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IN THE MATTER OF THE SECURITIES LEGISLATION OF
BRITISH COLUMBIA, ALBERTA, SASKATCHEWAN, MANITOBA, ONTARIO, QUEBEC, NEW BRUNSWICK, PRINCE
EDWARD ISLAND, NOVA SCOTIA, NEWFOUNDLAND, THE YUKON TERRITORY, THE NORTHWEST TERRITORIES
AND NUNAVUT
AND
IN THE MATTER OF THE MUTUAL RELIANCE REVIEW SYSTEM
FOR EXEMPTIVE RELIEF APPLICATIONS
AND
IN THE MATTER OF
VIVENDI S.A., VIVENDI UNIVERSAL HOLDINGS COMPANY,VIVENDI UNIVERSAL EXCHANGECO INC. AND THE
SEAGRAM COMPANY LTD.
MRRS DECISION DOCUMENT
WHEREAS the local securities regulatory
authority or regulator (the "Decision Maker") in each of British Columbia,
Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island,
Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, the Yukon Territory, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut
(collectively, the "Jurisdictions") has received an application from Vivendi
S.A. (the "Filer"), on behalf of itself, Vivendi Universal Holdings Company
("Holdings") and Vivendi Universal Exchangeco Inc. ("Exchangeco"), for
a decision pursuant to the securities legislation, regulations and/or rules of the
Jurisdictions (the "Legislation") that:
(a) The requirements contained in
the Legislation to be registered to trade in a security (the "Registration Requirements") and to file a preliminary
prospectus and a prospectus and receive receipts therefor prior to distributing a security
(the "Prospectus Requirements") shall not apply to certain trades and/or
distributions of securities in connection with the proposed transactions (the
"Transactions") involving the Filer, The Seagram Company Ltd.
("Seagram") and Canal Plus S.A. ("Canal"), to be effected by way of a
plan of arrangement (the "Arrangement") under section 192 of the Canada Business
Corporations Act, as amended (the "CBCA");
(b) the requirements contained in
the Legislation to issue a press release and file a report upon the occurrence
of a material change (the "Material
Change Reporting Requirements"), to file and deliver an annual report, where
applicable, to file and deliver interim and annual financial statements, and to file an
information circular (collectively, the "Continuous Disclosure Requirements")
shall not apply to Exchangeco;
(c) the requirement contained in
the Legislation for an insider of a reporting issuer to file reports disclosing
the insiders direct or indirect
beneficial ownership of, or control or direction over, securities of the reporting issuer
(the "Insider Reporting Requirements") shall not apply to each insider
of Exchangeco and its successors.
(d) the requirements in the Legislation
of Ontario and Nova Scotia regulating the purchase by an issuer of its
own securities and the reporting of such
purchases (the "Issuer Bid Requirements") and the Registration Requirements
and Prospectus Requirements in those Jurisdictions shall not apply to the purchase
by
Exchangeco of exchangeable shares of Exchangeco owned by Holdings in exchange
for common shares or preferred shares of Exchangeco.
AND WHEREAS pursuant to the Mutual
Reliance
Review System for Exemptive Relief Applications (the "System"), the
Ontario
Securities Commission is the principal regulator for this application;
AND WHEREAS the Filer has represented to the
Decision Makers that:
1. The Filer is a public company in
France, the shares of which are
listed on the Paris Bourse. The Filers registered office is located in
Paris,
France, and it is not a reporting issuer or the equivalent under the Legislation.
2. The Filer is subject to the reporting
requirements of the Commission
des Operations de Bourse (the "COB") and the Paris Bourse. The Filer
is subject to the reporting requirements of the United States Securities Exchange
Act of 1934, as
amended.
3. As at October 2, 2000, the authorized capital of the Filer consisted
of ordinary shares of nominal value of EURO 5.50 each, of which 605,945,528 ordinary
shares were issued and outstanding (which includes ordinary shares held in treasury by the
Filer or its subsidiaries).
4. Holdings is an indirect wholly-owned
subsidiary of the Filer incorporated under the Company Act (Nova Scotia),
has its registered office in Halifax,
Nova Scotia, and is not, and does not intend to become a reporting issuer or
the equivalent under the Legislation. Holdings was incorporated in order
to hold all of the
common shares of Exchangeco and to hold the various call rights related to the
exchangeable non-voting shares of Exchangeco to be issued pursuant to the Arrangement
(the "Exchangeable Shares").
5. The authorized capital of Holdings consists of 1,000,000 common
shares. Upon completion of the Arrangement, all of the issued and outstanding common
shares of Holdings will be held indirectly by Vivendi Universal S.A.
6. Exchangeco is a direct wholly-owned subsidiary of Holdings
incorporated under the CBCA, its registered office is located in Toronto, Ontario, and it
is not currently a reporting issuer or the equivalent under the Legislation. Exchangeco
was incorporated for the purpose of implementing the Arrangement.
7. The authorized share capital of Exchangeco consists of an unlimited
number of common shares. The articles will be amended prior to implementation of the
Arrangement to authorize the issuance of the Exchangeable Shares and one or more classes
of preference shares.
