The Industry Standard - Steve Jobs publicly returns to Apple by June 30? - Comments

Agreed, and judged. Ian

Ian Lamont — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:14:18 -0400

Agreed, and judged.

Ian Lamont
Managing Editor
The Industry Standard
twitter.com/the_standard

@Ian, it is now official.

David Kuan — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:02:14 -0400

@Ian, it is now official. See http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aSy0WezEGvvY where Apple's spokeperson confirmed it.

“Steve is back to work,” said Steve Dowling, a spokesman at the Cupertino, California-based company. Jobs is at Apple a few days a week and working at home the remaining days, he said. “We are very glad to have him back.”

Everyone:: I have put a call

Ian Lamont — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 16:02:59 -0400

Everyone:: I have put a call into Apple for a confirmation of whether or not he is working regularly, but haven't gotten any reply. If I don't get a reply by June 30, or there is no other source that confirms he is still coming into work, then I will follow the original prediction language which says:

A delay or ambiguous message from Apple about his working status will render a negative judgment.

Ian Lamont
Managing Editor
The Industry Standard
twitter.com/the_standard

I doubt Fake Steve Jobs will

David Kuan — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 15:49:40 -0400

I doubt Fake Steve Jobs will be appearing on CNBC anytime soon though (a different playable prediction).

Weird aside: Fake Steve Jobs

Ian Lamont — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 14:40:30 -0400

Weird aside: Fake Steve Jobs has apparently returned:

http://fakesteve.blogspot.com/2009/06/new-york-times-is-friggin-pathetic...

Ian Lamont
Managing Editor
The Industry Standard
twitter.com/the_standard

Thanks for the link,

Ian Lamont — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 14:33:18 -0400

Thanks for the link, Garrick. But there's one sentence in that CNBC story that's relevant to us:

"Now, the broader question is whether today is a one-hit-wonder, whether he won't be here tomorrow ..."

More information is needed -- preferably an official statement from Apple or Jobs himself that he came to work a second day and/or is working at Apple HQ on a regular basis.

Failing that, I would accept an account in a news outlet based on information from someone who has seen him back at work for a second day before the close of the prediction.

Ian Lamont
Managing Editor
The Industry Standard
twitter.com/the_standard

Garrick Hileman932530 — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 13:57:17 -0400

More confirmation:

http://www.cnbc.com/id/31494763

More information: He's

Ian Lamont — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 09:33:54 -0400

More information: He's supposedly been spotted on campus, according to second or third-hand sources:

http://www.thestandard.com/news/2009/06/22/confirmed-steve-jobs-back-job

Ian Lamont
Managing Editor
The Industry Standard
twitter.com/the_standard

I agree that the statement

Ian Lamont — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 21:35:02 -0400

I agree that the statement in the press release is not sufficient. I doubt he even said or wrote it -- typically the marketing, communications, or PR department will write a release and then have a senior executive approve it.

However, one thing that I want to make clear is that "regular working schedule" does not have to be stated by Apple or Jobs as "full time" at Apple HQ. I deliberately avoided using "full time" in the prediction language because it is difficult to determine -- he may be traveling, going to meetings, or visiting other companies with which he is associated, such as Disney/Pixar. But he needs to be coming to the Apple office on a regular (as opposed to occasional or infrequent) basis.

Ian Lamont
Managing Editor
The Industry Standard

Job's most recent statement

David Kuan — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 17:27:41 -0400

Job's most recent statement is not sufficient to constitute him returning to work. Furthermore, it is more likely that Jobs returns by end of the month, he will not be working at full capacity (regular working schedule) but instead part time basis.

Hello Garrick. Did he make

Ian Lamont — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:29:04 -0400

Hello Garrick. Did he make these statements at a press conference? I am looking for confirmation of a "regular working schedule at Apple headquarters."

Thanks,

Ian Lamont
Managing Editor
The Industry Standard
twitter.com/the_standard

Well, it looks like he's

Garrick Hileman932530 — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:14:43 -0400

Well, it looks like he's returned to work. He's commenting publicly, as Apple CEO, in today's press release:

http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2009/06/22iphone.html

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/06/22/one_million_new_iphones/

that looks pretty official to me

One observer thinks the WSJ

Ian Lamont — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 21:01:00 -0400

One observer thinks the WSJ story and angle is "media manipulation" on the part of Apple, and he doubts Jobs will return by the end of June:

If Steve had his transplant just two months ago, he’s not coming back to work at the end of June, folks. The Journal story sets the stage for a Steve Jobs stand in:

"When he does return, Mr. Jobs may be encouraged by his physicians to initially ‘work part-time for a month or two,’ a person familiar with the thinking at Apple said. That may lead Tim Cook, Apple’s chief operating officer, to take ‘a more encompassing role,’ this person said. The person added that Mr. Cook may be appointed to Apple’s board in the not-too-distant future."

Yeah? What this really means: Apple’s series of WSJ leaks is leading one place. Steve Jobs isn’t really coming back as CEO. Tim Cook will assume the role sometime very soon, with Steve staying on as Chairman. The liver transplant sadly suggets that Steve’s pancreatic cancer returned—and to another organ. He should put his health and livelihood before Apple.

If Wilcox (who used to write a Microsoft-focused blog for one of the big tech publishers) is right, the question I have is whether Jobs' role entails a regular work schedule at Apple HQ.

What do participants in this prediction think?

Ian Lamont
Managing Editor
The Industry Standard
twitter.com/the_standard

He needs to recovery. Give

Prabhakar Kundurthy — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 12:45:50 -0400

He needs to recovery. Give him 3 months

Very soon after posting this

Ian Lamont — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 09:27:00 -0400

Very soon after posting this prediction, some information came out about Steve Jobs' health situation:

http://www.thestandard.com/news/2009/06/20/report-steve-jobs-had-liver-t...

He's reportedly on track to return by the end of the month. We'll see how it plays out.

Ian Lamont
Managing Editor
The Industry Standard
twitter.com/the_standard

Steve Jobs publicly returns to Apple by June 30?

Ian Lamont — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 13:16:39 -0400

In mid-January, Apple co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs sent an email to staff in which he said he was taking a leave of absense to "take myself out of the limelight and focus on my health." In the message, he said that his leave would last until the end of June.

Now the end of June is approaching. While Jobs has reportedly been seen on the Apple campus, he did not make a hoped-for appearance at the World Wide Developers Conference at the beginning of the month. Apple has not commented on his current health or plans, beyond saying that he remains deeply involved in decision making.

A related prediction that Jobs will step down as Apple CEO by the end of 2009 now has a community consensus of just 33%.

Prediction: Steve Jobs publicly returns to a regular working schedule at Apple headquarters on or before June 30, 2009. There must be an official confirmation from Apple, in the form of a press release, or comment/statement by an Apple official described in a news report. A delay or ambiguous message from Apple about his working status will render a negative judgment.

Image: Steve Jobs at Macworld 2007 (acaben/flickr, creative commons license)