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CNN Live At Daybreak

Edgar Bronfman Eyeing Vivendi's Entertainment Unit

Aired May 21, 2003 - 06:44   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Time for a little business buzz right now. Edgar Bronfman, Jr. wants to buy back the entertainment company he sold nearly three years ago.
Details now live from New York and Susan Lisovicz.

What's up with that -- Susan?

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS: You know, all I can say is business news is never boring, Carol, because Edgar Bronfman, Jr. painstakingly assembled this entertainment empire. Then he sold most of it off, watched it crumble, and that wiped out a big chunk of his family's remaining investment.

Now he wants to buy back some of these key pieces. They would include Universal Pictures, whose films include "Bruce Almighty" starring Jim Carrey -- that comes out later this week -- as well as Universal Music, whose acts include Eminem and Nelly, two of the biggest acts in the business.

Just to refresh your memory, Carol, Bronfman sold his assets to the French company, Vivendi. Within a year-and-a-half of that deal closing, the company was on the brink of bankruptcy. Obviously the shares -- the price of the shares plummeted. That aggravated tensions in the Bronfman family, which controls the Seagram liquor powerhouse company.

But the good news is that if he buys it back, if he's successful, he'll probably buy it back at a cheaper price. The bad news is that he'll have competition, because these are valuable assets.

COSTELLO: Gotcha. It's just like a soap opera.

LISOVICZ: Yes, I know, it's kind of complicated, but...

COSTELLO: It is. It is.

LISOVICZ: ... the fact is, is that he's trying to win back the same stuff he sold just a few years ago.

COSTELLO: We understood. You explained it very well.

A quick look at the futures before you have to go, though.

LISOVICZ: Mixed. Yesterday, shares really didn't do much. I mean, they ended lower, but just barely so, after the government upped the terror threat level to high. That followed the news of an isolated case of mad cow disease in Canada. But stocks battled back to breakeven, pretty much close to it, as you can see on the board.

Keep an eye on shares of Hewlett-Packard. After yesterday's close, the Dow component reported stronger-than-expected earnings -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Susan Lisovicz, many thanks. We'll check back with you tomorrow.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.






Aired May 21, 2003 - 06:44   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Time for a little business buzz right now. Edgar Bronfman, Jr. wants to buy back the entertainment company he sold nearly three years ago.
Details now live from New York and Susan Lisovicz.

What's up with that -- Susan?

SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS: You know, all I can say is business news is never boring, Carol, because Edgar Bronfman, Jr. painstakingly assembled this entertainment empire. Then he sold most of it off, watched it crumble, and that wiped out a big chunk of his family's remaining investment.

Now he wants to buy back some of these key pieces. They would include Universal Pictures, whose films include "Bruce Almighty" starring Jim Carrey -- that comes out later this week -- as well as Universal Music, whose acts include Eminem and Nelly, two of the biggest acts in the business.

Just to refresh your memory, Carol, Bronfman sold his assets to the French company, Vivendi. Within a year-and-a-half of that deal closing, the company was on the brink of bankruptcy. Obviously the shares -- the price of the shares plummeted. That aggravated tensions in the Bronfman family, which controls the Seagram liquor powerhouse company.

But the good news is that if he buys it back, if he's successful, he'll probably buy it back at a cheaper price. The bad news is that he'll have competition, because these are valuable assets.

COSTELLO: Gotcha. It's just like a soap opera.

LISOVICZ: Yes, I know, it's kind of complicated, but...

COSTELLO: It is. It is.

LISOVICZ: ... the fact is, is that he's trying to win back the same stuff he sold just a few years ago.

COSTELLO: We understood. You explained it very well.

A quick look at the futures before you have to go, though.

LISOVICZ: Mixed. Yesterday, shares really didn't do much. I mean, they ended lower, but just barely so, after the government upped the terror threat level to high. That followed the news of an isolated case of mad cow disease in Canada. But stocks battled back to breakeven, pretty much close to it, as you can see on the board.

Keep an eye on shares of Hewlett-Packard. After yesterday's close, the Dow component reported stronger-than-expected earnings -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Susan Lisovicz, many thanks. We'll check back with you tomorrow.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.