The Globe and Mail reports in its Saturday edition BlackBerry chief executive officer John Chen has seen in his pay package drop sharply for the 2015 fiscal year. The Globe's Bertrand Marotte writes Mr. Chen's total compensation for fiscal 2015 was $3.4-million (U.S.), compared with $85.8-million (U.S.) in the previous year, according to a regulatory filing. The reduction is because Mr. Chen was not eligible to benefit from a grant of restricted shares vesting over five years from his start date in November, 2013. The smart phone maker also announced a share buyback program for up to 12 million shares, representing about 2.6 per cent of the outstanding public float. BlackBerry plans to cancel the shares it buys back in order to offset a new employee share purchase plan. The new plan will increase the number of BlackBerry shares available under its equity incentive plan and would remain in place for up to 12 months. "We intend to take advantage of our strong cash position to purchase our shares when the market price does not reflect what we view to be the underlying value and future prospects of our business, without adversely affecting our strategic initiatives," Mr. Chen said.