ScottForstall
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Scott Forstall may re-emerge as witness in upcoming Apple/Samsung trial on damages
Since his unceremonious firing last October, we haven't heard a peep from or about former Apple executive Scott Forstall. If you recall, rumor has it that Tim Cook effectively told Forstall to take a permanent vacation after the long-time Steve Jobs protégé refused to sign off on a letter apologizing to consumers for glitches in Apple's Maps app. Now comes word that Forstall may re-emerge as a witness during Apple and Samsung's upcoming trial where the only issue to be determined will be how much Samsung owes Apple for infringing upon a number of Apple's design and utility patents. Macworld reports: The two sides Friday filed a joint pretrial statement and lists of potential witnesses they may call. Apple's list includes Phil Schiller, the company's senior vice president of worldwide product marketing, and Scott Forstall, the former senior vice president of iOS software. Forstall, of course, testified during the Apple/Samsung trial last summer where he revealed a number of previously unknown tidbits about the iOS design process and the secret history behind the development of the iPhone. Given that the upcoming trial, slated to get underway in November, will focus exclusively on damages, we likely won't get much more juicy information. Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see Forstall take the stand given that he's been 100% absent from any sort of limelight since leaving Apple nearly 12 months ago.
The Wall Street Journal on Apple's Craig Federighi
While watching Apple's keynote earlier this week, I was particularly struck by Craig Federighi's presentation. He was affable, felt comfortable on stage, was informative, interacted with the audience and even had a few zingers to boot. That said, it's likely no coincidence that Federighi received the most stage time on Monday, handling presentation duties both for OS X Mavericks and iOS 7. The Wall Street Journal today has an interesting profile on Federighi, an important member of Apple's executive team that many people may not know much about. The lanky, 44-year-old engineer has a long Apple pedigree. He worked at Next, the other computer company founded by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, and joined Apple when it acquired the company in 1997. But despite earning the respect of colleagues for his focus and affability, he has remained behind the scenes for years. Mr. Federighi spent much of his career working on enterprise software, which has never been Apple's focus. Interestingly enough, the Journal notes that Federighi's career began alongside Scott Forstall when the two worked at NeXT together back in the early '90s. While Forstall quickly rose through the ranks after Apple acquired NeXT, Federighi's enterprise-centric expertise eventually prompted him to leave Apple for Ariba where he would ultimately become the company's CTO. In 2009, Federighi returned to Apple to head up OS X engineering. While Scott Forstall was reportedly a divisive figure within Apple, Federighi appears to be more of a team player who operates by consensus. Consequently, the Journal notes that some decisions regarding Apple's software direction have taken longer to implement. All in all, it might be too early to call Federighi the new face of Apple, but I wouldn't be surprised if we start seeing a lot more of him at Apple special events in the future. The Journal has a lot more on Federighi that's definitely worth a read. Incidentally, my favorite Federighi quip during the keynote was when he announced that OS X Mavericks would finally offer support for multiple displays. The crowd began applauding wildly, whereupon Federighi jokingly clarified that Apple's wasn't actually giving away new displays to users, remarking that it's "just software." Good stuff.
