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Reuters: Vivendi finds 'few takers' on Activision stake sale, eyes other departments
Vivendi's planned sale of its 61 percent controlling stake in Activision is apparently waning, according to Reuters. Vivendi is said to be eying a sale of Brazillian telecommunications company Global Village Telecom (GVT), which would bring in anywhere from $8.59 to $10.42 billion – a distinctly larger number than the $8.3 billion Vivendi's stock in Acti is worth. Vivendi reportedly sought "at least 12 percent" more than the $8.3 billion stock valuation, which potential buyers turned down (Microsoft, Apple, Facebook, and several other companies were reportedly offered the stock).Vivendi is a French conglomerate, and it's not in great financial shape. In an effort to shore up capital, it reportedly sought a sale of its controlling stake in Activision, turning to its GVT wing less than two months later in a similar effort. The French conglomerate purchased its stake in Activision back in 2007, forming what is now known as Activision Blizzard in the process.Economically minded readers may notice that Vivendi's interest in retaining control of Activision began declining along the same downward slope as the international economy. Though Vivendi's current financial situation is more complicated than "bad economy, sell parts of business," the worldwide recession surely can't be helping its standing.
Report: Vivendi looking to sell 'part or all' of majority stake in Activision
Activision's French multimedia conglomerate parent company, Vivendi SA, is said to be considering a sale of its 61 percent controlling stake in the US-based Call of Duty publisher. Bloomberg reports that Vivendi is holding a meeting on June 22 to discuss the potential for a sale of "part or all" of its Acti holdings. The report comes from "people with knowledge of the matter," who refused to be identified due to the privacy of the June 22 event.A Vivendi representative confirmed the upcoming executive get together, but didn't discuss the specifics of the meeting. Said meeting has taken place annually since 2005, and the rep noted it's intended as "a forum of exchange and discussion, not for quick-fix decisions or solutions."Vivendi and Activision came together in 2007, creating Activision-Blizzard as a result of the merger. Vivendi sold three percent of its Activision stock in late 2011, but kept approximately 60 percent of its holdings. Since today's report, Vivendi's stock rose 3.7 percent in Paris markets.Update: To help contextualize some of this super business-y madness, Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter told Joystiq, "Some believe Vivendi is worth more if it is split up into various parts. The potential split doesn't really mean anything for Activision, other than a lot of shares on the market all at once. I don't think a sale is likely, as there are few potential buyers, if any. Instead, it makes more sense for Vivendi if they have Activision borrow a lot of money and pay a dividend of all of its cash. Spin it off to Vivendi shareholders." He added that he's not sure if the report is accurate or not.
