PARIS French cinema industry bodies urged authorities Monday to withdraw their approval of a merger of French firm Vivendi and its Canal Plus subsidiary with Canada's Seagram, AFP reported.
"The conditions of this merger have serious implications on the sphere of Canal Plus' business and its viability," said a statement released by staff organizations after a meeting Monday.
The French audiovisual industries regulator CSA last week gave approval for a merger of Seagram, Vivendi and Canal Plus, which is opposed by some French filmmakers who believe it is a threat to creative independence.
The industry groups, which represent staff in all aspects of cinematography, urged the CSA to show transparency by disclosing various matters including how many votes would be held by foreigners in the new group.
The merger is to create Vivendi Universal, the second biggest media group in the world after America On-Line-Time Warner.
The CSA, which is responsible for overseeing regulations concerning ownership and content in the audiovisual sector, said that it had checked that conditions attached to approval would be respected.
The three-way merger plan has already been approved by Canadian competition authorities and by the Canadian Heritage and Industry Ministries.
Last month the EU Commission approved the merger, but imposed conditions, notably stipulating that Vivendi sell its interest of 23 percent in British satellite broadcaster BSKYB and share the film rights of Universal, Seagram's film studio with other cable operators.
The merged group, Vivendi Universal, would have interests in film, television, music, Internet and telecommunications, and would have annual combined sales of 57.5 billion dollars (66.0 billion euros).