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It was the kind of news nobody really wanted to hear: no Steve Jobs at next month’s Macworld Expo, his absence seemingly a dress rehearsal for a time when the man who not only co-founded Apple but revolutionized personal technology won’t be a part of such events.
There’s plenty of speculation about why Jobs won’t be at the trade show, a traditional launch pad for Apple’s new products: Jobs’ health, a possible squabble with the company that organizes Macworld, the absence of new products to announce.
It is Jobs’ health, of course, that is of most concern to nervous stockholders during a time when “nervous stockholders” is a rhetorical phrase. But for legions of “Mac faithful” and fans, it is Jobs’ genius — and few, if any, would dispute that — that has come to represent a brand that symbolizes both style and simplicity. The Mac operating system is used not only in Apple’s computers, but its enormously popular iPods and iPhone.
Steve Jobs, simply, is Apple. His non-appearance at Macworld sets off alarm bells for good reason, whether it’s because the company is in transition, Jobs is ill or there is a trade show spat to blame — or none of the above.
“Steve is deeply involved in product development, and his personal sense of technology and style has been crucial to Apple’s direction,” said Avi Greengart, Current Analysis’ research director for mobile devices.
“He also does not get enough credit for being a being a keen technologist, building platforms such as iTunes and OS (Operating System) X that can be leveraged in multiple ways across the PC and device spectrum.”
Jobs, who recovered in 2004 from pancreatic cancer, has appeared thin and thinner this year at events where new products were unveiled.
In September, at an announcement of a new lineup of iPods, a message on the huge screen behind him started off the event with this news: “The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.”
Second to the news of Jobs’ non-appearance at Macworld was Apple’s announcement that 2009 will be the last year it takes part in the event. (Apple senior vice president Phil Schiller will give the keynote address next month at the San Francisco event.)
Trade shows like Macworld “have become a very minor part of how Apple reaches its customers,” the company said in a press release.
Timing is issue
Paul Kent, vice president of the Macworld Conference & Expo, said in a statement Wednesday that, “While we are obviously disappointed by Apple’s decision not to participate in Macworld 2010, we are on track for a terrific show.”
Future events, Kent said, will continue to focus “on the amazing ways people are putting Apple products to work across all endeavors, from desktops to iPhones to games to music.”
Apple and IDG, which puts on the expo, and publishes magazines such as “Macworld,” “PC World” and “Network World,” have had differences in the past. In 2005, East Coast Macworld was cancelled after Apple pulled out of the expo because of a change in location from New York to Boston, IDG’s corporate headquarters.
But it is the timing of Tuesday’s announcement, just weeks away from the Jan. 4-8 Macworld, that has many concerned and wondering what is going on.
Jobs — admired, feared and revered — is both extremely private and secretive. He has made sure Apple is as parsimonious with what it says on matters it doesn’t want to discuss as it is over-the-top when it has a product to promote. And maybe it doesn’t have any for next month.
Apple has rolled out a hefty lineup of laptops, iPods, iPhone and introduced the phone’s App Store for application downloads this year.
While the company has been the largest exhibitor at Macworld, “other marketing channels in which Apple has invested, including its physical stores and Web site, provide an easier path to purchase around the year and with better scale,” said Ross Rubin, director of industry analysis for The NPD Group market research firm.
“Apple’s product line has diversified significantly from the early days of Macworld Expo,” he said. “Products such as the iPod and iPhone represent opportunities to attract many customers who don’t use a Mac and who therefore would not attend a Mac-focused event, much less travel to one.”
Creating more speculation
Rob Enderle, a technology analyst and head of The Enderle Group, agrees.
“Apple doesn’t need Macworld, and launching products against a show timetable has been problematic,” he said.
But, he adds, “for the last show, they would also know that speculation would shift to Steve’s health,” and try to avoid creating that kind of atmosphere.
The company’s short statement about the show, so soon before it, combined with questions about Jobs’ health, will add to the “perception” that Apple’s CEO is not well, Enderle said.
