People walk past a Sprint store in New York December 17, 2012.

NEW YORK | Fri Jan 18, 2013 4:17pm EST

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investors holding 29 percent of the outstanding minority shares of Clearwire Corp (CLWR.O) are unhappy with Sprint's $2.2 billion bid for the wireless service provider and are pushing for a higher offer.

Sprint, the No. 3 U.S. mobile service provider, announced on December 17 an agreement to acquire the outstanding shares of Clearwire it doesn't already own for $2.97 per share. While Sprint holds a more than 50 percent stake in Clearwire, the deal requires approval from holders of just over 50 percent of Clearwire's minority shares.

Securing that approval is looking increasingly tenuous, however.

Investors collectively owning almost 211 million shares of Clearwire - roughly 29 percent of its minority shares - told Reuters they do not think Sprint's bid is high enough and that they would not be happy casting their votes for the deal.

Crest Financial, which owns about 8 percent of Clearwire's minority shares, immediately sued to block the deal, for example. Crest's argument, echoed by other investors, is that Clearwire is worth a lot more than $2.97 per share as it has valuable wireless spectrum that would be crucial for Sprint.

While the 29 percent alone would not be enough to vote down the deal, its underscores the growing disenchantment Clearwire's minority shareholders have with Sprint's offer. Reuters was not able to reach all Clearwire shareholders.

For the deal to go through, Sprint needs approval from investors holding more than 362 million shares out of the roughly 725.89 million total minority shares outstanding. Share figures are based on the latest publicly available information.

Sprint said in December that it had support from three strategic investors - Comcast Corp (CMCSA.O), Intel Corp (INTC.O), and Bright House Networks LLC - who collectively own about 125.4 million Clearwire shares.

Excluding the almost 211 million votes from the investors Reuters spoke to and the 125.4 million shares supporting the deal, investors with about 389.8 million outstanding Clearwire shares have not disclosed if they will approve the deal or force Sprint to revise its offer.

HIGHER DISH OFFER

Dish Network (DISH.O), controlled by mercurial billionaire Charlie Ergen, made a $3.30 per share counter-offer for Clearwire on January 8, putting further pressure on Sprint to raise its bid. Clearwire's board is reviewing the Dish bid but said that the proposed deal may not be permitted because of Clearwire's existing legal obligations to Sprint.

However, the Dish bid has convinced many of Clearwire's minority shareholders that enough discontent exists to potentially block Sprint's bid.

"Sprint can't get 50 percent of those shares. They've no way to get them," said Chris Gleason, a managing partner at Taran Asset Management, which owns about 3 million Clearwire shares.

Mount Kellett, an investment firm with about 7.3 percent of Clearwire's minority shares, said Dish's offer is proof Sprint's bid is "grossly inadequate." Mount Kellett also said it is likely to be voted down and accused Clearwire's board of breaching its fiduciary duties for accepting the bid.

Another investment manager whose firm's holdings include Clearwire shares said the Dish offer was a turning point.

"If somebody was on the fence about saying no to Sprint, they're not on the fence any more," said the investment manager who asked not to be named due to their firm's policy on media comments.

"Anybody who thinks $2.97 is a full and fair value has already exited," said the person, referring to the fact that Clearwire shares have traded well above Sprint's offer price since Dish announced its bid. Clearwire shares were up 6 percent above Sprint's offer price at $3.16 on Friday.

This person described the $2.97 offer as "dead on arrival."

Sprint, which has agreed to sell a 70 percent of its own shares to Japan's Softbank Corp (9984.T), has said that it believes its Clearwire bid is superior to Dish's offer.

Sprint argues that the Dish deal is not viable because it comes with conditions Clearwire could not accept.

While Sprint said in December that it had commitments from Intel, Comcast, and Bright House, it is worth noting that those companies have not updated their position since the Dish offer and declined to comment for this story.

(Reporting By Sinead Carew; Editing by Peter Lauria, Bernard Orr)

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1 of 6. Award-winning composer Marvin Hamlisch is shown in this publicity photo released to Reuters August 7, 2012. Hamlisch, who earned acclaim and popularity for dozens of motion picture scores including ''The Way We Were,'' has died in Los Angeles August 6, 2012 at the age of 68.

