Vivendi boss fighting to keep his job

VIVENDI Universal executive chairman Jean-Marie Messier was fighting to keep his job after shares in the French media conglomerate fell by a third in two days. Marc Viénot, a director of Vivendi, said Messier had lost credibility with the markets, and luxury goods magnate Bernard Arnault, a key Messier ally, has resigned as a non-executive director.

A board meeting was being held amid mounting doubts about Messier's strategy to restore the group's fortunes. Plans to raise e1.4bn (£905m) by selling 12.7% of utility subsidiary Vivendi Environnement ahead of a placing and rights issue have triggered fears that VU, with debts of e17bn, is struggling to keep pace with its cash outflow.

Investors are also worried that Rupert Murdoch's News Corp is about to backtrack on a deal to buy VU's Italian pay-TV venture, Telepieu, for e1.5bn. BT, meanwhile, says it is in no hurry to sell its 26% stake in French phone company Cegetel, a deal that would enable VU, which holds 44%, to consolidate Cegetel's profits and cashflow.