8. Upon completion of the Arrangement,
Exchangeco will become a reporting issuer under the Legislation, and immediately
following completion of the
Arrangement all of the outstanding common shares in the capital of Exchangeco
will be held by Holdings and all of the outstanding Exchangeable Shares will
be held by those holders
of the Seagram Common Shares who validly elect to receive Exchangeable Shares
in exchange
for their Seagram Common Shares under the Arrangement. Exchangecos only
material assets upon completion of the Arrangement will be the Seagram Common
Shares acquired by it
under the Arrangement.
9. Seagram is incorporated under the CBCA, has its registered office in
Waterloo, Ontario, is a reporting issuer or the equivalent under the Legislation and is
not on the list of defaulting reporting issuers maintained by the Decision Makers.
10. Seagrams authorized capital
consists of an unlimited number of common shares and an unlimited number
of preferred shares. As at October 24, 2000,
there were issued and outstanding 444,026,907 Seagram Common Shares and no preferred
shares.
11. As at September 30, 2000, Seagram
had outstanding options (the "Seagram Options") to acquire an aggregate
of not more than 41,893,366 Seagram
Common Shares.
12. As at September 30, 2000, there
were issued and outstanding Seagram
stock appreciation rights (the "Seagram SARs") relating to not more than 836,499
Seagram Common Shares. As of May 31, 2000, Seagram was obligated to issue up to 20,025,000
Seagram Common Shares in respect of "Seagram ACES" (which are the 18,500,000
7.5% Adjustable Conversion Rate Security Units issued by Seagram and a subsidiary
of Seagram). Seagram and a subsidiary of Seagram have announced that they intend
to launch a
tender offer for the Seagram ACES.
13. The Seagram Common Shares are listed on the New York, Toronto and
London Stock Exchanges.
14. The Filer, Canal, Sofiée S.A. ("Sofiée"), Exchangeco
and Seagram have entered into a merger agreement made as of June 19, 2000 (the
"Merger Agreement"). Sofiée is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Filer.
Canal is a public company 49 percent of the ordinary shares of which are owned
directly and
indirectly by the Filer and which is engaged in the production, marketing and
distribution of subscription television services, the production of films and
programs and the
development of digital television technology, internet and interactive services.
15. Pursuant to the Merger Agreement
and related agreements, (i) the
Filer will merge with and into Sofiée, with Sofiée being renamed Vivendi Universal S.A.
("Vivendi Universal"), (ii) Vivendi Universal will acquire the non-regulated
businesses of Canal, (iii) the French regulated businesses of Canal will be retained
by the existing shareholders of Canal, and (iv) Vivendi Universal will indirectly
acquire the
outstanding capital stock of Seagram pursuant to the Plan of Arrangement.
16. Vivendi Universals capital will consist of ordinary shares
(the "Vivendi Universal Shares"). Vivendi Universal will become subject
to the
reporting requirements of the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
as
amended, as a result of the merger of the Filer into Sofiée.
17. The Vivendi Universal Shares will be listed on the Premier
Marché of the Paris Bourse.
18. Vivendi Universal will also list
American Depositary Shares (the "Vivendi Universal ADSs") on the New York Stock Exchange, Inc. (the
"NYSE"). Each Vivendi Universal ADS will represent one Vivendi Universal
Share. Applications will be made as required by Vivendi Universal to the NYSE
to list the Vivendi
Universal ADSs issued pursuant to the Arrangement or issuable from time to time
in
exchange for Exchangeable Shares or upon exercise of any convertible securities.
19. Vivendi Universal has filed a registration statement on Form F-4
with the SEC in respect of the Vivendi Universal Shares to be issued under the Arrangement
and related transactions.
20. The Merger Agreement also provides for the completion of the
Arrangement, pursuant to which Vivendi Universal, through Exchangeco and Holdings, will
acquire all of the issued and outstanding Seagram Common Shares (other than those held by
dissenting shareholders entitled to be paid fair value and those held by Vivendi Universal
or any affiliate thereof).
21. On the Arrangement becoming effective, the steps described below
will occur:
(a) Each Seagram Common Share, other
than (i) Seagram Common Shares held by Seagram Shareholders who are eligible
to and who elect to receive Exchangeable
Shares ("Exchangeable Elected Shares"), (ii) Seagram Common Shares held by
Seagram Shareholders exercising their dissent rights who are ultimately entitled to be
paid the fair value of the Seagram Common Shares held by them, and (iii) Seagram Common
Shares held by Vivendi Universal or any affiliate thereof which shall not be exchanged
under the Arrangement and shall remain outstanding as Seagram Common Shares held by
Vivendi Universal or any affiliate thereof, will be transferred by the holder thereof to
Holdings in exchange for that number of Vivendi Universal ADSs equal to the exchange ratio
(the "Exchange Ratio", defined as the number (rounded down to the nearest
ten-thousandth) determined by dividing (i) U.S. $77.35 by (ii) the Average Market Price
(as defined below) provided, however, that if the Average Market Price is equal to or
greater than U.S. $124.3369, the Exchange Ratio shall be .6221, and if the Average Market
Price is equal to or less than U.S. $96.6875, the Exchange Ratio shall be .8000. The
Average Market Price is the average of the closing price of Vivendi shares (rounded to the
nearest one-hundredth of a cent) on the Paris Bourse during the 20 consecutive trading
days, ending on the third complete trading day prior to the date on which the certificate
is issued under the CBCA for the Articles of Arrangement (the "Effective Date")
converted to U.S. dollars.
