Nokia’s shares took a battering on the day new CEO Stephen Elop entered office, as it announced a delay in shipping its flagship N8 smartphone.
The vendor used its official blog to reveal that some customers who pre-ordered the unit won’t receive their handset until October, claiming it had received the highest level of pre-orders in its history.
Nokia had previously announced it expected pre-orders to be fulfilled in September.
The company denied reports that the delay is due to software bugs, but in an earlier statement sent to some news outlets, Nokia said it had “decided to hold the shipments for a few weeks to do some final amends.”
Despite the assurance, Nokia's shares fell 4.7% yesterday to €7.52 – well below its average range of €8.24 to €11.81 from the past year.
The decline was prompted by fears an extended delay would prevent Nokia from booking N8 sales in its Q3 results, and because the device is considered crucial for Nokia's fightback against Apple and Android Devices, analysts told Bloomberg.
The admission prompted a backlash from angry customers tired of delays in the launch of the N8.
They demanded clarity on when the devices would arrive, with some reporting their dispatch dates had leaped from around a week to between 31 and 40 days.
Others claimed the firm was being dishonest, in a sign that consumer faith in the brand is melting away.
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