The reason for the decline is Sir Martin's decision to forgo a £966,000 bonus. Last year, he was revealed as the highest-earning advertising boss in the UK, with a salary more than twice as high as his nearest rival, Cordiant Communications chief executive Michael Bungey. Bungey earned £1.3m in 2000, compared with Sir Martin's £2.5m.
WPP, owner of the J Walter Thompson, Young & Rubicam and Ogilvy & Mather advertising networks, has suffered along with the rest of the ad and media industries from the downturn. Unlike other media bosses however, Sir Martin has maintained a gloomy outlook, predicting that recovery may not be due until 2004.
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