Activision to Buy Back Most of Vivendi’s Controlling Stake

July 25, 2013 at 11:12 pm PT

Activision Blizzard Inc. said it has reached an agreement to buy back nearly $6 billion worth of Vivendi SA’s holding in the company, ending months of negotiations over the fate of the videogame giant.

Santa Monica, Calif.-based Activision said Thursday it will buy 429 million shares for about $13.60 per share, reducing Paris-based conglomerate Vivendi from being majority shareholder. Activision said it would fund the purchase with $1.2 billion in cash on hand from its domestic accounts and approximately $4.6 billion in debt financing from banks including J.P. Morgan and Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

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Tagged with: Activision, Activision Blizzard, Ian Sherr, Sam Schechner, The Wall Street Journal, Vivendi, WSJDN

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