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DirecTV (DTV) said it is dropping out of the auction to buy Vivendi SA's (VIVEF) GVT, a Brazilian telecom operator.

DirecTV had been eyeing GVT as a way of bolstering its Latin American operations. But the company "has decided not to move forward in its pursuit of GVT and has withdrawn from the process," a DirecTV spokesman said.

Last week, the company's chief financial officer Patrick Doyle said at an investor conference that GVT was not a must-have for DirecTV, and that DirecTV would only go forward if "the economics are compelling."

Vivendi has been looking to sell off its telecommunications assets to pare down debt and focus on its media and content businesses. But few companies have appeared to be willing to pay the premium it has asked for certain assets like videogame maker Activision Blizzard, the Wall Street Journal has previously reported.

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