Italian PM to decide inheritance, says son

Italian prime minister and media magnate Silvio Berlusconi will determine the future of his estimated 8 billion euro fortune, his eldest son Piersilvio said Thursday.

Piersilvio Berlusconi refused to be drawn on how his 73-year-old father would divide his fortune between the five children from his two marriages.

Berlusconi is one of Italy's wealthiest men and the future of his wealth is currently a major issue among his children because his second wife Veronica Lario is seeking a divorce.

"Whatever my father does is just fine by me," said Piersilvio Berlusconi, vice-president of the Berlusconi Mediaset broadcasting empire.

He was speaking to journalists at an event in Monte Carlo where he was presenting Mediaset's latest satellite TV subscription deals.

At the event, Mediaset forecast double-digit growth in pay-TV clients and boosted its product offering in a new move against rival News Corporation's Sky Italia.

Berlusconi's children from his first marriage - Piersilvio and his sister Marina - are expected to inherit half of their father's fortune.

His three children from his second marriage with Veronica Lario, are reportedly due to receive the remaining 50 percent.

Lario last week asked for a legal separation from Berlusconi and is reportedly keen to ensure their three children - Barbara, Eleonora and Luigi - receive an equal share of the inheritance.

The main point of contention in any divorce settlement will be his Fininvest media empire.

Lario has requested that Berlusconi pay all the expenses for the couple's legal separation.

"The request for her legal expenses to be paid is a clear attempt to draw the judge's attention to the spouse's serious behaviour within the family," said family lawyer Anna Galizia Danovi, cited by Italian daily Corriere Della Sera.

Berlusconi has in recent months been at the centre of embarrassing allegations that he slept with prostitutes, threw parties attended by escorts at his various residences, and dated under-age girls.

Barbara Berlusconi, his daughter, has said she is not worried about the division of Fininvest between her siblings and half-siblings and said that her father "is a fair and equitable man".

But Marina, Berlusconi's eldest daughter from his first marriage, who runs Italy's largest publishing house Mondadori - and her brother, Piersilvio, are expected to argue they have added value to Fininvest and have contributed to the group's growth.

Last updated on Nov 20^th, 2009 at 10:45 am IST--IANS/AKI