Letter promises Nokia shareholder challenge

BARCELONA, SPAIN: An open letter from a group describing itself as nine young Nokia shareholders promised a challenge to the Finnish cellphone maker's new strategic partnership with Microsoft.

The authors did not identify themselves and Nokia would not comment on the letter, published at nokiaplanb.com. The authors did not respond immediately to an email asking for more information on their identity.

In the letter, the authors called for the dismissal of Nokia chief executive Stephen Elop, a return to Meego as the company's primary smartphone platform, and a restructuring of the Microsoft deal as a tactical, U.S.-focused strategy.

"We plan to challenge the company's strategy and partnership with Microsoft in the next annual general meeting scheduled for May 3," they wrote, asking shareholders to elect them as company directors.

Nokia shares, which had fallen sharply since the deal was announced on Friday, were up 0.8 per cent by 1125 GMT, having been down 1.2 per cent earlier.