$5 million bonus for Vivendi chief

Messier: Investors have criticised his handling of the media giant

PARIS, France -- Vivendi Universal chief executive Jean-Marie Messier picked up a bonus worth 250 percent of his salary, despite the company posting France's biggest corporate loss, according to a report.

Messier earned 5.12 million euros ($5 million) last year from his base salary and a bonus calculated primarily on earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), said the Financial Times said on Wednesday.

Vivendi Universal (PEX), the world's second-largest media company, made a loss of 13.6 billion euros last year, after Messier was forced to slash the value of an acquisition spree by 15 billion euros.

Critics say he has not delivered a clear picture of his plans for the group. Messier joined Vivendi in 1994 when it was called Compagnie Generale des Eaux and transformed the company from primarily a utility concern into a rival to AOL Time Warner, which is the parent of CNN.

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Messier would have received a bonus of 300 percent had EBITDA growth -- a measure of a company's ability to generate cash to cover debt -- exceeded 35 percent. In the event, the 34 percent growth entitled him to a 250 percent bonus since core earnings grew by more than a target of 30 percent.

He received 125,325 euros in fees for being a director of Vivendi Universal and its subsidiaries and was granted 835,000 stock options.

"Including the stock options received, this represents less than 50 percent of the remuneration received by the chairmen of comparable companies," Vivendi wrote in its Securities and Exchange Commission filing, according to the Financial Times

Vivendi shares fell 12 percent in 2001 but outperformed the CAC-40 index of French blue chips by 12 percent. However the stock is down 50 percent since January 1 and rose on Wednesday 1.5 percent to 30.88 euros.

At the company's annual meeting in April, Messier said he would reinvest his bonus in Vivendi Universal shares.