(b) Each Exchangeable Elected Share
will be transferred by the holder thereof to Exchangeco in exchange for
(i) that number of Exchangeable Shares equal to the
Exchange Ratio (as it may be adjusted), and (ii) that number of voting rights
(the "Vivendi Universal Voting Rights", which are each an "action en nue
propriété" under French law, which represents one vote on the same basis and in the
same circumstances as one Vivendi Universal Share) equal to the number of Exchangeable
Shares issued pursuant to the foregoing clause (i), which Vivendi Universal Voting Rights
Vivendi Universal shall transfer to the custodian (the "Custodian") for and on
behalf of the holders of the Exchangeable Shares issued pursuant to the foregoing clause
(i), and coincident with such transfer Vivendi Universal, Exchangeco and the Custodian
shall enter into the custody agreement (the "Custody Agreement")
(as more fully described in paragraph 37 below).
(c) Coincident with the transfer
of Exchangeable Elected Shares to Exchangeco, Vivendi Universal, Exchangeco
and the trustee (the "Trustee") will
enter into an exchange trust agreement (the "Exchange Trust Agreement")
and all rights of holders of Exchangeable Shares under the Exchange Trust Agreement
shall be
received by them as part of the property receivable by them in exchange for
the Exchangeable Elected Shares so transferred.
(d) Each Seagram Option outstanding
on the Effective Date, will be exchanged for an option from Vivendi Universal
or Seagram (a "Replacement
Option") to purchase the number of Vivendi Universal ADSs equal to the
product of the Exchange Ratio multiplied by the number of Seagram Common Shares
that may be purchased as
if such Seagram Option were exercisable and exercised immediately prior to
the Effective Time and the option exercise price shall be adjusted accordingly.
(Each Replacement Option
shall be non-transferable except by will or the laws of descent and distribution.)
(e) Each Seagram SAR outstanding
on the Effective Date will be exchanged for a stock appreciation right
from Vivendi Universal or Seagram (a "Replacement SAR") in respect
of the number of Vivendi Universal ADSs equal to the product of the Exchange
Ratio multiplied by the number of Seagram Common Shares that
were the subject of the Seagram SARs immediately prior to the Effective Time
and the SAR exercise price shall be adjusted accordingly. (Each Replacement
SAR shall be
non-transferable except by will or the laws of descent and distribution.)
22. With respect to each of the Seagram ACES outstanding on the
Effective Date, the purchase contract forming part of such unit will become a purchase
contract for Vivendi Universal ADSs.
23. The maximum number of Exchangeable Shares to be issued under the
Arrangement is limited to 97,000,000. If the number of Exchangeable Shares issuable
exceeds 97,000,000, the number of Exchangeable Shares issued to each person electing to
receive Exchangeable Shares will be adjusted to reflect the 97,000,000 maximum that is
available and the number of Vivendi Universal ADSs for which an Exchangeable Share is
exchangeable will be appropriately increased.
24. The Exchangeable Shares are intended
to be substantially the economic equivalent of the Vivendi Universal ADSs
for which the Exchangeable Shares
issuable under the Arrangement (the "Exchangeable Shares") will ultimately
be
exchanged.
25. The Toronto Stock Exchange (the "TSE")
has conditionally
approved the listing of the Exchangeable Shares.
26. The required approval of the Seagram
Shareholders to the Arrangement will be obtained by way of special resolution,
as defined under the CBCA, at a
meeting of the Seagram Shareholders (the "Meeting") in accordance with the
provisions of the interim order (the "Interim Order") obtained from the Superior
Court of Justice (Ontario) (the "Court"). Each Seagram Shareholder
will be
entitled to one vote for each Seagram Common Share held.
27. In connection with the Meeting,
Seagram has sent a management proxy
circular (the "Circular") to the Seagram Shareholders. The Circular
is included in the form of the Form F-4 registration statement filed by Vivendi
Universal with the
SEC. The Circular contains prospectus-level disclosure of the business and affairs
of the Filer, Vivendi Universal and Seagram and a detailed description of the
Arrangement.
28. The Exchangeable Shares, together
with the Exchange Trust Agreement, the Custody Agreement, and the Support
Agreement described below, will provide
holders thereof with securities having substantially equivalent economic rights
to those of a Vivendi Universal ADS. The creation of the Vivendi Universal
Voting Rights will
provide the holders of Exchangeable Shares with voting rights on the same basis
and in the same circumstances as the Vivendi Universal Shares. Exchangeable
Shares will be received
by certain holders of Seagram Common Shares on a Canadian tax-deferred basis
(provided appropriate tax elections are filed) and, if such shares are listed
on a prescribed stock
exchange (which currently includes the TSE), the Exchangeable Shares will be "qualified investments" and will not constitute "foreign property",
in
each case, under the Income Tax Act (Canada), as amended. The Exchangeable Shares
will be exchangeable by a holder thereof for Vivendi Universal ADSs on a one-for-one basis
(subject to adjustment) at any time at the option of such holder and will be required to
be exchanged upon the occurrence of certain events.