Tim Cook: Executive change-up at Apple has been great; Jony Ive has been 'really key' to iOS 7 design
In October 2012, Apple casually announced via press release a blockbuster shakeup at the executive level. Scott Forstall, who was arguably the face of iOS, was shown the door as Jony Ive, Bob Mansfield, Eddy Cue and Craig Federighi all assumed additional responsibilities within the company. The reported difficulties of working with Forstall notwithstanding, the expressed purpose of the executive shakeup was to tightly integrate Apple's hardware, software and services to an even greater degree. Seven months later, at the annual All Things D conference, Tim Cook explained to Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher that so far things under the new hierarchy have been going great. "Really, really great," to be exact. Last fall, we changed things up a bit. We did it to enhance collaboration. The key, for us, to have a killer product -- it's to have incredible hardware, incredible software and incredible services. And then you combine them in a way that you can't tell what's what any more. The real magic occurs at the intersection of that. It's what Apple has always been about. This change just amped it up even more. Following that, Kara Swisher asked Cook about Forstall, inquiring as to whether or not the man tapped by Steve Jobs to spearhead the original development of Apple's mobile OS was a collaborative team player. Ever the corporate diplomat, Cook craftily sidestepped the question: I don't want to talk about anyone in particular except for those who are there. The whole concept was to tighten the groups even more, so we could spend more time finding magic in intersections. Seven months later, give or take, I think it has been an incredibly great change. Craig is running both iOS and OS X. This has been fantastic. Eddy Cue is focused on services. These changes have been great -- really, really great. Cook also confirmed that Ive has been lending his aesthetic sensibilities to the next iteration of iOS. While Cook refused to comment on rumors that iOS 7 might see a dramatic UI overhaul, he did note that Ive has been "really key" to its development. Lastly, Cook confirmed that we'll be able to get a full look at the future of both iOS and OS X at this year's WWDC which is scheduled to kick off on Monday, June 10.
Tony Fadell claims Scott Forstall 'got what he deserved'
Former Apple employee Tony Fadell, known for his work on the iPod, talked to the BBC's Leo Kelion about his time at Apple and his current work at Nest. He also briefly discussed Scott Forstall and his clashes with the former iOS chief. Fadell didn't elaborate on his relationship with Forstall; he just repeated several times that "Scott got what he deserved." Apple didn't disclose the reasons why Forstall was removed from his position as vice president of iOS software, but reports from insiders suggest Forstall was polarizing within the company and often clashed with other employees.
Daily Update for November 1, 2012
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
Apple's Bob Mansfield: influenced to stay by Scott Forstall's departure?
In the latest episode of the soap opera known as "Apple: As The Revolving Door Turns", we saw Senior Vice President of Technologies Bob Mansfield being persuaded somehow to stay on with the company for at least another two years while former iOS software VP Scott Forstall was quietly ushered out the door. Now AllThingsD is positing that apparently Mansfield stayed on because he knew that Forstall would be leaving. AllThingsD's John Paczkowski notes that a source close to Apple told the site that "the timing of Bob's return is not coincidental." Mansfield apparently disliked Forstall's confrontational style and avoided him at all costs. A Bloomberg post from last year quoted former Apple software engineer Mike Lee as referring to Forstall as "Apple's chief a-hole" as a compliment. That same post pointed out that other executives, including Mansfield and Industrial Design Senior VP Jony Ive, would not attend meetings with Forstall unless Tim Cook was present. Forstall was, according to the year-old Bloomberg post, "a striver who was better at managing up than down -- that is, making sure his accomplishments were noticed first, and blaming others for mistakes." The iOS 6 Maps debacle appears to have been one mistake too many for Apple CEO Tim Cook to ignore, and served as an easy way to show Forstall the door. In retrospect, the year-old Bloomberg post appears to have been a roadmap for the reorganization that occurred this week.
Apple retail exec John Browett's departure not surprising
When the first wave of news was breaking about Apple and its executive shuffle, the initial focus was on Scott Forstall leaving even though that's not actually happening until 2013. According to the Wall Street Journal, both Forstall and John Browett, Apple's vice president of retail, were asked to leave with Browett's departure an immediate one. Perhaps the reason this didn't get more initial attention is because it was hardly surprising. First, he came to Cupertino with a less-than-stellar résumé. Previously, he had been CEO of Dixons, a UK retail electronics company not known for excellent customer service. To put it mildly, he was considered a surprising choice, particularly by those who'd actually shopped at Dixons. Once he settled in at Apple, he promptly ignored advice about staffing levels and started making staffing cuts and other changes to turn Apple retail into the same sort of suboptimal experience people can have at any number of other places. When word got out that Browett was attempting to strip Apple retail of its Apple-ness, the staffing order was rescinded. This adds a bit of retroactive speculation about why the Annual Retail Conference was cancelled on such short notice. Did the head of retail cancel it as part of his quest for cost-cutting? Or was it killed because of bonus product announcements last week? Or was it because the head of retail wouldn't be there since he was back in California cleaning out his desk? We will probably never know. What's telling is that recruiting someone to head up retail will take time, and Apple would rather let the retail division spend some -- or all -- of the holiday season without a leader than let it go on under Browett.
