So, that means Nokia paid a $100,000 membership fee, thereby supporting folks like Linus who work full time on Linux software without having to punch a clock at a megacorp; increasing their influence in, and access to, Linux communities; and gaining voting rights for three Linux Foundation board seats.

I don't know about that. I can see that it puts them in a select group of serious corporate supporters of Linux and free software. Motorola's the only other "mobile phone" manufacturer at the Gold level, and the others at the Gold and Platinum levels are big names in more traditional computing. Nokia is conspicuous in the list, that's for certain.