IN BRIEF (Page 17)

No upfront cash for Vivendi

French media group Vivendi will not receive any cash upfront from a $5.8 billion sale of its stake in broadcast group NBC Universal to majority owner General Electric, the Financial Times reported.

The FT, citing people close to the situation, said US conglomerate GE would delay payments until late next year at the earliest for the stake purchase, which is needed for a NBCU joint venture GE plans with cable operator Comcast. A source familiar with the matter told Reuters this week the two parties had agreed in principle a price of $5.8 billion, but the payment schedule was then unclear.