And indeed, by overseeing the sale of Time Warner Cable for a blockbuster price, Mr. Marcus would be enriching not just himself and his fellow executives, but all shareholders.

Charter

A merger would benefit Mr. Rutledge of Charter, too. If he runs the combined company, he is likely to receive a raise.

Last year, Mr. Rutledge made $16 million in total compensation, a handsome sum, but less than many media executives have been earning recently. Brian L. Roberts, chief executive of Comcast, made $26.5 million last year, for example, and the compensation of James L. Dolan, Cablevision’s chief executive, exceeded $23.5 million. Television and movie studio executives received even more.

Yet as the head of an enlarged Charter, a company backed by the billionaire media mogul John C. Malone, Mr. Rutledge could join the ranks of the best-compensated managers on the planet. Mr. Malone’s chief executives occupied three of the top six spots on the Equilar 200 Highest-Paid C.E.O. Rankings, conducted for The New York Times. David M. Zaslav, the head of Discovery Communications, received $156 million in compensation last year. Michael T. Fries, chief executive of Liberty Global, earned $112 million. Gregory B. Maffei, chief executive of Liberty Media, got $74 million. All those sums include some long-term stock incentives.

Should Mr. Rutledge secure a long-term compensation package upon taking over an expanded Charter, his pay next year could rival that of Mr. Malone’s other top lieutenants. And if Mr. Rutledge is ousted after a deal is made, his golden parachute entitles him to about $111 million.

Bankers

Then there are the investment banks that advised both companies. Together, the banks will share an estimated $100 million to $150 million, according to Thomson Reuters and Freeman Consulting Services.

Roughly 60 percent of that pool will go to the banks that advised Time Warner Cable. Morgan Stanley, the lead adviser, will receive a larger slice, with Citigroup and two independent investment banks — Centerview Partners and Allen & Company — splitting the rest.