X

Survey: Customers will love Apple, even sans Jobs

A new survey shows that when and if Steve Jobs leaves Apple, customers will still buy the company's products.

Jim Dalrymple Special to CNET News
Jim Dalrymple has followed Apple and the Mac industry for the last 15 years, first as part of MacCentral and then in various positions at Macworld. Jim also writes about the professional audio market, examining the best ways to record music using a Macintosh. He is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not an employee of CNET. He currently runs The Loop.
See full bio
Jim Dalrymple
2 min read
 
CEO Steve Jobs at an Apple event in October to introduce Mac OS X Lion. Credit: Josh Lowensohn/CNET

Apple CEO Steve Jobs is larger than life in tech circles, which is a good thing for Apple, but will customers still trust the company without him at the helm? A recent survey says yes.

RBC Capital Markets and ChangeWave asked 3,091 people if they would change their buying decisions if Jobs left the company. An overwhelming majority, 84 percent, of those surveyed said they would continue to buy Apple products, according to AppleInsider.

Only 7 percent of respondents said Jobs' departure would make them less likely to buy an Apple product in the future; 8 percent said they didn't know.

Of course, the basis for the survey is purely fictional. As far as we know, Jobs has no intention of stepping down from Apple anytime soon, but he is on medical leave.

In a statement released in January, Jobs said he asked Apple COO Tim Cook to take over day-to-day operations of the company, so he could focus on his health.

Even though he is not involved in everyday decisions, Jobs made it clear that he is still involved in the company.

"I will continue as CEO and be involved in major strategic decisions for the company," said Jobs.

Jobs was also off on medical leave in 2009, when he underwent a liver transplant.

Jobs' health has been the topic of conversation since his first medical leave, even making it into the shareholders meeting yesterday. A proposal was voted on to force Apple to reveal its succession plan for when Jobs does leave the company.

The proposal was voted down by shareholders.