Nokia chairman defends Lumia sale

Nokia shareholders have approved the sale of its mobile-phone division to Microsoft after about 5,000 people braved icy rain in Helsinki to cast their vote and pay their last respects to a business that once dominated European phone manufacturing.

In the capital's Ice Hall, usually home to the national ice hockey team, crowds witnessed a landmark moment in Finnish history. By a 99 per cent majority, the emergency general meeting ratified the €5.44 billion (HK$57.2 billion) sale of Nokia's handset division. Nokia's chairman Risto Siilasmaa said he was aware the sale "would raise deep feelings" among Finns.

"On the board of directors, we understood that, as the decision-makers, we would also be heavily criticised. However, we are convinced that continuing with the old strategy would have most likely led to great difficulties for Nokia, its shareholders and employees," Siilasmaa said.

When the sale concludes early next year, Nokia would be left with a telecommunications network equipment business, its online mapping division and a trove of valuable patents, only 10 per cent of which had been licensed, executives said. The company will continue to employ 6,000 people in Finland.

In a 41/2-hour meeting, much of the backlash from small shareholders was reserved for Stephen Elop, the chief executive hired from Microsoft who guided Nokia's sale to the software giant before stepping down in September with an €18.8 million severance package.

Shareholder Hannu Virtanen said Nokia's board had acted naively and Elop had been a "triple-A flop" who "drove the company to ruin".

Finns have watched in despair as the 150-year-old company closed factories, cut tens of thousands of jobs and cancelled its dividend.