Mapping Scott Forstall's departure from Apple
When Apple announced earlier today that -- along with several executive leadership changes -- Senior Vice President of iOS Software Scott Forstall would be leaving the company in 2013, theories began to fly from every corner of the web. (Some on our team began to suspect changes afoot when Forstall didn't have any onstage presence at last week's iPad mini event, though he did appear in the audience -- seated near former Apple software exec Bertrand Serlet.) In this case, however, there isn't a terrible amount of digging that needs to be done to reach the conclusion that Forstall simply isn't a good fit for Apple right now, and he made Tim Cook's decision to part ways a lot easier by shooting himself and iOS 6 in the foot. On the most basic level, Forstall's design philosophy doesn't fall perfectly in line with the rest of Apple. Where hardware guru Jony Ive sees sleek and simple lines, Forstall sees overly ornate virtual bookshelves, a ludicrously detailed digital notebook, and other skeuomorphic touches that were the trademark of the Steve Jobs era. In Cook's quest to make Apple his own, keeping Forstall around probably wasn't helping matters. You need only look as far as Forstall's immediate successor to confirm this notion: None other than Jony Ive will now "provide leadership" on both the hardware and software sides of the design coin from here on out. "His incredible design aesthetic has been the driving force behind the look and feel of Apple's products for more than a decade," boasts the official press release. Indeed. But if you're Tim Cook, you can't just up and fire a guy who has worked so hard to help make iOS the success that it is. Well, you could, but it's a lot easier if the person in question manages to really, really disappoint not only you, but millions of customers all at once. Enter Apple Maps. With Apple Maps in iOS 6, Forstall did two things. First, he pissed off plenty of loyal Apple devotees. And second, he gave Cook a very good reason to say goodbye. Fortune's Adam Lashinksy suggests that the Maps fingerpointing within Apple got to the point where Forstall refused to sign a letter apologizing for dropping the ball (although Jim Dalrymple is throwing some cold water on that). As an employee, that's not the kind of decision that keeps you in the inner circle. It may seem rash, but remember, Apple Maps was so poorly executed that Cook himself had to apologize to Apple's entire customer base. The CEO of Apple had to write a letter suggesting that iPhone and iPad owners download the Bing app or even bookmark Google Maps on their mobile web browsers while the company figures out how to fix its own maps data. That's not something to be taken lightly, and Cook clearly wasn't willing to be put in that situation ever again. For all the good Forstall has done for the company, including his work on OS X, shaping iOS over the years and introducing us to Siri (whether you like her or not), completely fumbling one of the most important functions of the company's mobile operating system would be enough to get anyone the axe. Add to that an attitude about design that just didn't fit what the company was trying to accomplish, and there's really no mystery as to why Forstall is now on his way out.
