Steve Jobs to skip MacWorld

 

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By Stuart Turton

Posted on 17 Dec 2008 at 08:50

Apple has announced that Steve Jobs will not be hosting this year's MacWorld keynote, as the company moves to abandon the high-profile convention.

The Steve Jobs keynote has become a staple of the tech calender over the last few years, as millions of Mac faithful trudge to the Macworld Expo in San Francisco to see what new products the company has up its sleeve.

However, the company has now decided to ditch the event, claiming its retail presence means it no longer needs the show.

"Trade shows have become a very minor part of how Apple reaches its customers. The increasing popularity of Apple's Retail Stores, which more than 3.5 million people visit every week, and the Apple.com website enable Apple to directly reach more than a hundred million customers around the world in innovative new ways."

Obviously, Apple isn't feeling terribly sentimental about its last waltz at the expo, with Jobs handing the keynote over to second fiddle Phil Schiller, the company's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing.

The move follows similar withdrawals from shows in London and Paris, and its scaling back of trade shows in New York and Tokyo.