Vivendi unit inks interactive TV deal

Canal Plus Technologies, a French subsidiary of Vivendi Universal providing software for interactive TV set-top boxes, has signed a software development deal with Opera Software, based in Oslo, Norway. The Vivendi subsidiary plans to use Opera's browser technology in its Mediahighway software, based on Sun Microsystems' Java programming language. The companies pledged support for MHP (Multimedia Home Platform) version 1.1, an interactive TV standard under development by the DVB (Digital Video Broadcasting) Consortium.