News

Jobs won't do usual keynote at Macworld

By Gregg Keizer

December 22, 2008 12:00 PM ET

Computerworld - In a move likely to spark renewed questions about the health of Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs, the company said last week that the keynote speech at next month's Macworld Conference & Expo will be delivered by a marketing executive instead of Jobs. Apple also said it won't exhibit at or send speakers to Macworld after the 2009 show. Jobs has used previous Macworlds to unveil key products, such as the iPhone and the MacBook Air.

Jobs, who had a cancerous tumor removed from his pancreas in 2004, looked gaunt at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference in June, fueling talk that he might again be ill.

But he "looked fine" at a MacBook announcement in October, said Ezra Gottheil, an analyst at Technology Business Research Inc. By switching Macworld speakers, Apple may just "want to communicate that the company is a good deal more than Jobs," Gottheil said.

This version of the story originally appeared in Computerworld's print edition.

Apple bails on Macworld Expo

Read more about Hardware in Computerworld's Hardware Topic Center.

Comments ()

Additional Resources

WHITE PAPER

Forrester Consulting - Optimizing Users and Applications in a Mobile World

Solving application issues over the WAN requires careful consideration. Based on their independent research, Forrester Consulting offers recommendations on how to tackle application performance issues, insufficient bandwidth and the inability to quickly restore users in a disaster.

Read now.

WHITE PAPER

Enter the Security KnowledgeVault

Security is not an option. This KnowledgeVault Series offers professional advice how to be proactive in the fight against cybercrimes and multi-layered security threats; how to adopt a holistic approach to protecting and managing data; and how to hire a qualified security assessor. Make security your Number 1 priority.

Read now.

WHITE PAPER

Cut Communications Costs Once and for All

New IP-based communications systems are being deployed by small and midsized businesses at a rapid rate. Learn how these organizations are enabling faster responsiveness, creating better customer experiences, speeding office or mobile interactions, and dramatically reducing existing communications costs.

Read now.

Top Stories

Free Insider Guide

Excel 2010 Cheat Sheet: Register for this Computerworld Insider Cheat Sheet and gain access to hundreds of premium content articles, guides, product reviews and more.

Hardware White Papers

The Laptop Dilemma: How to Maximize Productivity and Lower the Burden on IT: Download Now
Overcome Top 7 Admin Challenges of Active Directory: As Active Directory's role in the enterprise has drastically increased, so has the need to secure the data. Gain insight on creating repeatable,...
Insiders Can Ruin Your Company. Take Action.: Did you know that 80 percent of threats to an organization come from the inside? The threat from insiders is often overlooked in...
Top Solutions and Tools to Prevent Devastating Malware: Custom malware frequently goes undetected. According to Forrester Research, the best way to reduce risk of breach is to deploy file integrity monitoring...
Streamline Compliance and Increase ROI: Streamline, simplify, and automate compliance related activities; especially those that impact multiple business units. This white paper from NetIQ, outlines solutions that will...

Hardware Webcasts

Optimizing Networks for the Cloud: Join guest speaker, Rohit Mehra, IDC Director of Enterprise Communications Infrastructure, to explore current trends, discuss best practices for optimizing Data Center and...
Apps QuickStart Series Part 2: Designing and Deploying SQL Server on VMware vSphere: Download this webcast to learn about the design considerations for virtualizing SQL workloads, performance and scalability information and high-availability options, as well as...
Apps QuickStart Series Part 1: Designing and Deploying Exchange 2010 on VMware vSphere: Download this webcast to learn the virtual hardware design considerations for Exchange 2010, deployment using the building block approach, options for high-availability and...
Customer Spotlight: How IPC The Hospitalist Company Implemented Oracle on VMware: Have you been looking to hear about customer's experiences with the new VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager product? View this webcast to learn...
Virtualize Business-Critical Applications with Confidence: Virtualizing business-critical applications has become a key focus for organizations as they move along their virtualization journey. With the launch of VMware vSphere®...