The person said Take-Two -- which notched up revenue of $794 million in the year to Oct. 31, 2002 -- values VU Games at near $1 billion, well short of the $ 1.6 billion that Vivendi Universal Chairman Jean-Rene Fourtou is said to be looking for.
However, the person's estimate of the value of a possible Take-Two bid contrasts with reports that VU Games might be sold for only $800 million or less.
Other parties reported to be considering a bid for the videogames business are private equity firms Thomas Lee Partners, General Atlantic and Francisco Partners, as well as Bain Capital with TA Associates.
The person said negotiations on the fate of the videogames business are at an advanced stage.
Vivendi Universal has been seeking a buyer for its games business -- a small player in the sector -- for many months after it dropped plans last year to raise $800 million from a partial spinoff of the unit through a listing on Nasdaq as market conditions worsened.
The person familiar with the matter also said that Vivendi Universal could be close to receiving a fresh offer for its entertainment division.
He declined to give further details, but said that other than the reported interest of Viacom Inc. (VIA, VIAB), General Electric Co.'s (GE) NBC unit, and Liberty Media Corp. (LMCB), there was at least one other party interested in making a bid "at the right price" for Vivendi Universal Entertainment. The unit is valued around $16 billion, excluding around $5 billion in debt.
Oil billionaire Marvin Davis has made repeated offers for all of Vivendi Universal's U.S. media assets, while Barry Diller, whose USA Interactive (USAI) is a minority shareholder in VUE, also is seen as a potential bidder.
Earlier this month, USA Interactive said that any bid for VUE's assets from a U.S. competitor -- such as Viacom -- could prompt USA Interactive to take action to defend its interests.
Vivendi Universal is groaning under 13 billion euros ($14.35 billion) in debt although it has made progress in improving its short-term access to cash, most recently with a $950-million securitization of film revenue organized by eight U.S. and European banks.
Vivendi Universal, which holds its annual meeting in Paris Tuesday, plans to sell seven billion euros in assets by year-end.