Boca Raton-based internet telephony startup NetSpeak Corp paid a cash bonanza to a group of its executives in March. The team made millions selling stock to Motorola Inc at $30 a share, to cement a strategic alliance between the two companies. Documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) today show that the seven executives claimed $76.95m of the $85m Motorola spent in upping its stake. Three in particular accounted for the lion’s share. Chairman and CEO Stephen Cohen made $42m on the deal and president Robert Kennedy collected $15m, while chief scientist and company founder Shane Mattaway had to settle for $9.9m. All the executives retained part of their stake. Motorola now owns 26.4 per cent of NetSpeak, an investment that suggests a high level of confidence in the promising but untried net telephony market. NetSpeak lost $2.23m in the three months to March 31. Its stock closed today at $24.25.