“Given the current environment, which is anything but trusting, the belief that Apple is covering something up will likely spread regardless of the facts,” he said.
Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster, in a report Wednesday on Silicon Alley Insider, said, “While we do not believe that this change provides any indication regarding Steve Jobs’ health, we do believe that it is a sign that we are in the early stages of changing roles in Apple’s management structure.”
Nobody, not stockholders and certainly not millions of loyal and happy Apple users, want that management structure to be Jobs-less, now or at any time.
Reality may reveal itself differently. But for right now, it remains much like Jobs himself: private and closed, in contrast to the public and open enthusiasm for Apple’s technology for users worldwide.
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 | Apple CEO Jobs absent from Macworld lineup | Associated Press | Tue Dec 16 | 1 |
 | Apple: Steve Jobs Skipping Final Macworld Apple Keynote | Gizmodo | Wed Dec 17 | 1 |
| Ihnatko: Apple and Steve jobs had good reason to dump Macworld | Chicago Sun-Times | Thu Dec 18 | 2 |
| How Apple killed Macworld Expo | checkerbattery | Fri Dec 19 | 0 | |
| Macworld 2009 to be Apple's last, no Jobs keynote | Yahoo! Tech - Daily Features | Tue Dec 16 | 0 |
- Public Discussion (23)
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{"commentId":4465423,"authorDomain":"pwtenny"}
Maybe without Steve Jobs, Apple products wouldn't be ridiculously over priced.
{"commentId":4465423,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"pwtenny"}
- 5 votes
#1 - Wed Dec 17, 2008 2:08 PM EST{"commentId":4465876,"authorDomain":"brianford"}
Insert standard rebuttal to tired, simplistic and outdated view of Apple's prices, here.
(Short version: Something can't be ridiculously over-priced if a company is moving tons of product during an economic downturn.)
{"commentId":4465876,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"brianford"}
- 4 votes
{"commentId":4466246,"authorDomain":"tcervo"}
Apple products are very competitively priced for what they are. The fact that Apple chooses not to compete in the low-end commodity market does NOT mean their products that compete at the higher end are over-priced.
Of course, that doesn't stop simplistic and innacurate generalizations from millions of bloggers the world over.
{"commentId":4466246,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"tcervo"}
- 3 votes
{"commentId":4466306,"authorDomain":"spiffie"}
Agreed. "Overpriced" and "feature-rich" are not the same thing (usually).
{"commentId":4466306,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"spiffie"}
- 2 votes
{"commentId":4470064,"authorDomain":"tywht63"}
It's not about the price, it's about the company and the man the made it what it is. Steve Jobs...
If he were to pass on then we all just might as well say goodbye to Apple once and for all. I am sure Gates is praying for his death so he can buy them out, destroy them and then redo Mac OS X for all the PC's.
Too bad Gates can't pass away before Jobs, but either way, the problem with these two entities is that once the people that created them die, the most likely the companies will suffer and die as well.
People are like parana, they wait for to feed on the weak and unsuspecting...
{"commentId":4470064,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"tywht63"}
{"commentId":4470098,"authorDomain":"brianford"}
I am sure Gates is praying for his death so he can buy them out, destroy them and then redo Mac OS X for all the PC's.
Would never happen, for several reasons, not least of which is a merger would never be granted, based on Microsoft's past abusive monopoly conviction.
{"commentId":4470098,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"brianford"}
- 3 votes
{"commentId":4472546,"authorDomain":"nano649"}
Brian,
(Short version: Something can't be ridiculously over-priced if a company is moving tons of product during an economic downturn.)
By saying that, you're implying that tons of people are smart, or well informed at least :D Lots of buyers never even compare their products, i-pods in particular, to other products... Thats why every mp3 player in the world is an i-pod to lots of people... so popular.
