Vivendi Adjusts Q3 Profit Numbers

Q3 Profit More Than Doubled

VIVENDI SA, owner of UNIVERSAL MUSIC GROUP and FRENCH mobile-phone company SFR, said third-quarter profit more than doubled because of a gain from an asset sale and higher earnings from its pay-television unit.

Net income rose to 1.56 billion euros ($2 billion), or 1.34 euros a share, from 646 million euros, or 56 cents, a year earlier, PARIS-based VIVENDI said to BLOOMBERG NEWS. Profit included an 834 million-euro gain from the sale of a stake in VEOLIA ENVIRONMENT SA.

VIVENDI repeated an outlook for 2006 profit excluding one-time items and some costs to rise 16%. Higher demand for online games and pay-television services compensates for a slump at the SFR division, where sales have slowed because the French mobile-phone market is saturated.

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