29. The Exchangeable Shares are entitled
to a preference over common shares and any other shares ranking junior to
the Exchangeable Shares, with respect to the
payment of dividends and the distribution of assets in the event of the liquidation,
dissolution or winding-up of Exchangeco. The rights, privileges, restrictions
and
conditions attaching to the Exchangeable Shares (the "Exchangeable Share
Provisions") provide that each Exchangeable Share will entitle the holder to a
dividend from Exchangeco payable at the same time as, and economically equivalent to, each
dividend paid by Vivendi Universal on a Vivendi Universal ADS. Subject to the overriding
call right of Holdings referred to below, on the liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of
Exchangeco, a holder of Exchangeable Shares will be entitled to receive from Exchangeco
for each Exchangeable Share held an amount equal to the current market price of a Vivendi
Universal ADS (as adjusted, if necessary) which shall be satisfied by delivery of one
Vivendi Universal ADS (as adjusted, if necessary) (the "Vivendi Universal ADS
Consideration") to the holder, together with all declared and unpaid dividends on
each such Exchangeable Share (such aggregate amount, the "Liquidation Amount").
Upon a proposed liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of Exchangeco, Holdings will have
an overriding call right (the "Liquidation Call Right") to purchase
all of the outstanding Exchangeable Shares from the holders thereof (other than
Vivendi Universal or
its affiliates) for a price per share equal to the Liquidation Amount to be satisfied
in
the manner described in this paragraph.
30. The Exchangeable Shares will be
non-voting (except as required by the Exchangeable Share Provisions or by
applicable law) and will be retractable at the
option of the holder at any time. Subject to the overriding call right of Holdings,
upon retraction the holder will be entitled to receive from Exchangeco for
each Exchangeable
Share retracted an amount equal to the current market price of a Vivendi Universal
ADS (as adjusted, if necessary), to be satisfied by the delivery of the Vivendi
Universal ADS
Consideration, together with, on the designated payment date therefor and to
the extent not already paid by Exchangeco on a dividend payment date, an
amount equal to all declared
and unpaid dividends on each such retracted Exchangeable Share (such aggregate
amount, the "Retraction Price"). Holdings will have an overriding call right (the
"Retraction Call Right") to purchase from the holder all of the Exchangeable
Shares that are the subject of the retraction notice delivered by the holder
for a price per share equal to the Retraction Price to be satisfied in the manner
described in this
paragraph unless the holder withdraws the notice of retraction.
31. Subject to the overriding call
right of Holdings referred to below, Exchangeco shall redeem all the Exchangeable
Shares then outstanding on the date
established by the Board of Directors (the "Redemption Date", which shall be no
earlier than the thirtieth anniversary of the date which is fourteen days prior to the
Effective Date). The board of directors may accelerate the Redemption Date in certain
circumstances, including if there are outstanding fewer than 5% of the actual number of
Exchangeable Shares to be issued as determined at the "Election Deadline" (at
5:00 p.m. (Toronto time) at the place of deposit three business days prior to the
Meeting), other than Exchangeable Shares held by Vivendi Universal and its affiliates.
Upon such redemption, a holder will be entitled to receive from Exchangeco for each
Exchangeable Share redeemed an amount equal to the current market price of a Vivendi
Universal ADS (as adjusted, if necessary) which shall be satisfied by delivery of the
Vivendi Universal ADS Consideration to the holder, together with, to the extent not
already paid by Exchangeco on a dividend payment date, an amount equal to all declared and
unpaid dividends on each such redeemed Exchangeable Share (such aggregate amount, the
"Redemption Call Purchase Price"). Holdings will have an overriding call right
(the "Redemption Call Right") to purchase from the holders all of the
outstanding Exchangeable Shares (other than those owned by Vivendi Universal
or its affiliates) for a price per share equal to the Redemption Call Purchase
Price to be
satisfied in the manner described in this paragraph upon being notified by Exchangeco
of a
proposed redemption of Exchangeable Shares.
32. Under the Exchange Trust Agreement,
Vivendi Universal will grant to the Trustee for the benefit of the holders
of the Exchangeable Shares the right (the "Exchange Right"), exercisable
upon certain events related to the insolvency or bankruptcy of Exchangeco,
to require Vivendi Universal to purchase from a holder of
Exchangeable Shares all or any part of its Exchangeable Shares. The purchase
price for each Exchangeable Share purchased by Vivendi Universal will be
an amount equal to the
current market price of a Vivendi Universal ADS (as adjusted, if necessary) which
shall be satisfied by delivery of the Vivendi Universal ADS Consideration
to the holder, together
with an amount equal to all declared and unpaid dividends on such Exchangeable
Share, to be satisfied by the delivery of this aggregate amount to the Trustee
on behalf of the
holder.
33. Under the Exchange Trust Agreement,
upon the liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of Vivendi Universal, Vivendi
Universal will be required to
purchase each outstanding Exchangeable Share, and each holder will be required
to sell all of its Exchangeable Shares (such purchase and sale obligations
are hereafter referred to
as the "Automatic Exchange Right"), for a purchase price per share
equal to the current market price of a Vivendi Universal ADS (as adjusted, if
necessary) which shall be
satisfied by delivery of the Vivendi Universal ADS Consideration to the holder,
together with an amount equal to all declared and unpaid dividends on each such
Exchangeable Share,
to be satisfied by the delivery of this aggregate amount to the Trustee, on behalf
of the
holder.
34. The creation of the Vivendi Universal
Voting Rights provides each holder of an Exchangeable Share with the right
to vote at a Vivendi Universal shareholder
meeting on the same basis and in the same circumstances as if the holder held
one Vivendi Universal Share. To create the Vivendi Universal Voting Rights,
Vivendi Universal will
split shares held in treasury, as is permitted under French law, into bare legal
title
("action en nue propriété") and beneficial ownership ("usufruit").
