Ex-Vivendi CEO Messier paid $6m
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Ousted Vivendi boss Messier walks away with big payout
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LONDON, England (Reuters) -- French media group Vivendi Universal paid former chief executive Jean-Marie Messier 5.6 million euros ($6 million) in 2002, despite racking up France's worst-ever corporate loss in that time.
A copy of the group's provisional annual report showed that Messier -- ousted as chairman and chief executive last year as Vivendi nearly collapsed under a huge debt pile -- got 5,635,854 euros gross remuneration, 10 percent higher than his 2001 pay.
Vivendi, which owns Hollywood's Universal Studios and European pay-television giant Canal Plus, posted a 2002 net loss of 23 billion euros due mainly to a 18 billion euro writedown.
Messier masterminded a debt-fuelled acquisition binge by the former French utility. However, Vivendi had to make huge write-downs on those takeovers as the value of its media assets tumbled amid a bear market rout.
A Vivendi spokeswoman in New York declined to comment on Messier's pay.
Messier became chairman of Vivendi, whose roots lie in the 19th century water firm Compagnie Generale des Eaux, in 1996.
Vivendi shares closed up five percent at 13.10 euros on Wednesday -- well below its 2000 peak of 142 euros.
