Independent sources saying that Steve Jobs has been heard saying that the upcoming Apple tablet “will be the most important thing I’ve ever done.” They report is said to come from multiple sources:

We haven’t heard this first hand, but we’ve heard it multiple times second and third hand from completely independent sources. Senior Apple execs and friends of Jobs are telling people that he’s about as excited about the upcoming Apple Tablet as he’s ever been.

AdweekMedia today announced the winners of its “Best of the 2000s” advertising awards, and Apple figured prominently in the selections. Apple took home top honors in a number of categories, including Steve Jobs for “Marketer of the Decade”, Apple for “Brand of the Decade”, Apple’s ‘Get a Mac’ ads as “Campaign of the Decade”, and the iPod as “Product of the Decade”.

- Marketer of the Decade (Steve Jobs): Calling Jobs “visionary, iconoclastic and fearless”, Adweek points to his role in saving Apple in the late ’90s, followed by his remaking of the music and mobile phone industries as his defining achievements. His close collaboration with ad firm TBWA/Chiat/Day is seen as being instrumental in positioning Apple for success.

- Brand of the Decade (Apple): Apple’s devotion to “relentlessly improving its products” and its “emotional connection to consumers” paved the way for its selection as Brand of the Decade, with its close ties to iconic CEO Steve Jobs serving to cement its marketing prowess.

- Product of the Decade (iPod): Likening it to the Sony Walkman of the 1980s, Adweek cites the iPod as “redefining” the MP3 player and the driving force of iTunes as being key to Apple’s domination of the digital music industry.

- Campaign of the Decade (Apple, “Get a Mac”): The work of TBWA/Chiat/Day’s Media Arts Lab, Adweek points to the ads’ “neat trick of making the brand look laid back and cool while it mercilessly skewered its rival” as its key to success. The ads, which debuted in 2006 and now number more than 60, are also praised for personifying computers and demonstrating people’s emotional connection to technology.

- Out-of-Home Ad of the Decade (Apple, “Silhouettes”): Also the work of the Media Arts Lab, Apple’s “Silhouettes” ad campaign launched in 2003 and offered a unique and consistent message of “frenetic happiness” in promoting the iPod. The instantly-recognizable ads are also notable for achieving the “nearly impossible: defining a product without showing what it even looked like up close.”

- Digital Campaign of the Decade (Nike Plus): A joint venture of Nike and Apple to link music and athletics, the Nike Plus campaign “defined how a brand can build a self-sustaining platform” simply using the Nike+iPod receiver. Seen as a community devoted to the “product experience”, Nike has increased its share of the running shoe market from 48% in 2006 to 61% in 2008 while Nike Plus runners have logged over 100 million miles.

Source : Macrumors

It’s happened every September for the past few years, and it appears it’s on track again: Apple is planning a keynote event rumored to take place the second week of September.

Time to get the rumor mill kicked into high gear: Multiple music industry sources say Apple executives have told them the company is planning one of its famed keynote events for the week of Sept. 7. “according to AllThingsD’s Peter Kafka”

But in true Apple fashion, the company has been noncommittal about the exact date of the event and what it will be showing off..

Apple has traditionally held media-focused keynote event each September to introduce new iTunes features and iPod updates, making the announcement of a similar event this year an unsurprising move.

- 2008: Apple held a ”Let’s Rock” event to introduce iTunes 8 and new iPod touch, nano, and shuffle models.

- 2007: Apple held a ”The Beat Goes On” event introducing the original iPod touch alongside updates to the remainder of the iPod line, an iTunes 7.4 update, and iPhone price drops.

- 2006: Apple offered the ”It’s Showtime” event introducing iTunes 7 and iPod updates, as well as a sneak peak at the “iTV” that launched several months later as the Apple TV.

- 2005: Apple’s ”Here We Go Again” event introduced the Motorola ROKR mobile phone with iTunes support alongside the release of iTunes 5 and saw the introduction of the original iPod nano to replace the iPod mini.