The action en nue propriété will be transferred to the Custodian.
35. The Vivendi Universal Voting Rights will carry a number of voting
rights, exercisable at any meeting of the holders of Vivendi Universal Shares, equal to
the number of Exchangeable Shares outstanding from time to time that are not owned by
Vivendi Universal and its affiliates. Holders of Exchangeable Shares will exercise the
voting rights attached to the Vivendi Universal Voting Rights through the mechanism of the
Custody Agreement described below.
36. Under the terms of the agreement under which the Vivendi Universal
Voting Rights are transferred to the Custodian, the Vivendi Universal Voting Rights are
surrendered to Vivendi Universal when the holders of the corresponding Exchangeable Shares
receive Vivendi Universal ADSs in exchange therefor, upon the retraction or redemption of
the Exchangeable Shares, the exercise of the Exchange Right, the occurrence of the
Automatic Exchange Right, the liquidation, dissolution or winding up of Exchangeco, or the
exercise of the Retraction Call Right, the Redemption Call Right, or the Liquidation Call
Right by Holdings.
37. Under the terms of the Custody Agreement, each voting right
attached to the Vivendi Universal Voting Rights must be voted by the Custodian pursuant to
the instructions of the holder of the related Exchangeable Share. In the absence of any
such instructions from a holder, the Custodian will not be entitled to exercise the
related voting rights.
38. Contemporaneously with the closing
of the Arrangement, Vivendi Universal, Exchangeco and Holdings will enter
into a support agreement (the "Support
Agreement"). The Support Agreement will provide that Vivendi Universal will
not declare or pay any dividend on the Vivendi Universal ADSs unless Exchangeco
simultaneously
declares and pays an equivalent dividend on the Exchangeable Shares, and that
Vivendi Universal will ensure that Exchangeco and Holdings will be able to honour
the redemption
and retraction rights and dissolution entitlements that are attributes of the
Exchangeable Shares under the Exchangeable Share Provisions and the related Redemption,
Retraction and
Liquidation Call Rights described above.
39. The Support Agreement will also provide that, without the prior
approval of Exchangeco and the holders of the Exchangeable Shares, actions such as
distributions of stock dividends, options, rights and warrants for the purchase of
securities or other assets, subdivisions, combinations, reclassifications, reorganizations
and other changes cannot be taken in respect of the Vivendi Universal ADSs generally
without the same or an economically equivalent action being taken in respect of the
Exchangeable Shares.
40. The steps under the Arrangement and the exercise of certain rights
provided for in the Exchangeable Share Provisions, the Exchange Trust Agreement, the
Custody Agreement and the Support Agreement involve or may involve a number of trades
and/or distributions of securities, including trades and/or distributions related to the
issuance of Exchangeable Shares pursuant to the Arrangement or upon the issuance of
Vivendi Universal ADSs in exchange for Exchangeable Shares. The trades and/or
distributions and possible trades and/or distributions in securities to which the
Arrangement gives rise are the following:
(a) the issuance or transfer of Vivendi Universal ADSs to Holdings and
the subsequent transfer by Holdings of Vivendi Universal ADSs to holders of Seagram Common
Shares or, at the direction of Holdings, the issuance or transfer of Vivendi Universal
ADSs to holders of Seagram Common Shares, in either case, in connection with the
Arrangement;
(b) the transfer of Seagram Common Shares by Seagram Shareholders
(other than those validly electing to receive Exchangeable Shares, those validly
exercising their right of dissent, and those held by Vivendi Universal or any of its
affiliates) to Holdings;
(c) the transfer of Seagram Common Shares by validly electing Seagram
Shareholders to Exchangeco, and the issuance of Exchangeable Shares by Exchangeco to such
holders in return;
(d) the exchange of Seagram Options for Replacement Options to be
granted by either Seagram or Vivendi Universal and the issuance and delivery of Vivendi
Universal ADSs to a holder of a Replacement Option upon the exercise thereof;
(e) the exchange of Seagram SARs for Replacement SARs to be granted by
either Seagram or Vivendi Universal and the issuance and delivery of Vivendi Universal
ADSs to a holder of a Replacement SAR upon the exercise thereof;
(f) the issuance and delivery of Vivendi Universal ADSs to the holders
of the Seagram ACESs under the purchase contracts that form part of the Seagram ACES;
(g) the grant by Vivendi Universal of the Exchange Right and the
Automatic Exchange Right to the Trustee under the Exchange Trust Agreement for the benefit
of holders of Exchangeable Shares, pursuant to the Exchange Trust Agreement;
(h) the transfer by Vivendi Universal to the Custodian of the Vivendi
Universal Voting Rights for the benefit of the holders of the Exchangeable Shares;
(i) the surrender of the Vivendi Universal Voting Rights to Vivendi
Universal upon the exercise of the Exchange Right by the holders of Exchangeable Shares,
the occurrence of the Automatic Exchange Right, the retraction or redemption of the
Exchangeable Shares under the Exchangeable Share Provisions, the liquidation, dissolution
or winding up of Exchangeco, or upon the exercise by Holdings of the Retraction Call
Right, the Redemption Call Right, or the Liquidation Call Right;
(j) the issuance by Vivendi Universal of Vivendi Universal ADSs to a
holder of Exchangeable Shares upon the exercise of the Exchange Right or pursuant to the