NEW YORK | Tue Aug 7, 2012 5:41pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Marvin Hamlisch, the award-winning composer of "A Chorus Line" and "The Way We Were", has died suddenly at the age of 68, prompting warm tributes from Barbra Streisand, Liza Minnelli, former U.S. first lady Nancy Reagan and dozens of stage and screen stars.

Hamlisch, the musical force behind "The Sting" and numerous other movies and Broadway shows, died in Los Angeles on Monday, a family spokesman said. He collapsed following what was called "a brief illness". Details were not made public.

Streisand, a friend of 45 years and star of romantic movie "The Way We Were", said she was "devastated" at his death and recalled how he had played at her 1998 wedding.

"When I think of him now, it was his brilliantly quick mind, his generosity and delicious sense of humor that made him a delight to be around ... He was a true musical genius but above all that, he was a beautiful human being. I will truly miss him," she added in a statement.

Hamlisch, who was working until days before his death, earned the rare distinction of winning Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony awards.

Minnelli said she had been friends with Hamlisch since the age of 13 and recalled he arranged her first and second albums.

"I have lost my first lifelong best friend, and sadly we have lost a splendid, splendid talent," the singer and actress said in a statement.

STARTED CAREER AS REHEARSAL PIANIST

In a 2010 interview Hamlisch told Broadway World that in writing "The Way We Were" he was trying to match "a very yin-yang sort of movie."

He explained: "I wanted to write something that was uplifting and positive; on the other hand, there is a tremendous amount of bitter-sweetness to that film - and bittersweet romance - so it's a real duality. And that's why I think the song - though it's in the major mode - is quite sad," he said.

The New York City-born composer, raised by Jewish parents and showing an early ability to mimic music as a young child, started out his professional career as a rehearsal pianist for "Funny Girl," beginning a long history of working with Streisand. He said Streisand "has the best voice there is".

His collaborations included musical director and arranger of Streisand's 1994 U.S. concert tour, for which he won two Emmy Awards, and writing the score for Streisand's 1996 film, "The Mirror has Two Faces," for which Hamlisch earned an Oscar nomination for Streisand's and Bryan Adams duet, "I've Finally Found Someone."

His other film scores included "Sophie's Choice" and "Ordinary People" and he co-wrote the ballad "Nobody Does It Better" for the 1977 James Bond film "The Spy Who Loved Me".

Nancy Reagan on Tuesday recalled Hamlisch as a frequent entertainer at White House parties in the 1980s, and how he wrote a 77th birthday song for her late husband, former U.S. President Ronald Reagan.

Hamlisch was "a dear friend and I am truly stunned by his death at such a young age ... I don't think you could ever find a more contemporary and talented musician," Reagan said in a statement.

Actress Debra Messing, star of the TV shows "Smash" and "Will & Grace", said on Twitter; "The GREAT Marvin Hamlisch passed away... What a loss. What a talent. What contributions."

Starting with 1969 film "The Swimmer," Hamlisch scored films for the next several decades, including Woody Allen's "Take the Money and Run" and "Bananas", "Save the Tiger," "Ice Castles," right up to Steven Soderbergh's "The Informant!" in 2009. He had recently been writing the score for a new Soderbergh movie based on the life of the pianist Liberace.

A CHORUS LINE

On Broadway, he won a Tony award and a Pulitzer Prize for the 1975 musical "A Chorus Line," which at the time became the most successful show on the Great White Way. He also wrote the scores for musicals "They're Playing Our Song," (1978), "The Goodbye Girl" (1993) and "Sweet Smell Of Success" (2002).

He also won four Grammy Awards including two for "The Way We Were."

Press representatives said he was scheduled to leave for Nashville later this week to see the Jerry Lewis stage-adapted comedy, "The Nutty Professor," for which he wrote the score. He had been working on a new Broadway musical called "Gotta Dance."

Hamlisch said he believed in the power of music to connect people.

"Music can make a difference. There is a global nature to music, which has the potential to bring all people together," he said on his website.

At the time of his death, he was principal pops conductor for several U.S. symphony orchestras and was scheduled to conduct the New York Philharmonic in this year's New Year's Eve concert. He is survived by his wife of 25 years, Terre.

Songwriters Alan and Marilyn Bergman, who wrote the lyrics for "The Way We Were" and worked with Hamlisch on many other projects, called him "our beloved friend. He was family. The world will miss his music, his humor, his genius. We will miss him every day for the rest of our lives."

(Editing by Jill Serjeant and James Dalgleish)

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