Netflix raises executive salaries, proving that 'performance-based' pay always was a sham

The big news Friday on the executive compensation front was that Netflix is converting some of its "performance-based" pay for its top executives to straight salaries, thanks to the recently-passed tax bill.

But people may be taking the wrong lesson from the change. On the surface, it looks like the five executives covered by the change are getting big raises thanks to the tax bill. But the reality is a bit more complicated. And what the new policy at Netflix really tells us is that the old "performance-based" executive compensation system always was a sham, anyway.

Here's the backstory.