Automatic Exchange Right;
(k) the transfer of Exchangeable Shares by a holder to Vivendi
Universal upon the exercise of the Exchange Right or pursuant to the Automatic Exchange
Right;
(l) the grant of the Liquidation Call Right to Holdings to purchase all
of the outstanding Exchangeable Shares from the holders of such shares upon a proposed
liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of Exchangeco;
(m) the grant of the Retraction Call Right to Holdings to purchase from
a holder of Exchangeable Shares all of the Exchangeable Shares of such holder that are the
subject of a retraction notice;
(n) the grant of the Redemption Call Right to Holdings to purchase all
of the outstanding Exchangeable Shares from the holders of such shares upon notice from
Exchangeco of a proposed redemption of Exchangeable Shares;
(o) the issuance or transfer of Vivendi Universal ADSs to Vivendi
Exchangeco and the subsequent transfer thereof by Exchangeco to a holder of Exchangeable
Shares or the issuance or transfer of Vivendi Universal ADSs to Holdings and the
subsequent transfer thereof by Holdings to Exchangeco and the transfer by Exchangeco to a
holder of Exchangeable Shares, in either case, upon the
(i) retraction of the Exchangeable Shares,
(ii) redemption of the Exchangeable Shares, and
(iii) liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of Exchangeco;
(p) the transfer of Exchangeable Shares by the holder thereof to
Exchangeco upon the
(i) retraction of the Exchangeable Shares,
(ii) redemption of the Exchangeable Shares, and
(iii) liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of Exchangeco;
(q) the issuance or transfer of Vivendi Universal ADSs to Holdings and
the subsequent transfer thereof by Holdings to a holder of Exchangeable Shares or, at the
direction of Vivendi Holdings, the issuance or transfer of Vivendi Universal ADSs to a
holder of Exchangeable Shares, in either case, upon exercise of the
(i) Retraction Call Right
(ii) Redemption Call Right
(iii) Liquidation Call Right;
(r) the transfer of Exchangeable Shares by the holder to Holdings upon
Holdings exercising the
(i) Retraction Call Right
(ii) Redemption Call Right
(iii) Liquidation Call Right;
(s) any intra-group transfers of Vivendi Universal Shares and Vivendi
Universal ADSs and issuances of shares of Vivendi Universal affiliates in connection with
any of the transactions referred to in the foregoing paragraphs (a) to (r); and
(t) the issuance and delivery of Vivendi Universal Shares to enable the
creation and issuance of the applicable Vivendi Universal ADSs, or upon the exchange of
Vivendi Universal ADSs for Vivendi Universal Shares in accordance with the terms of the
Vivendi Universal ADSs;
(collectively, "the Trades")
41. The fundamental investment decision
to be made by a Seagram Shareholder is made at the time of the Meeting, when
such holder votes in respect of the
Arrangement. As a result of this decision, such holder (other than a holder who
validly exercises its right of dissent) receives Exchangeable Shares or Vivendi
Universal ADSs in
exchange for the Seagram Common Shares of such holder. The Exchangeable Shares
may, at the
holders option, be retracted for Vivendi Universal ADSs. As the Exchangeable Shares
will provide certain Canadian tax benefits to certain Canadian holders but will otherwise
be substantially the economic equivalent of the Vivendi Universal ADSs and the Vivendi
Universal Voting Rights will provide holders of Exchangeable Shares with voting rights on
the same basis and in the same circumstances as the Vivendi Universal Shares, all
subsequent exchanges of Exchangeable Shares are in furtherance of the holders
initial investment decision at the time of the Meeting. That investment decision
will be made on the basis of the Circular, which will contain detailed disclosure
of the business
and affairs of each of Vivendi, Vivendi Universal and Seagram and of the particulars
of
the Arrangement.
42. If not for Canadian income tax
considerations, Canadian resident holders of Seagram Common Shares could
have received Vivendi Universal ADSs without the
option of receiving Exchangeable Shares. The option in favour of certain holders
of Seagram Common Shares to receive Exchangeable Shares under the Arrangement
will enable
them to defer certain Canadian income tax that would otherwise arise on the exchange
of Seagram Common Shares for Vivendi Universal ADSs and, if the Exchangeable
Shares are
listed on a prescribed stock exchange in Canada, permit them to hold property
that is a "qualified investment" and is not foreign property under
the Income Tax Act
(Canada).
43. As a result of the substantial economic equivalency between the
Exchangeable Shares and the Vivendi Universal ADSs and the creation of the Vivendi
Universal Voting Rights, holders of Exchangeable Shares will have a participating interest
determined by reference to Vivendi Universal, rather than Exchangeco or its successors.
Accordingly, it is the information relating to Vivendi Universal, not Exchangeco or its
successors, that will be relevant to holders of both the Vivendi Universal ADSs and the
Exchangeable Shares. Certain information required to be provided in respect of Exchangeco
or its successors as a reporting issuer under the Legislation would not be relevant (and
would arguably be misleading) to the holders of Exchangeable Shares.
44. Vivendi Universal will send to
all holders of Exchangeable Shares contemporaneously all disclosure material
furnished to holders of Vivendi Universal ADSs
resident in the United States including, without limitation, copies of its annual
and semi-annual financial statements and all notices prepared in connection
with Vivendi
Universals shareholder meetings.