We’ll Have to wait and see what goes on!

CNBC reports that Steve Jobs has indeed returned to work at Apple today. His return had been suggested as he was attributed a quote for Apple’s press release today about the iPhone 3GS sales. Jim Goldman of CNBC, however, is able to confirm his presence on Apple’s campus according to multiple employees.

Meantime, we still await official word from Apple, but employees are confirming this. The news is solid. Jobs is back in the house, at least for today.

This would fulfill his original promise to return to Apple in June, but with the recent report about his medical condition he may only be back in a limited fashion.

Sources: CNBC, Macrumors

The Wall Street Journal reports that Apple CEO Steve Jobs received a liver transplant about two months ago to treat some ongoing complications from his previous pancreatic cancer:

Steve Jobs, who has been on medical leave from Apple Inc. since January to treat an undisclosed medical condition, received a liver transplant in Tennessee about two months ago. The chief executive has been recovering well and is expected to return to work on schedule later this month, though he may work part-time initially.

The exact source for the information is not provided, though The Wall Street Journal is reporting it as fact and not rumor. They also state that he is recovering well and is expected to return to Apple at the end of June, though may initially return on a part-time basis.

Steve Jobs stepped down as Apple’s CEO in January for a medical leave of absence. Jobs had previously been treated and said to have been cured of pancreatic cancer in 2004.

According to experts cited by The Wall Street Journal, the reason for a liver transplant may have been from the spread of the original pancreatic cancer into the liver. The exact cure rate for this particular condition with a liver transplant seems to be up for debate, although five-year survivals for all causes of liver transplant seems to be around the 75% range.

The report adds some validity to previous rumors that Steve Jobs was receiving medical treatment in Memphis, Tennessee.

Source : MacRumors

The Wall Street Journal reports that Steve Jobs is on track to return from his six-month medical leave of absence later this month.

While Mr. Jobs has been on sick leave, some Apple directors have gotten weekly updates about his medical condition from the CEO’s physician, according to a person familiar with the matter. Mr. Jobs’s recovery “is coming along” and he is on schedule to return to work later this month, said this person, who has seen Mr. Jobs in recent weeks.

“He was one real sick guy,” added this person. “Fundamentally he was starving to death over a nine-month period. He couldn’t digest protein. [But] he took corrective action.”

While there has been much speculation about whether Jobs will make an appearance at next week’s Worldwide Developers Conference, Apple has continued to officially claim that he will not return until the end of the month. The Wall Street Journal’s sources claim that, true to Jobs’ style of showmanship, Apple is preparing for his return to coincide with a media event of some sort.
Much of the buzz appears to be conjecture of the type that has swirled around Apple and Mr. Jobs for years. But two people who do business with Apple said senior Apple managers have told them the company is now trying to coordinate Mr. Jobs’s return with a product launch or public event.

The report also cites a source who claims that the next-generation iPhone is ready to be introduced at WWDC, with a launch to possibly occur by early July in order to accommodate owners of the original iPhone whose two-year contracts will begin expiring. The source, who has seen the iPhone, reports that the iPhone will be similar in appearance to the iPhone 3G but will possess more processing power and have additional features such as video editing, claims which are consistent with previous reports.

Source : MacRumors

Apple today issued a press release announcing that the keynote address for its upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference will be held on June 8th at 10 AM Pacific Time. The keynote will be given by a team of executives led by Phil Schiller, senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing.

Apple also announced that it will be issuing a final Developer Preview version of OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard at the event.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs is currently taking a medical leave of absence until June, and many have hoped that he will make his first public reappearance at WWDC. While today’s announcement does not preclude an appearance by Jobs, it does appear that, unless plans change, he will not play his traditional keynote role, While AppleInsider believes that Jobs would return following WWDC to announce new iPhones.

