Still, the newspaper industry has been rife with speculation about whether unhappy shareholders will succeed in attempts to change it.

On Friday, several unhappy shareholders asked a German court to prevent the company from trying to evade the Vodafone bid.

As a result, what emerges in the court battle could prove interesting to unhappy shareholders who have recently brought their own suit against Mattel for mismanagement.

It board is pondering a breakup, sale or restructuring of that media empire to appease unhappy shareholders.

For unhappy shareholders of In-Store, the final trade before the bad news hit may provide some perverse comfort.

"We have had some calls from unhappy shareholders today," Mr. Goesling said.

He stepped down after the board sided with large shareholders unhappy about his pay package and his role in persistent internal squabbles.

Secure tenure is becoming rare for executives in Europe's telecommunications industry, because of intensifying pressure from unhappy shareholders.

The third line of defense available to unhappy shareholders - a lawsuit - is too costly for most investors to undertake.

"It is addressing unhappy shareholders who do not understand that it does not have the authority to break off the deal."