45. Vivendi Universal will send to
all holders of Vivendi Universal ADSs and Vivendi Universal Shares resident
in Canada contemporaneously all disclosure
material furnished to holders of Vivendi Universal ADSs resident in the United
States or to holders of Vivendi Universal Shares resident in France, as the
case may be, including,
without limitation, copies of its annual and semi-annual financial statements
and all
notices prepared in connection with Vivendi Universals shareholder meetings.
46. The Circular discloses that, in connection with the Arrangement,
applications have been made for prospectus, registration and resale exemptions and
exemptions from disclosure and insider reporting obligations. The Circular specifies the
disclosure requirements from which Exchangeco has applied to be exempted and identifies
the disclosure that will be made in substitution therefor if such exemptions are granted.
47. For tax reasons, it is anticipated that subject to applicable law,
Holdings will exercise the Redemption, Retraction and Liquidation Call Rights available on
each occasion when such rights are available.
48. It may be advantageous from both a tax and an administrative
perspective for Exchangeco to purchase from Holdings, from time to time, all the
Exchangeable Shares held by Holdings as a result of the exercise of these rights.
49. The purchase price to be paid by Exchangeco to Holdings for the
Exchangeable Shares will be the fair market value of the Exchangeable Shares on the date
of purchase and the purchase price will be satisfied by the issue of common shares or
preferred shares of Exchangeco.
50. It is intended that Exchangeco will immediately cancel any
Exchangeable Shares it purchases from Holdings.
51. Such purchases will constitute issuer bids under the Legislation in
Ontario and Nova Scotia and will not be exempt from the Issuer Bid Requirements under the
Legislation in those Jurisdictions.
52. The issuance by Exchangeco of common shares or preferred shares to
Holdings will be a distribution for purposes of the Legislation in Ontario and Nova Scotia
and will not be exempt in Nova Scotia from the Registration and Prospectus Requirements.
AND WHEREAS pursuant to the System,
this MRRS Decision Document evidences the decision of each Decision Maker
(collectively, the "Decision");
AND WHEREAS each of the Decision Makers is
satisfied that the test contained in the Legislation that provides the Decision Maker with
the jurisdiction to make the Decision has been met;
THE DECISION of the Decision Makers pursuant
to the Legislation is that:
1. The Registration Requirements and Prospectus Requirements shall not
apply to the Trades, provided that:
1.1 The first trade in the Exchangeable
Shares acquired pursuant to this Decision in a Jurisdiction shall be deemed
a distribution or a primary distribution
to the public under the Legislation of such Jurisdiction (the "Applicable
Legislation") unless:
(a) at the time of the first trade,
Exchangeco is a reporting issuer or the equivalent under the Legislation
of the Jurisdiction in which the trade takes place
(the "Applicable Legislation") or where the Applicable Legislation
does not recognize the status of a reporting issuer, the requirements described
in paragraph 2
below are met;
(b) no unusual effort is made to prepare the market or to create a
demand for the Exchangeable Shares;
(c) no extraordinary commission or consideration is paid to a person or
company in respect of the trade;
(d) if the seller of the securities is an insider or officer of
Exchangeco, the seller has no reasonable grounds to believe that Exchangeco is in default
of any requirement of the Applicable Legislation; and
(e) except in Quebec, the first trade is not from the holdings of a
person or company or a combination of persons or companies holding a sufficient number of
any securities of Vivendi Universal (with Exchangeable Shares counted as securities of
Vivendi Universal) so as to affect materially the control of Vivendi Universal, or more
than 20% of the outstanding voting securities of Vivendi Universal except where there is
evidence showing that the holding of those securities does not affect materially the
control of Vivendi Universal, unless:
(i) if applicable, Exchangeco is a reporting issuer or the equivalent
under the Applicable Legislation and is not in default of any requirement thereof;
(ii) the seller files with the applicable Decision Maker(s) and any
other stock exchange recognized by such Decision Maker(s) for this purpose on which the
Exchangeable Shares are listed at least seven days and not more than fourteen days prior
to such first trade:
(A) a notice of intention to
sell in the form prescribed by the Applicable Legislation for control
block distributions (the "Control Block
Rules") disclosing particulars of the control position known to the
seller, the number of Exchangeable Shares to be sold and the method of
distribution; and
(B) a declaration signed by the seller as at a date not more than
twenty-four hours prior to its filing and prepared and executed in accordance with the
Control Block Rules and certified as follows:
"the seller for whose account the securities to which this
certificate relates are to be sold hereby represents that the seller has no knowledge of
any material change which has occurred in the affairs of the issuer of the securities
which has not been generally disclosed and reported to the securities regulatory authority
in the Jurisdiction where the trade takes place, nor has the seller any knowledge of any
other material adverse information in regard to the current and prospective operations of
the issuer which have not been generally disclosed",
provided that the notice required to be filed under section
1.1(e)(ii)(A) and the declaration required to be filed under section 1.1(e)(ii)(B) shall
be renewed and filed at the end of sixty days after the original date of filing and
thereafter at the end of each twenty-eight day period so long as any of the Exchangeable
Shares specified under the original notice have not been sold or until notice has been
filed that the Exchangeable Shares so specified or any part thereof are no longer for
sale;
(iii) the seller files with the applicable Decision Maker(s) within
three days after the completion of any such first trade, a report of the trade in the form
prescribed by the Applicable Legislation;
(iv) no unusual effort is made to prepare the market or to create a
demand for the Exchangeable Shares and no extraordinary commission or other consideration
is paid in respect of such first trade; and
(v) the seller (or affiliated entity) has held the Exchangeable Shares
and/or Seagram Common Shares, in the aggregate, for a period of at least six months,
provided that if:
(A) the Applicable Legislation provides that upon a seller to whom the
Control Block Rules apply acquiring additional securities of a class pursuant to certain
prescribed exemptions from prospectus requirements under such legislation, all securities
of such class are subject to a hold period commencing the date the last security of the
class was acquired under such prescribed exemptions; and
(B) the seller acquires Exchangeable Shares pursuant to any such
prescribed exemptions;
then all Exchangeable Shares held by the seller will be subject to such
hold period commencing on the date any such subsequent Exchangeable Shares are so
acquired; and
1.2 the first trade in Vivendi Universal ADSs acquired pursuant to one
of the Trades in a Jurisdiction and the first trade in Vivendi Universal Shares received
upon the exchange of Vivendi Universal ADSs for Vivendi Universal Shares in accordance
with the terms of the Vivendi Universal ADSs shall be deemed a distribution or a primary
distribution to the public under the Applicable Legislation unless such first trade is
executed on an exchange or market outside of Canada.
