Scoot.com plc and
European conglomerate Vivendi S.A. Monday
announced the terms of the two companies’ European joint venture, including Vivendi’s decision to take a larger stake in the infomediary.
Also on Monday, Scoot announced quarterly results to December 31, 1999,
showing revenues up 150 per cent, while net loss per share dropped
to 0.75 pence from 1.4 pence compared to the previous quarter.
The tie-up between Scoot.com, a major supplier of online business
directory services, and Vivendi, was first revealed in November
last year. Since then, Vivendi has acquired 13 million shares
in Scoot, and the full extent of the new £200 million ($328 million)
venture is clear. The venture was initially created to launch the Scoot service in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and
Portugal within the next three years.
On Monday, Vivendi purchased an additional 15 million new ordinary
shares in Scoot at 70p ($1.15) and will subscribe for a further
tranche worth £25 million ($41 million), bringing its total
holding to 9.8 per cent of Scoot’s outstanding share capital.
“The transaction with Vivendi will create a powerful, well positioned
interactive consumer transaction service which is expected to
generate around 1.5 million transactions per day across Europe
in five years from now,” said Robert Bonnier, chief executive
officer of Scoot.
Bonnier went on to say that the joint venture would leverage
Vivendi’s extensive assets in telecommunications, media and TV,
delivering seamlessly integrated applications through wireless,
Internet, digital TV and wireline platforms.
“This local, national and international service will create a
unique user and subscriber experience all delivered under the
Scoot brand umbrella,” said Bonnier.
To the same end, Scoot has forged a strategic alliance with
PointServe, Inc.,
a U.S. company that develops online scheduling technology.
Scoot plans to integrate it into its soon-to-be-launched
transaction services where it will become standard throughout
Europe.
