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Arbitrator orders Bungie to give fired music chief Marty ODonnell his stock back
- Thread starter The Lamonster
- Start date
Oh shit. This is getting interesting. Bungie looking scummy by the minute.
If his shares were vested and there was not a clause in the employment contract for O'Donnell to forfeit them upon termination, then I don't see how Bungie could reclaim them. At that point they belong to him. Losing unvested shares upon separation is normal. There is probably a lot more to the story, but the reasoning provided in the article - Marty would be a pest at board meetings - is an awfully weak reason for stripping him of his voting shares and status.
Wish we could see the actual document.
StrongBlackVine
Banned
He deserves his ownership. Glad he won. Now both parties can move on...or maybe not.
anexanhume
Member
Either says a lot about O'Donnell or Bungie if they think he's going to show up at board meetings to be disruptive.
MrGreencastle
Member
So who's the real goober, Harold/Bungie or Marty?
were it so easy
we have no idea regarding the details surrounding this. i wouldnt make assumptions or pick sides.
we have no idea regarding the details surrounding this. i wouldnt make assumptions or pick sides.
Mikey Jr.
Member
How are Bungie jerks?
We dont know the full story. Maybe Marty is a full blown asshole and a jerk himself?
not to pick sides or anything, but are we in any place really to judge O'Donnell's work ethic and impact on the running of Bungie currently ? And do we even know entirely what happened ? Nope. I don't even think we have enough info to even speculate.
We know of his talent from Bungie's games, but that's it.
We know of his talent from Bungie's games, but that's it.
Visualante2
Member
If Bungie is private, can O'Donnell even sell his shares?
As I said in the original thread, Bungie management does not come out of this looking good. Their only legal counter argument to Marty's claim that he was illegally stripped of his shares were 1) Marty would be obnoxious at board meetings, at 2) Bungie wanted to reallocate his shares to others within the company at some future date. At least as represented in the order, it seems they acted on what they wanted to do rather than what Marty's contract required them to do.
He can sell them back to Bungie, or keep them and continue to earn profits that Bungie generates (in addition to voting rights).
He can sell them back to Bungie, or keep them and continue to earn profits that Bungie generates (in addition to voting rights).
Visualante2
Member
So share percentage would be directly linked to any royalties the company gets for Destiny? Might be worth holding onto. I just saw a sale as a happy middle ground. O'Donnell gets a pay out that he deserves for his work and Bungie gets to run things how they like. I suppose this all hinges on how much each party things the shares are worth.
They owed him a bunch of money and didn't pay him, nor was he given a reason for his termination. Jason Jones said it himself, no one else's individual contributions at Bungie match Marty's. The Elder deserved better, and he got it.
adamsappel
Member
There are those who said this day would never come. What are they to say now?
Technosteve
Banned
what the fuck is going on at Bungie and Marty?
Well, this is what happens when they terminate someone and he wins the lawsuit about it. I mean, we obviously don''t have enough details about what lead to his termination, but ultimately this is what happens. Bungie's gotta stick with it. Didn't they originally want to settle with Marty out of court too?
No reason was given. Marty has a reputation for having an ego proportional to his considerable talents, which we might speculate played into it. But we really have no idea.
thechristoph
Sir!
How is it legal that someone's shares in a company can be taken away anyway? I don't understand how that works. Any experts in the house?
Duxxy3
Member
No chance he'll sell them back. We all know Destiny is going to be huge, and whatever profit he makes from those shares is going to make that 90k look like chump change.
They had some provision that allowed Bungie to do this if he quit, but it appears he was terminated.
Bungie's argument seems really weak. Oh, he's going to be a pest at board meetings, therefore they feel they can just get rid of him and take his shares.
thechristoph
Sir!
After skimming through the legal document, it seems that his shares were unvested, and they do indeed have the right to recover unvested shares. However, since he contributed to Destiny, Destiny is releasing very soon, and Destiny's success may have an impact on the vesting of his shares, The shares should not have been stripped from him. Makes a lot of sense.
Some of the shares were unvested, but most were not. As one of the original seven founding members he'd own one of the largest shares in the company.
HighResTomato
Member
Came in because I thought I would find the Arbiter, found justice for Marty instead.
Bungie being really scummy about this.
Bungie being really scummy about this.
HiredN00bs
Member
On wait basis are people taking sides here?
Duxxy3
Member
I wonder if he could even work at a competitor while owning those shares of bungie stocks. If the bungies shares are significant, he probably wouldn't have to work if he didn't want to.
oldschoolpinball
Member
What i find more interesting is how Destiny was supposed to come out in September of 2013
It's a little strange. No one should be taking sides as we have no idea what really led to his termination. Other than that, no one should be against him getting what is rightfully his in terms of shares.
HighResTomato
Member
BobTheFork
Member
Yeah, I'm not seeing how they thought this would be valid.
Even if the allegations of his behavior are true, you don't get to take his longstanding vested stocks at will.
I don't see any credible lawyer telling Bungie that they would win a case or arbitration regarding his benefits and shares.
This reeks of a spontaneous firing by the board or the top management without consulting legal aid.
I don't see any credible lawyer telling Bungie that they would win a case or arbitration regarding his benefits and shares.
This reeks of a spontaneous firing by the board or the top management without consulting legal aid.
Well who wants to be carved up by an energy sword?
FrostuTheNinja
Member
The plot thickens...
bodyboarder
Member
Well that explains why bungie wanted them back.
If he wasn't going to be a pain at board meetings before this, he'd certainly have a good reason to now after they tried to steal his shares.
AuthenticM
Member
Aren't they called "arbiters" ?
edit: I think both are accepted. It must vary depending on the region.
edit: I think both are accepted. It must vary depending on the region.
4 definitely didn't have generic music. It wasn't as good as Marty's stuff but it certainly wasn't bad.
PAULINK
I microwave steaks.
People just love shitting on 4 at every opportunity they can, news at 11.