Vivendi, the French communications and entertainment group, on Wednesday set out to establish a foothold in the fast-growing Latin American market by launching a €2bn ($2.9bn) takeover bid for GVT, a Brazilian telecoms provider.

The French company has been looking for acquisitions in emerging markets but its move on GVT marks an abrupt switch of focus from Africa and south-east Asia to Latin America. A takeover of GVT would also pitch Vivendi into direct competition with Telefónica of Spain, which has a 31 per cent market share in Brazil, according to UBS.