Eurobites: Vivendi Eyes Sky

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: EC probes Danish merger; Slovakian government to list its telco stake; HERE comes the new Jaguar.

Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe

April 8, 2015

2 Min Read
Eurobites: Vivendi Eyes Sky

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: EC probes Danish merger; Slovakian government to list its telco stake; HERE comes the new Jaguar.

  • French media group Vivendi , which has already been in the news this week for its plans to buy Orange (NYSE: FTE)'s Dailymotion video-sharing service, is eyeing up pay-TV operator Sky as an acquisition target, according to a Reuters report. Sources cited by Reuters say Vivendi's desire to extend the reach of its own Canal Plus TV business lies behind the potential move.

    • The European Commission has opened up an investigation into the proposed merger of Telia Company and Telenor Group (Nasdaq: TELN)'s respective Danish businesses. The folk in Brussels are concerned that the merger could be anti-competitive, leaving only TDC A/S (Copenhagen: TDC) as a sizable rival to the newly combined operator. The Commission has given itself a deadline of August 19 to pronounce on the proposed deal.

    • The Slovakian government is planning to list its 49% stake in Slovak Telekom on the London and Bratislava stock exchanges, reports Reuters. Deutsche Telekom AG (NYSE: DT), which owns the remaining 51% of the operator, has no plans to offer any of its shares in the listing.

    • Jaguar Land Rover, the UK-based but Indian-owned luxury car maker, has chosen Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK)'s HERE location-based services technology as the backbone of the in-car guidance system on its new Jaguar XF model. The car's so-called InControl Touch Pro Infotainment System enables it, says Nokia, to learn their "commuting patterns and preferences over time," combining that knowledge with live information emanating from the vehicle and its immediate environment.

    • Google (Nasdaq: GOOG)'s legal challenge to the German privacy watchdog over its ruling on how the search giant can manipulate users' data to work out their personal preferences and other stuff has been largely unsuccessful, according to a Bloomberg report.

      — Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading

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About the Author

Paul Rainford

Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading

Paul is based on the Isle of Wight, a rocky outcrop off the English coast that is home only to a colony of technology journalists and several thousand puffins.

He has worked as a writer and copy editor since the age of William Caxton, covering the design industry, D-list celebs, tourism and much, much more.

During the noughties Paul took time out from his page proofs and marker pens to run a small hotel with his other half in the wilds of Exmoor. There he developed a range of skills including carrying cooked breakfasts, lying to unwanted guests and stopping leaks with old towels.

Now back, slightly befuddled, in the world of online journalism, Paul is thoroughly engaged with the modern world, regularly firing up his VHS video recorder and accidentally sending text messages to strangers using a chipped Nokia feature phone.

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