Centre Daily News
DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES — United Arab Emirates telecommunications firm Etisalat said Wednesday it has completed a deal to buy French entertainment company Vivendi’s majority stake in Morocco’s Maroc Telecom.
Etisalat said it paid 4.14 billion euros ($5.68 billion) for the 53 percent stake, completing a deal announced in November.
The Abu Dhabi-based company made the purchase through a subsidiary known as Etisalat International North Africa. That company is 91.3 percent owned by Etisalat, and 8.7 percent by the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development.
Etisalat last week announced plans to sell off its operations in six West African countries to Maroc Telecom for $650 million.
Vivendi, which owns record producer Universal Music, is selling off the business as part of a broader effort to refocus its business around media and content only.
