Vivendi told Italian fund managers that wanting to see its executives on Telecom Italia’s (TI) board “does not call into question the work carried out by the current board of directors and executive members”, and it has no plans to merge the two companies.

Last month, an Italian fund managers association wrote to Vivendi raising governance concerns and saying the French firm’s intentions were unclear. Now Vivendi’s CEO, Arnaud de Puyfontaine (pictured), has responded with a letter of his own, arguing the legitimacy of the French firm’s request.

He added that Vivendi has “no plan to exercise influence on the company nor to integrate the two groups but rather to add value to the already high quality and standing of the current board”.

Earlier this week, it was reported that TI shareholders have been advised to vote against the proposal by a leading proxy advisory firm.

Vivendi, which owns more than 20 per cent of TI, wants to use its stake to build up its strategy in Southern Europe to distribute content.