Not disagreeing with the prices being high (for the mp3 players, the PCs are a different story), I'm just saying. :D
{"commentId":4472546,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"nano649"}
- 2 votes
{"commentId":4465849,"authorDomain":"brianford"}
Steve Jobs, simply, is Apple.
Kind of a dumb comment, and pretty much dismisses a lot of people at Apple. One could just as easily say that Jonathan Ive *is* Apple.
Rob Enderle, a technology analyst and head of The Enderle Group, agrees.
Any technology writer who quotes Rob Enderle shouldn't be writing about technology, and certainly shouldn't be writing about Apple.
In general, this seems as though it was written by someone who knows more about the "mythos" of Steve Jobs, than she knows about the reality of Apple, or Jobs, etc.
{"commentId":4465849,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"brianford"}
- 4 votes
#2 - Wed Dec 17, 2008 2:33 PM EST{"commentId":4465924,"authorDomain":"masternav"}
I have to agree Brian. Enderle is always quoted as if he were in fact a consumate technology pundit, despite the evidence of his general ineptitude, self-importance, and a track record of gross inaccuracy.
{"commentId":4465924,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"masternav"}
- 4 votes
{"commentId":4466214,"authorDomain":"tcervo"}
Any technology writer who quotes Rob Enderle shouldn't be writing about technology, and certainly shouldn't be writing about Apple.
Exactly. Enderle is a quote factory, nothing more. And the "Enderle Group" of which he is the "head", comprises himself...and himself.
Any writer quoting Enderle as an "expert" is quite simply a lazy writer with no desire (or likely ability) to do any fact checking or actual research.
{"commentId":4466214,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"tcervo"}
- 4 votes
{"commentId":4470216,"authorDomain":"maceynme"}
Hate to say it, but I worked for 3 years in a cancer center and I never saw anyone "cured" of pancreatic cancer. Every single person I saw who had it died. They all died horrible, painful deaths and like Jobs went from normal size, to thin, then to emaciation (which we haven't seen). Everyone is different, but for the most part it is very, very hard to beat. Of course, like Lance Armstrong he has the money for the best treatment money can buy, but it can't buy off the cancer. Sorry.
{"commentId":4470216,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"maceynme"}
#3 - Wed Dec 17, 2008 8:35 PM EST{"commentId":4471247,"authorDomain":"tywht63"}
Of course, like Lance Armstrong he has the money for the best treatment money can buy, but it can't buy off the cancer. Sorry.
Actually, Jobs has more money than Lance Armstrong, and Lance had testicular cancer, not pancreatic cancer like Jobs has. There's a big difference between the two!
{"commentId":4471247,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"tywht63"}
{"commentId":4471430,"authorDomain":"brianford"}
More importantly, Jobs had a rare form of pancreatic cancer:
The prognosis for pancreatic cancer is usually very grim; Jobs, however, stated that he had a rare, far less aggressive type known as islet cell neuroendocrine tumor.[48][49] After initially resisting the idea of conventional medical intervention and embarking on a special diet to thwart the disease, Jobs underwent in July 2004 a pancreaticoduodenectomy (or "Whipple procedure") that successfully removed the tumor.[50][51][52] Jobs apparently did not require nor receive chemotherapy or radiation therapy.[48][53](During his absence, Timothy D. Cook, head of worldwide sales and operations at Apple, ran the company.)[48] As of 2008, there was reportedly no evidence of identifiable cancer four years after surgery. SOURCE
You may want to do more research before offering a prognosis, next time.
{"commentId":4471430,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"brianford"}
- 3 votes
{"commentId":4478726,"authorDomain":"masternav"}
As someone who is living with cancer myself let me state this as bluntly as possible - 100% of the population dies. There are no exceptions. Cancer is just one of the less nice ways, like being killed in a car accident, or any other nasty source of termination. I seriously doubt that Jobs is so delusional as to think he can "buy-off" the cancer.
