Vivendi increase stake in Ubisoft to 17.73% of share capital; requesting board seats
Vivendi [EPA: VIV] declared that it crossed on April 27 2016, the 15% legal threshold and owns 19,922,805 shares in Ubisoft [EPA: UBI], the listed French video games company, representing 17.73% of the share capital and 15.66% of the voting rights in the company.
Vivendi declared that it considers acquiring more shares, that it is not acting in concert with any other party, and that it does not plan to take control of Ubisoft or launch a public offer for the business.Vivendi added that it wants to establish a fruitful collaboration with Ubisoft and that it intends to seek a restructuring of the Board of Ubisoft with the view, in particular, to obtain a representation that is consistent with its shareholder position.
This development was also reported in daily Les Echos, which cited an insider at Ubisoft as saying that the tactics is not a “surprise” and that it was the usual method of Vincent Bolloré [chairman of Vivendi], who wants to take “creeping” control of Vivendi without paying the shareholders