The board of pay-TV firm BSkyBtoday named Mr Rupert Murdoch's son James as thecompany's new chief executive, sources close to the situationsaid.
Several large institutional investors have voiced concern that choosing the 30-year-old James Murdoch to lead the company could compromise Sky's independence from News Corp, which is chaired by the elder Mr Murdoch and owns about 35 per cent of the company's shares.
BSkyB declined to comment.
If shareholders are not satisfied that the CEO selection process has been impartial and proper, they could opt for the "nuclear option" of calling an emergency meeting of shareholders, the National Association of Pension Funds said.
Shareholders will not vote directly on the board's choice of CEO, though they will vote for or against Mr James Murdoch's seat on the board.
A BSkyB spokesman declined to comment on whether Mr Rupert Murdoch would be allowed to vote on his son's CEO bid, though he said the company had rules in place to enable