Icahn starts proxy fight for Motorola board seat

Billionaire shareholder activist Carl Icahn increased his stake in Motorola Inc. and started a proxy fight for a board seat after demanding that the mobile phone maker return more of its cash to investors.

Icahn, who owns 2.5% of the stock, submitted proxy materials for the Schaumburg, Ill.-based company’s May 7 shareholder meeting in a regulatory filing. Motorola is reviewing the statement, a spokesman said.

The pressure may force Motorola to comply with Icahn’s demand that the company use all of its $11.3 billion in cash to repurchase shares.