Jeff Immelt GE boss was a Parisian loaded agenda

Jean-Bernard Levy can be met: an agreement seems imminent for the surrender of the 20 of Vivendi in us broadcasting Giant NBC Universal. And the French group has apparently led to the end of his adventure in television and film in the United States. Vivendi involvement in NBC Universal, which date from 2004, would have valued at 5.8 billion (more than 3.8 billion euros), a significant improvement over the $ 5 billion General Electric (GE) had originally proposed. It is a little less than book value recorded in the accounts of the French group ($6.3 billion), but markets reacted well and the title of Vivendi took 3.96 yesterday.

2016, Vivendi had an annual window between November 15 and December 10 to sell its shares on the market, with a right of pre-emption of GE. The negotiation has been tight and ended in France, last week. Jeff Immelt, GE boss, was a Parisian loaded agenda. He came to defend his candidacy for the resumption of Areva T & D (but preferred the consortium Alstom-Schneider) and finalising discussions with Jean-Bernard Lévy. Their maintenance would be completed on a verbal agreement. But, yesterday afternoon, the two companies did not yet officially confirmed their agreement, even if the press has widely is the echo.

By dedicating its participation, Vivendi does not disappear as the United States, with his record label Vivendi Universal Music and video games (Activision Blizzard), the group still retains a pan of activities.

Always present in the United States

But he is seeking to develop in Africa and Latin America and has taken control of the Brazilian operator TVG for $ 4.18 billion. In any case, the agreement reached between GE and Vivendi throws the last obstacle to the proposed joint venture between NBC Universal and Comcast, a transaction valued at $ 30 billion. Because before you can assign 51 of the shares of its subsidiary NBC Universal to us the first cable operator, GE - control 80 - to first retrieve the 20 owned by Vivendi. The French group has protected its rear, in negotiating the payment of $ 2 billion if ever the transaction between GE and Comcast - which will be reviewed carefully by regulators n ' is not concluded by the end of 2010.

The second phase could be announced soon. Comcast entry would be in two stages. It would take 51 with 6 billion in cash and cabled networks. Its cable channels (E!) (Entertainment, Golf Channel) would have been valued between 6.5 and $ 7 billion. Comcast would buy the rest of the capital with the cash flow generated by the company over the next seven years. Distributor of content - area where the competition with telecoms operators and satellite providers is fierce - Comcast is more interested in the content itself, and by cable channels that capture the hearing and how it can redistribute the programs on television but also on the Internet. After having failed, in 2004, to redeem Disney, he hopes finally to be a place among the Kings of media, along with Disney, Viacom and Time Warner.