This is just getting boring now. Vivendi bosses are expected to meet again this week to again discuss the bids by General Electric 's NBC and a group led by investor Edgar J Bronfman Jr to buy Universal's entertainment companies (record labels excluded). Insiders reckon the NBC deal is the favourite, mainly because of criticisms made against Vivendi by Bronfman in the financial press last week.
Even if Vivendi do pick a winner this week negotiations are still likely to drag on. The NBC deal would see Vivendi holding on to a 25% stake in the merged company - Vivendi will need to safeguard themselves in case the merged conglom doesn't perform so well in the future. Plus there's Barry Dillier - former chairman of Vivendi's entertainment assets - who still has some say over the sale of Universal Entertainment after his own company was swallowed up by the major.