Group of Nokia shareholders withdraw alternative to WP7 deal – update

A group of nine Nokia shareholders is abandoning the plan to force an alternative to the current WP7 price. Hundreds of shareholders joined the group, according to the group, but there was not enough support from major investors.

The nine shareholders made announced on Wednesday. They hoped to push their alternative through at the annual meeting. However, according to the dissidents, major investors have a duty to act transparently and thus should not support radical initiatives. As a result, there may not be enough support for the plan. In response to ‘Plan B’ there are now other, playful plans turned up.

The initiators wanted to present their Plan B to Nokia at the annual meeting on 3 May. Retaining ownership and control over the software of Nokia’s products was one of their priorities, as was attracting new software talent to keep Nokia’s innovation in their own hands. With this they hoped to achieve reliable growth and consistent profit margins.

The nine also proposed some concrete measures, such as the immediate firing of CEO Stephen Elop and some other top people of Nokia. Other plans included using MeeGo as Nokia’s primary software platform, instead of Windows Phone 7. Symbian should also be supported for at least another five years. They also wanted to reduce Nokia’s research division to two locations and stop outsourcing research.

Update, Feb 17 9:36 AM: Nokia Plan B is a hoax. Since Thursday, the Nokia Plan B site has referenced a Twitter account stating that the nine investors never existed, reports Engadget.