That being said, I would be very surprised if Steve Jobs hasn't thought about his legacy where Apple is concerned and has made provision to see that legacy continued. It would be for him an ultimate failure to pass on and have Apple collapse in the wake of his passing. The challenge is to have in place the right team that can drive continued success while they seek out another visionary leader. Looking over the executive for Apple - the first part of that equation seems to be in place. The second will be more difficult because you cannot groom a visionary replacement from within the organization. That would produce competing visions and would create chaos internally. The best approach is to build a strong continuance team and a target group of potential successors that would be used to single out the best next visionary for Apple.
{"commentId":4478726,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"masternav"}
- 1 vote
{"commentId":4487672,"authorDomain":"maceynme"}
I realize that Lance Armstrong had testicular cancer that had spread to his lungs and brain. However, he also had money that could afford him the best treatment that money can buy. Also, I don't need to do "research." I worked in a place where I saw cancer everyday. Pancreatic cancer is pancreatic cancer and no one I saw survived it. I don't care what form it took, "rare form" or not. Steve Jobs can kid himself all he wants. We all have our little delusions about ourselves. I know exactly what I'm talking about. I saw people on chemo drips, puking in garbage cans, doing skin blistering courses of radiation therarpy, b!tche$!
{"commentId":4487672,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"maceynme"}
{"commentId":4488974,"authorDomain":"spiffie"}
I worked in a place where I saw cancer everyday.
As a doctor, or a food service worker?
b!tche$!
Nevermind!
{"commentId":4488974,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"spiffie"}
- 2 votes
{"commentId":4471453,"authorDomain":"OhGetReal"}
The survival rate for Steve's condition is miniscule; the prognosis poor. Very sad to see in a man of his youth. Regardless of his business genius, or lack thereof, it's apparent he isn't cured. Hope he's enjoying his life; his legacy is enormous and he should be very proud.
{"commentId":4471453,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"OhGetReal"}
- 1 vote
#4 - Wed Dec 17, 2008 10:42 PM EST{"commentId":4471715,"authorDomain":"brianford"}
The survival rate for Steve's condition is miniscule;
Again, not particularly true. You guys should do some research before posting comments.
{"commentId":4471715,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"brianford"}
- 3 votes
{"commentId":4472222,"authorDomain":"tywht63"}
Brian Ford, Unfortunately people just post without doing research first. You are preaching to deaf ears...
{"commentId":4472222,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"tywht63"}
{"commentId":4471454,"authorDomain":"dottruth"}
Well I would love to see Apple Job-less
{"commentId":4471454,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"dottruth"}
#5 - Wed Dec 17, 2008 10:42 PM EST{"commentId":4471567,"authorDomain":"spiffie"}
How compassionate of you. Your parents must be very proud of your sociopathic tendencies.
{"commentId":4471567,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"spiffie"}
- 2 votes
{"commentId":4478836,"authorDomain":"masternav"}
So let's expand on your comment then. What advantage would Apple have, being Job-less? Would it be that they would suddenly start building budget boxes? That they would suddenly open-up the App Store to all comers and let the chips fall where they may? Or perhaps that they would simply offer all the content in the iTunes Store for free? Is it that Steve Jobs is solely responsible for the corporate decisions that drive the business, and the rest of the executive and staff are simply brainless drones that run around doing his incessant bidding? Inquiring minds want to know, what your comment represents in terms of cause and effect for Apple!
Historically, Apple without Jobs nearly failed. Is it the ultimate failure of Apple that drives your comment?
{"commentId":4478836,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"masternav"}
- 3 votes
{"commentId":4473156,"authorDomain":"dottruth"}
I think you misunderstood what was meant. Apple w/out Steve Jobs, nothing else. If that means I am not compassionate, not sure how, then so be it.
{"commentId":4473156,"threadId":"447277","contentId":"2223417","authorDomain":"dottruth"}
- 1 vote
#6 - Thu Dec 18, 2008 3:01 AM EST{"canLink":false,"threadId":"447277","isPrivate":false}
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