Apple executive shakeup: Scott Forstall and John Browett are leaving the company
Huge news out of Apple today, as its senior vice president of iOS software, Scott Forstall, will leave the company next year after putting in some 15 years. Furthermore, John Browett -- head of Apple retail -- is also on his way out. The memo was delivered late today, on a day that is littered with other news that the company may hope will bury the bulk of it -- and, on a day where trading on the New York Stock Exchange is halted due to Hurricane Sandy. It's practically a given that Forstall is taking the brunt of the impact from its decision to forge ahead with an obviously subpar Maps application, all while trumpeting it as one of the pillars of iOS 6 during his keynote speech at WWDC 2012. The introduction of Siri as a beta product is also on Forstall, and we all know what happens to executives who flub something related to iPhone.... As the shakeup unfolds, Jony Ive, Bob Mansfield, Eddy Cue and Craig Federighi will add more responsibilities to their roles. In other words, Tim Cook isn't about to usher in new help who may thwart the company's efforts to continue at its breakneck pace. Curiously, Mansfield will be heaping more on his own plate just months after he had originally planned to retire. As for Ive? He'll be responsible for providing "leadership and direction for Human Interface (HI) across the company in addition to his role as the leader of Industrial Design." Eddy Cue will be gifted burdened with Siri and Maps, while also keeping an eye on the iTunes Store, the App Store, the iBookstore and iCloud. Needless to say, he probably won't be seeing too many walls outside of Cupertino for the foreseeable future. Federighi is being tasked to lead both iOS and OS X, while Mansfield chairs a new Technologies group that bundles Apple's wireless teams across the company. (Of note, Dan Riccio -- who was scheduled to take over for Mansfield prior to his retirement retraction -- isn't among those who are gaining duties.) Just months after Browett was brought in from Dixons in order to lead up Apple's retail efforts, he's on the outs as well. Of course, he's also responsible for the branch having to tell stores that it "messed up" when he fiddled with staffing levels back in August. A search for a new head of Retail is underway and in the interim, the Retail team will report directly to CEO Tim Cook. Update: The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Forstall was asked to resign after refusing to sign his own name to Apple's Maps apology, leaving Tim Cook to sign his name instead. Yikes. %Gallery-169590%
Daily Update for October 1, 2012
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
Apple's iPhone 5 keynote event now live for online viewing
San Francisco shook today, but thankfully, it wasn't from an earthquake. In case you missed today's event, Apple took the wraps off of the new iPhone 5, along with a new batch of iPods, a new version of iTunes and a round of price reductions. A replay of the keynote is available on Apple's website, where you can join Tim Cook, Phil Schiller, Scott Forstall and even the Foo Fighters make waves. So grab your beverage of choice and settle in for two hours of gadget goodness -- you'll find it at the source link below.
iPhone 5 vs. iPhone 4S: what's changed?
Its name is enough to send CEOs into cold sweats, which is why the rest of the mobile world spent last week announcing their hardware back-to-back to steal a march on this handset. Now, after all of the rumor, speculation and leaks, Apple's sixth iPhone has finally been unveiled in San Francisco. We've got around 45 minutes before the world begins idly speculating about next year's iteration, so let's spend what little time we have delving into what's changed between now and the last time we were here. Check out our liveblog of Apple's event to get the latest news as it happens! Check out all the coverage at our iPhone 2012 event hub!
Apple exec talks about the iPhone's early days, the secrecy of 'Project Purple'
The back and forth of Apple and Samsung's spat can be tiring, it's true, but the legal debacle has its moments. Cupertino's Scott Forstall, for instance, took the stand on Friday to give some insights on the beginnings of what Apple called "Project Purple," and the secrecy that surrounded the first iPhone's development. "We're starting another project," Forstall would tell potential recruits to the project, "It's so secret I cannot tell you what the project is. You are going to have to give up nights and weekends for a couple years." These were the words that conscripted much of the team that would eventually build Apple's first phone. Forstall said that the engineers he recruited weren't told anything about the project or even who they would report to -- eventually, Apple locked down one of its Cupertino buildings, affectionately calling it the "purple dorm" for its vague pizza-like aroma. When Apple's attorney questioned the senior vice president of iOS software about how the Project Purple team drove innovation, Forstall went on to describe the challenge of building a touch-centric OS. "Everything we dealt with before was based on mouse and keyboard, and here we were changing the entire user interface to be based around touch. We had to rethink everything about what big controls would be knowing where you are in the document, knowing when you reach the list... Every single part of every device had to be rethought for doing touch." Samsung's legal team was more concerned with how Project Purple was inspired by competitor devices; Forstall responded by saying that Apple simply tested Purple's call performance against other devices, noting that "it's fine to benchmark for performance reasons, it's not OK to copy and rip something off." The comments are interesting, but they probably won't weight too heavily on the jury's final decision. Still, the stories are entertaining, and worth a read for those interested in the iPhone's origins. Even so, we'll be glad when the patent wars are finally over.