Source : Apple , Macrumors, AppleInsider

Multiple news sources have reported that Steve Jobs is taking a medical leave of absence until the end of June. Tim Cook will be taking over day to day operations of Apple.

Apple has published a letter Jobs sent to Apple employees.

Team,

I am sure all of you saw my letter last week sharing something very personal with the Apple community. Unfortunately, the curiosity over my personal health continues to be a distraction not only for me and my family, but everyone else at Apple as well. In addition, during the past week I have learned that my health-related issues are more complex than I originally thought.

In order to take myself out of the limelight and focus on my health, and to allow everyone at Apple to focus on delivering extraordinary products, I have decided to take a medical leave of absence until the end of June.

I have asked Tim Cook to be responsible for Apple’s day to day operations, and I know he and the rest of the executive management team will do a great job. As CEO, I plan to remain involved in major strategic decisions while I am out. Our board of directors fully supports this plan.

I look forward to seeing all of you this summer.

Steve

Tim Cook was previously profiled as a possible replacement for Steve Jobs

The New York Times reports that the health issues that have resulted in Steve Jobs taking a medical leave of absence from his role as Apple’s CEO stem from a problem with food absorption and not from a recurrence of cancer.

Source : Macrumors

Apple has published a letter today from Apple CEO Steve Jobs that confirms speculation that Steve Jobs is missing Macworld due to health issues: specifically recovering from a hormone imbalance that has been causing unhealthy weight loss.

Dear Apple Community,

For the first time in a decade, I’m getting to spend the holiday season with my family, rather than intensely preparing for a Macworld keynote.

Unfortunately, my decision to have Phil deliver the Macworld keynote set off another flurry of rumors about my health, with some even publishing stories of me on my deathbed.

I’ve decided to share something very personal with the Apple community so that we can all relax and enjoy the show tomorrow.

As many of you know, I have been losing weight throughout 2008. The reason has been a mystery to me and my doctors. A few weeks ago, I decided that getting to the root cause of this and reversing it needed to become my #1 priority.

Fortunately, after further testing, my doctors think they have found the cause – a hormone imbalance that has been “robbing” me of the proteins my body needs to be healthy. Sophisticated blood tests have confirmed this diagnosis.

The remedy for this nutritional problem is relatively simple and straightforward, and I’ve already begun treatment. But, just like I didn’t lose this much weight and body mass in a week or a month, my doctors expect it will take me until late this Spring to regain it. I will continue as Apple’s CEO during my recovery.

I have given more than my all to Apple for the past 11 years now. I will be the first one to step up and tell our Board of Directors if I can no longer continue to fulfill my duties as Apple’s CEO. I hope the Apple community will support me in my recovery and know that I will always put what is best for Apple first.

So now I’ve said more than I wanted to say, and all that I am going to say, about this.

Steve

Apple’s board of directors also distributed the following statement:

It is widely recognized both inside and outside of Apple that Steve Jobs is one of the most talented and effective CEOs in the world.

As we have said before, if there ever comes a day when Steve wants to retire or for other reasons cannot continue to fulfill his duties as Apple’s CEO, you will know it.

Apple is very lucky to have Steve as its leader and CEO, and he deserves our complete and unwavering support during his recuperation. He most certainly has that from Apple and its Board.

 

Source : Bloomberg

Apple has announced that Steve Jobs will not deliver the opening keynote presentation at the upcoming Macworld Expo in San Francisco on January 6th, 2009. Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing, will take the stage in Jobs’ place. In addition, Apple announced that this is the final year in which Apple will exhibit at the Macworld Expo, pointing to the decreasing relevance of trade shows as Apple has expanded its direct contact with customers via retail stores and the company’s website.

Apple is reaching more people in more ways than ever before, so like many companies, trade shows have become a very minor part of how Apple reaches its customers. The increasing popularity of Apple’s Retail Stores, which more than 3.5 million people visit every week, and the Apple.com website enable Apple to directly reach more than a hundred million customers around the world in innovative new ways.

 

Source : Apple