Vivendi Sells 20% Of NBC Universal To GE

Selling Off Its NBC Stake

GENERAL ELECTRIC will pay VIVENDI, the parent company of UNIVERSAL MUSIC GROUP, $5.8 billion for their 20% stake in NBC UNIVERSAL, reports CNN, which says paves the way for the conglomerate's planned sale of 51% percent of the U.S. media group to COMCAST.

GE and VIVENDI have been negotiating the valuation since VIVENDI's annual window for exercising a "put option" on the stake opened on NOVEMBER 15th. CNN notes it's "not immediately clear whether GE will pay VIVENDI the full $5.8 billion up front or seek to stagger the payment over a period, given that the COMCAST deal is expected to take as long as a year to clear regulatory hurdles."

It was expected that COMCAST's deal to purchase a 51% stake in NBC UNIVERSAL for $30 billion would be announced last week, "but was delayed by GE's negotiations with VIVENDI over the value of the stake. The two sides sought to bridge a gap of close to $1 billion," people familiar with the matter told CNN.

« see more Net News