Siri comes to the New iPad
Scott Forstall has just announced that Apple is bringing Siri to the new (2012-edition) iPad as part of iOS 6. Check out our full coverage of WWDC 2012 at our event hub!
Apple teases Eyes Free, Siri car integration
Apple's VP of iOS Software Scott Forstall just demoed Eyes Free, Siri's new vehicle integration. The feature is being framed as a safety booster, letting you tap a steering wheel-mounted button to toggle Siri on your iOS device, rather than reaching around for your iPhone or iPad and taking precious seconds away from the road. This being Apple, there are already plenty of partners lined up -- BMW, GM, Mercedes, Land Rover, Jaguar, Audi, Toyota, Chrysler and Honda are all said to be on board, with Siri support making its way to vehicles within the next 12 months. It's certainly not the first example of smartphone/car integration we've seen, but it could soon end up being one of the most widely utilized, despite the years-long head-start competing technologies have enjoyed. Check out our full coverage of WWDC 2012 at our event hub!
Editorial: What we want to see in iOS 6
We asked for third party apps, copy and paste, multitasking, wireless sync, data-only messaging and better notifications and year by year, they all arrived. iOS 5 may be one of the most mature, and popular mobile operating systems out there, but that doesn't mean Apple can take the day off. If you'd like to know what we're hoping Scott Forstall announces when he takes to the WWDC stage in a few short hours, head on past the break.
Daily Update for May 2, 2012
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
Apple VP of iOS Scott Forstall cashes in $38.7 million of Apple shares
Tim Cook's salary came up in the news last month when he was awarded a million shares of Apple stock, and cashed out a few, in addition to his many other forms of compensation. And here's another Apple manager who's taking advantage of Apple's soaring stock price when he can. Vice President of iOS Scott Forstall reportedly cashed out over 64,000 Apple shares last week, earning US$38.7 million from the sale. Forstall picked up those shares in 2008. He got 120,000 shares back then as part of a bonus, and as those just vested (minus about half for taxes), he went ahead and cashed them out. But this doesn't leave Forstall without an investment in the company. He's still got 250,000 shares set to vest at different times in the next few years, in addition to 2,988 shares currently held, and that's in addition to an annual salary of $700,000. What did Forstall do to earn all this money? Oh, just run the iOS division, which picked up $29 billion for Apple in just the last quarter. Just that.
Daily Update for January 17, 2012
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen.
Inside Apple describes Scott Forstall as Apple's CEO-in-waiting
Apple CEO Tim Cook is an excellent business manager and responsible for much of the company's success in low-cost manufacturing and skinny inventories. But as we saw with Cook's first product announcement on October 4, he lacks a lot of the charisma that marked the Steve Jobs era. A new book is now saying that senior vice president Scott Forstall is the most likely person on the Apple executive team to become CEO after Cook's reign ends. The book by Adam Lashinsky, Inside Apple: How America's Most Admired -- and Secretive -- Company Really Works, is a deep dive inside of the operation of the company by a Fortune magazine columnist. The book is scheduled to be released next week (appropriately during Macworld | iWorld) and is based on scores of interviews with "collaborators, competitors, and former employees." Lashinsky notes that Forstall has many of the traits that would make him an excellent choice for the next CEO. He's young (currently 43), comfortable on stage, worked at Jobs' NeXT before moving to Apple, and shares the Jobs obsession with small details. One entrepreneur told Lashinsky that Forstall is "...a sharp, down-to-earth, and talented engineer, and a more-than-decent presenter. He's the total package." Of course, it could be years before Cook decides to step down, but in the meantime Forstall has time to hone his skills and build even more influence inside the company. Considering that he runs the highly-successful iOS software division, that influence is accumulating quickly.
