Vivendi Profit Up 53% on Video Games, Pay TV

Media and telecom conglomerate Vivendi said Thursday that its second-quarter profit rose 53%, boosted by the settlement of tax litigation and strong performances from its video-game and pay-TV arms.

The French company reported earnings of 1.16 billion euros ($1.48 billion) for the April-June period.

The company said its bottom line was inflated by a one-time gain related to the June settlement of litigation against U.S. tax authorities over the planned sale of a stake in chemicals company DuPont Co., which added 921 million euros to profit for the first half of the year.

Adjusted net income -- which excludes one-time gains and charges as well as the effects of sell-offs and acquisitions -- rose 10% to 750 million euros in the second quarter.

Vivendi reiterated its earlier 16% growth forecast for 2006 adjusted net income. As reported in July, its second-quarter revenue rose 4.8% to 4.84 billion euros ($6.2 billion).

Operating income at Vivendi’s Universal Music Group, the world’s largest music company, slipped 1.9% to 154 million euros in the second quarter. In a deal announced Wednesday, Vivendi agreed to pay 1.63 billion euros for Bertelsmann’s BMG Music Publishing.

Operating income from Vivendi Games multiplied almost eightfold to 39 million euros in the second quarter, thanks to the success of its blockbuster World of Warcraft online game.

Earnings at the pay-TV Canal Plus broadcasting arm were sharply higher despite the high price the unit paid to secure French soccer rights. Second-quarter operating income was up 93% to 154 million euros.

Maroc Telecom increased second-quarter operating income 19% to 197 million euros. But lower tariffs at SFR -- France’s second-largest mobile phone operator -- led to a 2.3% decrease in operating income to 723 million euros.