Shareholders Vent Frustration Over Elop’s Nokia Leadership
Nokia is the unparalleled king of Windows Phone smartphones. It dominates the market, and its handsets are easily some of the most desired; even users of other platforms have commented highly on their design. The company has been expanding its WP lineup to include some incredibly affordable models, like the Lumia 521, but despite all it’s done, sales just aren’t where they were before Nokia switched gears and aligned itself with Microsoft’s platform. At Nokia’s recent shareholders’ meeting, investors voiced their frustrations with the choices the company has made to bring it to this position, and urged CEO Stephen Elop to take steps to brings its success back on track.
While some of those commenting admitted that they had no doubts that Nokia was doing its best, they also made it clear that the way things have been going lately, even that’s just not good enough. After taking time to explain that he truly believed Elop to be a “nice guy,” one continued, “are you aware that results are what matter? The road to hell is paved with good intentions. Please switch to another road.”
Those voices of individuals are backed up by the actions of larger institutional investors, which have been offloading shares in recent months.
So, what next for Nokia? Even with Symbian on the outs, it could still find sales from lower-end hardware, like its Asha lineup; we’ve certainly seen it continue to promote new Asha models, and some new ones sound like they will be just around the corner. For the moment, there’s no sign of Nokia backing down from its commitment to Windows Phone, but we’re really starting to wonder how long it can keep this up.
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