Page 60 - 2012 Annual Report

60 VIVENDI l 2012 l Annual Report
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SOCIETAL, SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION
SECTION 2 - SOCIETAL INFORMATION
KEY MESSAGES
SECTION 2 SOCIETAL INFORMATION
2.1. KEY MESSAGES
2.1.1. A Pioneer in Reporting within the Cultural and Creative Industries Sector
After having defined a formal scope of responsibility for cultural and
creative industries, Vivendi has created an innovative CSR reporting,
which clearly sets out the Group’s positioning, opportunities and risks
towards its stakeholders.
As a member of the Global Compact since 2008, every year Vivendi
issues a Communication on Progress report, to provide information on the
implementation of the Global Compact’s ten principles within its sphere of
influence, with a particular emphasis on the first principle, which is related
to human rights. In relations to the latter, the Group presents all actions
implemented to meet its responsibility in this area (diversity of cultural
expressions, local skills for content production, access to information
and communication technologies, promoting cultural heritage and youth
protection).
In 2009, the GRI asked Vivendi to be a founding member of an
international working group aiming to develop quantitative and qualitative
sector indicators specific to the media industry. In May 2012, the
recommendations made by the working group led to the publication of a
sector supplement to the general guidelines of the GRI, which constitutes
a significant advance in the approach to reporting by media companies.
Several themes are highlighted, such as freedom of expression, editorial
independence, representation of cultures, personal data protection,
accessibility, taking into account the interests of young people, responsible
marketing and media literacy.
Vivendi has adopted this same innovative reporting approach for the
implementation of the French Grenelle II law by translating societal data
into reporting themes specifically related to the cultural and creative
industries sector. One of the Statutory Auditors now verifies a greater
number of societal indicators, assessed as being relevant and strategic,
confirming the rigor and pioneering nature of the Group’s approach.
2.1.2. Societal Issues Boost Growth
By integrating societal issues into its strategy, Vivendi directly creates
value through its activities and indirectly through its supply chain.
With respect to financing the creation and the diversity of artistic
expression, it is primarily the investments made by Canal+ that
enable the dissemination and development of French cinema. These
investments cover a very wide range of genres (e.g., comedy, art-house
films, thrillers, animated films and blockbusters), budgets (e.g., films of
less than €4 million or less than €30 million) and directors (e.g., debut
or sequel films produced). This spread of indicators illustrates the
diversity of artistic expression supported by Canal+ and contributes
to the satisfaction of subscribers who are, themselves, at the heart of
the channel’s economic model.
For many years, Maroc Telecom has incorporated various societal priorities
into its business strategy, such as reducing the digital divide, supporting
its customers (especially students, to facilitate their access to information
and communication technologies), and combating corruption. In 2012,
all these actions contributed to its tenth place ranking in the S&P/
Hawkamah ESG index (recently created by Standard & Poor’s and
Hawkamah, the Institute for Corporate Governance for the Middle East
and North Africa). The aim is to measure the performance of 50 pan-Arab
companies that have a track record in corporate, social and environmental
responsibility.
In addition, Bravado (the merchandising subsidiary of Universal Music
Group) was selected by the London Organizing Committee of the 2012
Olympic and Paralympic Games as one of the official suppliers of the
event at more than 30 sites in the United Kingdom. In their bids, the
official suppliers had to demonstrate their commitment to human rights
and environmental protection and adhere to the Organizing Committee’s
Sustainable Sourcing Code. Bravado’s approach was singled out by Sedex,
an organization that promotes responsible and ethical improvements to
general practices in supply chains.