Vizzavi future put in serious doubt

The future of Vizzavi - the £1bn (€1.56bn) internet joint venture between Vivendi Universal and Vodafone Group PLC - was uncertain this weekend as the cash crisis at Vivendi worsened and the online group was forced to appoint an emergency chairman, it was claimed today.

As Vivendi's shortfall in its short-term cash reserves reaches €3bn euro there is serious doubt about its ability to fund its share of Vizzavi's substantial cash requirements, the paper said.

One Vodafone insider admitted Vivendi's cash crisis raised doubts over Vizzavi's future. "There has to be question marks, there has to be."

Meanwhile, it has emerged that Vizzavi will announce that Philip Germond, Vivendi's deputy chief operating officer, is to become its interim chairman to replace ousted Jean-Marie Messier, the paper added.

Messier was due to hand over the Vizzavi chair to Christopher Gent, chief executive of Vodafone this summer, but it is understood Gent has qualms about succeeding him, it added.

Vizzavi was launched in May 2000 and now has 6.5 million subscribers but announced 100 redundancies in January, along with a revised business model.

A Vodafone spokesman told the paper: "Vizzavi is an important part of our customer proposition particularly going forward."