M&A

13 November, 2009

GE, Comcast agree on NBC Universal JV board-source

NEW YORK, Nov 13 (Reuters) - General Electric Co (GE.N) and Comcast Corp (CMCSA.O) have agreed on the structure of the board for the new joint venture with NBC Universal, a person familiar with the matter said.

Comcast will have the majority of seats on the board, the source said, but could not give other details.

GE and Comcast are unlikely to reach a deal on the venture this weekend, two people familiar with the matter said, as GE is still in talks with Vivendi SA (VIV.PA) to buy the French company's 20 percent stake in NBC Universal.

Vivendi is still negotiating to get the best value for its investment, the person said.

GE, which currently owns 80 percent of NBC Universal, has been in talks with Comcast to sell it a 51 percent stake in a proposed joint venture that would also house the cable networks now belonging to Comcast.

They recently agreed to value NBC Universal at about $30 billion, sources previously told Reuters.

Comcast declined to comment. NBC Universal was not immediately available for comment. (Reporting by Jui Chakravorty; editing by Tiffany Wu and Andre Grenon)

Source: http://www.reuters.com