, Ianniello, was promised a windfall if he was not promoted to CEO of the entire company which happened when CBS merged with sister company, Viacom last December, to form ViacomCBS.

Ten’s chief content officer and executive vice president for Viacom CBS in Australia and New Zealand, Beverley McGarvey, said COVID-19 has caused extensive and fast-moving change in the broadcast industry.

“Despite more viewers turning to television for the latest news, information and entertainment that we provide, our business has been directly impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. It has clearly affected our day-to-day operations, at least temporarily,” she said.