2. The Continuous Disclosure Requirements shall not apply to Exchangeco
and the Insider Reporting Requirements shall not apply to an insider of Exchangeco other
than a director or senior officer of Vivendi Universal for so long as:
(i) Vivendi Universal sends to all
holders of Exchangeable Shares contemporaneously all disclosure material
furnished to holders of Vivendi Universal ADSs
resident in the United States, including, without limitation, copies of its
annual financial statements and all notices prepared in connection with
Vivendi Universals
shareholder meetings;
(ii) Vivendi Universal files with
the Decision Makers copies of all documents required to be filed by it
with the United States Securities and Exchange
Commission under the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended,
including, without limitation, copies of any Form 20-F, Form 6-K and proxy
solicitation materials
prepared in connection with Vivendi Universals shareholders meetings;
(iii) Vivendi Universal complies
with the requirements of the NYSE in respect of making public disclosure
of material information on a timely basis and
forthwith issues in Canada and files with the Decision Makers any such press
release that discloses a material change in Vivendi Universals affairs;
(iv) Exchangeco complies with the Material Change Reporting
Requirements in respect of material changes in the affairs of Exchangeco that would be
material to holders of Exchangeable Shares but would not be material to holders of Vivendi
Universal ADSs;
(v) the Circular includes a statement that, as a consequence of this
Decision, Exchangeco and its insiders will be exempt from certain disclosure requirements
in Canada applicable to reporting issuers and their insiders and specifying those
requirements Exchangeco and its insiders have been exempted from and identifying the
disclosure that will be made in substitution therefor;
(vi) Vivendi Universal includes in all future mailings of proxy
solicitation materials (if any) to holders of Exchangeable Shares a clear and concise
statement explaining the reason for the mailed material being solely in relation to
Vivendi Universal and not in relation to Exchangeco, such statement to include a reference
to the substantial economic equivalency between the Exchangeable Shares and the Vivendi
Universal ADSs and the manner in which the Vivendi Voting Rights are exercisable at
meetings of holders of Vivendi Universal Shares pursuant to the Custody Agreement;
(vii) Vivendi Universal remains the direct or indirect beneficial owner
of all the issued and outstanding common shares of Exchangeco; and
(viii) Vivendi Universals
annual audited financial statements are reconciled to U.S. GAAP (or international
GAAP, if this becomes acceptable in Canada) in
its Form 20-F or equivalent documents and such reconciliation is audited;
(ix) except for securities issued to Vivendi Universal or to
wholly-owned subsidiaries of Vivendi Universal, Exchangeco does not issue any securities
to the public other than the Exchangeable Shares and dividends and distributions thereon
in accordance with the provisions thereof; and
(x) all filing fees that would otherwise be payable by Exchangeco in
connection with the Continuous Disclosure Requirements are paid.
IT IS ALSO THE DECISION of the Decision
Makers in Ontario and Nova Scotia pursuant to the Legislation in those jurisdictions that
the Issuer Bid Requirements and the Registration and Prospectus Requirements shall not
apply to the purchase by Exchangeco of Exchangeable Shares of Exchangeco owned by Holdings
in exchange for common shares or preferred shares of Exchangeco.
DATED at Toronto on this 6th day of December, 2000.
"R. W. Davis"
"Robert
W. Korthals"
Headnote
Mutual Reliance Review System for Exemptive Relief Applications -
relief granted, subject to certain conditions, from the prospectus and registration
requirements in respect of trades in connection with a statutory arrangement.
Reporting issuer exempted from certain continuous disclosure and
insider reporting requirements subject to certain conditions. Disclosure required to be
provided by these provisions would not be meaningful to shareholders.
Applicable Ontario Statutory Provisions
Securities Act, R.S.O. 1990, c.S.5, as am., ss. 25, 35(1)15.i, 53,
72(1)(i), 72(5), 74(1), 75, 77, 78, 79, 80(b)(iii), 81(2), 107, 108, 109, 121(2)(a)(ii).
Applicable Ontario Rules
Rule 45-501 Exempt Distributions.
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