When I woke up this morning I was totally hit by the news that I read right here on Smoking Apples. Usually that never happens since I’m always aware of what gets published, so in a way it was a double blow. After reading through it a couple of times, and getting a little perspective, here’s what can be said about this shocking announcement.
This announcement has just as much to do about Jobs’ health, as it does about Apple pulling out of public tradeshows. Why else would he have Phil Schiller give the keynote? Announcing the last ever Macworld Keynote would be something to add to his legacy. Of course, Jobs’ health is his private matter, so I hope we can leave it at that and wish him the best of health.
But wait, there’s no reason to panic. Apple will still be awesome even if Jobs isn’t going to deliver keynotes, ever. Sure we don’t have our regular dose of RDF to keep us out of perspective, but we’ll survive. After all, Apple engineers will still able to churn out those lovely white aluminium products. (Okay I admit it, Schiller’s presentation is lame, and doesn’t do justice to those lovely aluminium products.) Hopefully, Schiller doing the keynote will be a one time occurrence, just to show us what the world will look like without Steve Jobs.
Jim Goldman at CNBC on the other hand believes that this is all politics, and nothing to do with Jobs’ pancreas.
I can tell you that sources inside the company tell me that Jobs’ decision was more about politics than his pancreas. Sources tell me that if Jobs for some reason was unable to perform any of his responsibilities as CEO because of health reasons, which would include the Macworld keynote, I should “rest assured that the board would let me know.”
A lot of companies are pulling out of CES and instead having their own special events. Gives them more attention and is more suited to their product timeline. Sounds good to me. But Macworld? Isn’t that like all about Apple? The most talked about Apple event of all time – known to many a macboy as Christmas – and they want to cancel it? Nevertheless, I’ll choose to believe Goldman, especially his last statement, “Steve Jobs is fine. It’s Macworld the expo that’s on its last legs.”
Meanwhile Paul Kent, the guy behind Macworld Expo defends his case:
Macworld Conference & Expo has thrived for 25 years due to the strong support of tens of thousands of people in the Mac community worldwide who use Macworld as a way to find great products, partake in professional development training and cultivate their personal and professional networks.
We are committed to serve their interests at the Moscone Center, January 4-8, 2010.
That would have been fine, except John Gruber has pulled out a quote from Daring Fireball in 2002, “A Macworld Expo without Apple is like an airport without any airlines. The duty-free shop isn’t going to keep the lights turned on.”
At the end of the day, will we see some awesome new Apple gadgetry? Will Snow Leopard be just as awesome as was promised when Jobs was on stage? Will we see someone from Apple announce in September 2009, that “this is the best iPod lineup ever!”? A definite yes to all of them. Hopefully, a definite yes.
Meanwhile, let’s enjoy our Christmas, as if it were our last (ignorance is bliss, they say). New Mac minis anyone? Voice out your thoughts and comments.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I hope the CNBC guy is right, I hope Steve lives a lot more years giving joy to all the macheads around the world. ^^
@Dumitru: Seconded.
Or at least, let Steve hang around long enough to find someone better than John Sculley to fill his shoes.
@FiZ – I remember reading something about Apple being fine without Jobs, while it’s kind of true(they have a robot-like team o designers/engeneers/marketeers that can do the job further in creating the best equipment there is), the problem is that Jobs is a God-like and many people will lose faith in Apple if he leaves, like most of them did then he Left Apple in the 80′s or 90′s(bad memory). He has also the marketing aura around him, he go most of the best deals apple got with other companies(see: iTunes music/movie store, iPhone….).
Long live Steve Jobs.
A Jobsnote will not be fulfilling without, well, Jobs. None of the other VPs and Who-Ps can take the stage like Jobs does.
Anyway, even if Jobs leaves Apple, the Mac community might lose faith for a while, but just a few months later Apple will prove that they can do it without Jobs and things will all be okay after that.