By Ruth Bender
PARIS--Cable tycoon Patrick Drahi Saturday trumped rival
Bouygues SA in the battle for SFR as Vivendi SA's board voted in
favor of selling its phone unit to Altice SA, ending a month-long
feisty bidding war between two very keen suitors.
Vivendi said its board unanimously voted for a bid from Altice
that includes 13.5 billion euros ($18.5 billion) in cash when the
deal closes, plus a potential further payout of EUR750 million.
Vivendi would also hold a 20% stake in a new group formed by
merging Altice's French cable operator Numericable Group SA with
SFR, with the option to exit the stake at a later stage.
The board's decision comes after an intense bidding war, which
culminated Friday, when Bouygues submitted a final sweetened offer
ahead of the crucial board meeting that stretched from Friday into
Saturday.
Vivendi has sought to shed its telecoms assets for the past two
years in a bid to refashion itself as a media and content business.
The group initially planned a spinoff of the unit--which accounts
for close to half of its sales--but then attracted bids from
Bouygues on top of Mr. Drahi, who has chased SFR for several
years.
Vivendi three weeks ago entered into exclusive talks with Altice
but Bouygues since came back with new offers in a bid to squeeze
out Altice.
Vivendi said it has "attentively" examined all offers, including
those from Bouygues, but decided that Altice's proposal offers the
best potential to create value for shareholders, employees and
clients.
The proposed deal to merge Altice's Numericable with SFR is
still subject to the approval from relevant antitrust bodies and
consultation with employee representatives.
Write to Ruth Bender at Ruth.Bender@wsj.com
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