Vivendi, Fininvest, Mediaset end disputes
May 4, 2021
Media groups Vivendi, Fininvest and Mediaset have come to a global agreement to put an end to their disputes by waiving all litigation and claims between them.
Vivendi will support Mediaset’s international development by voting in favour of the transfer of Mediaset’s headquarters to the Netherlands and will also vote in favour of the proposed resolutions on the abolition of the double voting mechanism. Furthermore, Vivendi and Mediaset have entered a good neighbourhood agreement in free-to-air television and standstill commitments for a five-year term.
Fininvest will propose at the Annual General Meeting of Mediaset, scheduled to take place on June 23rd, 2021, the distribution to all shareholders of an extraordinary dividend of €0.30 per share for payment on July 21st, 2021; Vivendi and Fininvest undertook to vote in favour of such resolution.
Vivendi has committed to sell on the stock market, over a five-year period, the entire 19.19 per cent Mediaset equity stake held through Simon Fiduciaria. Fininvest will have a call option to buy any unsold portion in any 12-month period at the set annual price.
Fininvest will buy 5 per cent of the Mediaset share capital, held directly by Vivendi, at an ex-dividend price of €2.70 per share. Vivendi will remain a shareholder of Mediaset with its residual 4.61 per cent stake and will be free to retain or sell this stake at any time and any price.
Vivendi’s subsidiary Dailymotion has agreed to a one-off payment of €26.3 million to settle its copyright litigation with Mediaset’s subsidiaries RTI and Medusa.
The closing of the settlement agreement is scheduled on July 22nd, 2021.