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During the 1970s, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak went from door to door in the UC Berkeley dorms attempting to sell so-called blue boxes. These were electronic devices that tricked the telephone network into allowing free long distance phone calls. In time, the duo stopped selling the illicit appliances and took to making computers. Thirty years after its founding, Apple Computer has become a household name and a cultural icon -- known for such products as the iPod as well as its computers. Apples is a brand name that now is as easily recognized as is Coke or Federal Express. Last year the company reported record sales at $13.93 billion. With the company's current success, it is easy to forget how the company fell from the tech summits in the 1990s, a time when Microsoft came to dominate an industry Jobs and Wozniak helped to create in the first instance.
After 2000, Steve Jobs was simultaneously revered and criticized for his matchless excellence in persuasion and ability to sell, which was dubbed the "reality distortion field" and that became especially apparent during his speeches at conferences at the Macworld Expo and Worldwide Developers Conferences.
In 2005, Jobs responded to criticism for recycling programs of electronic waste of Apple in USA, by taking on the environmentalists at an annual meeting of shareholders of Apple in Cupertino in April. Nevertheless, some weeks later, Apple declared that, it will accept iPods in the retail shops free of charge. In reply, the Computer TakeBack Campaign had flown a banner from a plane over Stanford University during the graduation ceremony, when Jobs gave his speech. The banner contained: "Steve! - Don't be a mini-player, recycle all e-waste”. In 2006, he expanded the recycling program of Apple for all American clients, buying a new Mac. This program includes delivery and the "environmental friendly disposal" of old systems.
Resignation:
In August 2011, Steve Jobs left the CEO post of Apple, but remained in the company as chairperson of the board of directors. After some hours of declaration about his resignation, shares of Apple actions (AAPL) fell by 5% at off-hour trading. A relatively small dip, considering that Jobs's importance for Apple, was linked with the fact that, Job's health condition was in the news for several years and he was on sick leave since January 2011. According to Forbes, it was considered that the implications will be felt in a negative way outside Apple, including The Walt Disney Company. At after-hour trading on the day of the declaration, shares of Walt Disney Co. (DIS) fell by 1.5 %.
Though, Jobs received only 1 dollar per annum as CEO of Apple, he has 5,426 million shares of Apple and also 138 million shares of Disney (which he received in exchange for acquisition of Pixar). Forbes estimated his net wealth at 5.1 billion dollars in 2009, which makes him stand at the 43rd position in the list of richest Americans. When Bloomberg unintentionally published Jobs's obituary in 2008, Arik Hesseldahl of BusinessWeek stated that "Jobs is not widely known for charity" in comparison to efforts of Bill Gates. After taking over the control of Apple in 1997, Steve Jobs cancelled all the corporate charity programs.
Stock options back dating:
In 2001, Steve Jobs received stock options for 7.5 shares of Apple at 18.30 dollars per share, which ostensibly should be 21.10 dollars thereby making an income of 20 million dollars, which he did not declare as income. Apple overestimated its income to that amount. In case of pleading guilty, Jobs could face a series of criminal charges and civil-law sanctions. Apple stated that, the declared options were originally given at a special meeting of the board of directors, which could not have taken place. Also, the investigation is focused on the false dating of options, resulting in the backward increase of the share price to 20 million dollars. This is a subject of active criminal and civil investigations, though the independent internal investigation of Apple, completed on December 29, 2006, indicated that Jobs was not aware of these problems and that the options given to him, have been returned without execution in 2003. On July 1, 2008, a group claim was filed on 7 billion dollars against several council directors of Apple, accused of reducing the income of the company as a result of a prospective swindle with securities. |
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