Is Apple dead if/when Steve Jobs dies?

[vbuggy]

Within 10 years they'll be a marginal player again, unless they can get another inspired flim-flam man in there.

 

[shortylickens]

Most people consider him to be the number 1 idea man, so I wouldnt doubt public confidence (along with stock prices) would drop if he left permanently or died.
BUT, if someone stepped up right away with a kick-ass idea, they could turn it around before the company went out of business.

 

[sactoking]

If Steve dies or leaves Apple will become much more user-friendly (he's the one stifling customers and developers) but will be much less investor-friendly (since his stifling policies lead to very high-margin products).

 

[darkxshade]

Apple is like a car that Steve drives around a mountain with no railing... if he dies, that car is going off the cliff.

 

[Imp]

Guy's an arrogant asshole.

On that note, "he" is the face of Apple and their stock will get raped the second he leaves/dies.

 

[mb]

I hope so. I hate him and his crappy company.

Within 10 years they'll be a marginal player again, unless they can get another inspired flim-flam man in there.

Good point. They don't even have decent products anyway, it's all marketing.

 

[blackdogdeek]

sadly, yes.

 

[darkxshade]

It's not too late for him to groom an heir... can't be that difficult to train someone to be an arrogant elitist douche.

 

[sactoking]

I hope so. I hate him and his crappy company.




Good point. They don't even have decent products anyway, it's all marketing.

Apple's products are very good, albeit slightly overpriced, but only if you use them in the exact manner proscribed by your Apple overlords. Attempting to do anything else will result in frustration, failure, retribution, and a bricked product.

 

[Malak]

Microsoft didn't die without Bill Gates.

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

Microsoft didn't die without Bill Gates.

Bill Gates is different from Steve Jobs though. Steve Jobs is part of every part of the development process for products.

 

[Malak]

Bill Gates is different from Steve Jobs though. Steve Jobs is part of every part of the development process for products.

I disagree. Jobs might try to interfere a lot, but he isn't responsible for everything. He might want you to believe that, but it isn't true.

 

[GundamW]

Don't worry. In a few years, Apple will release something called the iJobs. There will be endless supply of Steves in the market. (And a bunch of iJobs clones from China.)

 

[ViviTheMage]

I hope they stroll right along, he should start training someone though ... haha

 

[Malak]

I hope they stroll right along, he should start training someone though ... haha

Most companies spend on average just 2 hours looking for successors, each year. Most CEO's don't see a successor within their own organization.

 

[mugs]

It's stupid to think that the company and it's vision/strategy is all about one person.

This

Did you see what happened to Apple when Steve wasn't there? yea, no one paid attention to them.

Steve Jobs was incredibly inept the first time he was at Apple. He was a cancer. The only thing he has ever really done well is recognize when someone has a good idea so he can take over the project and take credit for its success.

His next venture (NeXT) was essentially a failure, and the only thing Pixar has to thank Steve Jobs for is his money. Beyond that he certainly had nothing to do with Pixar's success.

Even Apple's turnaround started with Gil Amelio before Steve Jobs took over (which was a result of Gil's solution to one of Apple's biggest problems, the need for a new OS).

I think Apple will be fine without Steve Jobs.

 

[Gooberlx2]

No. Their stock will take a hit, but they'll move right along.

 

[Wreckem]

Microsoft didn't die without Bill Gates.

MS didn't die but it has gone stagnent under Ballmer.

 

[Wreckem]

Bill Gates is different from Steve Jobs though. Steve Jobs is part of every part of the development process for products.

He has final approval.

What spawned the iPhone and iPad was a project he wasn't involved in until the team brought it to him and others.

Jobs isn't the innovator at Apple. Yes he does try and push people towards innovation but he isn't the one behind everything. No one at Apple is behind everything.

 

[IcePickFreak]

When Jobs dies Apple will be more powerful than you could ever imagine.

 

[Malak]

MS didn't die but it has gone stagnent under Ballmer.

They just need better marketing. The ZuneHD was simply better than the iPod Touch, and it was cheaper. They should have made a killing. The new phones coming out should be great too. Microsoft is blooming.

 

[hellotyler]

It might actually get better depending on who takes the reins. Steve has been fucking up lately in the PC market. Not in sales, obviously, but build quality and other areas. The phone sure are nice, though.

 

[acheron]

I didn't think he believed in user-replaceable parts at all until he got his liver transplant.

Nah, he took his body to the "experts" to have a part replaced, it fits perfectly with Apple philosophy.

(I've owned many iPods and a Macbook and an iPhone... the user-replaceable part thing annoys me, but obviously not enough to stop buying their stuff.)

 

[amddude]

I think apple is toast when he is gone. I realize he may not be in the lab making shit himself but his heavy-handed approach and micromanagement have to be a big part of the company's current success.

I understand a new OS was on the horizon before Jobs came back but the ipod and iphone put apple on the map in recent times.

 

[Malak]

I think apple is toast when he is gone. I realize he may not be in the lab making shit himself but his heavy-handed approach and micromanagement have to be a big part of the company's current success.

I understand a new OS was on the horizon before Jobs came back but the ipod and iphone put apple on the map in recent times.

I think it's the same guy who designed the G3, ipod, and iphone.