Vivendi names Messier successor

While Messier names his price...

Vivendi has confirmed Jean-René Fourtou as the successor to ousted chief Jean-Marie Messier. Fourtou, who comes to Vivendi from drugs firm Aventis, takes over as Chairman and CEO with immediate effect, promising a comprehensive review of the business and a solution to its current financial crisis. Meanwhile Messier may be leaving under a cloud but he may well be doing so with a hefty severance package in tow. Vivendi shareholders are likely to be unimpressed with the E18m (£11.6m) pay-off Messier has negotiated, according to a report in the Guardian.