Bidders are now lining up to make offers on Vivendi Universal’s entertainment assets, even though the group has so far maintained that they are not for sale.
A Wall Street Journal article has named Liberty Media, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, NBC and oil baron Marvin Davis as being in the queue to bid for the portfolio. For its part, Vivendi has yet to outline a strategy for the businesses and most recently indicated that they are not for sale, after receiving a Â15 billion offer from Davis in November last year (see Vivendi Receives €15bn Offer For Ents Businesses).
However, it is thought that Vivendi chief, Jean-René Fourtou, might seriously consider an offer in the region of Â25 billion. A decent price for the entertainment assets could help Vivendi to clear the debt that it is gradually trying to shift with disposals (see Vivendi Revenues Dip 2%, Disposals Ease Debt).