Free Web NovelSteve Jobs absolutely hated internal information circulating outside the company.
That was why any employee who leaked internal secrets was fired without mercy.
No—he didn’t stop at firing. He took legal action as well, no matter how trivial the information was.
—Did you plant a source inside?
When no answer came from me, Jobs asked again.
But I hadn’t planted any informant inside Apple.
Jobs was someone who did just fine on his own. Planting a source and making things awkward with him was something I refused to do.
Besides, I was already someone who knew the future.
“No. I simply guessed that if it were you, you’d probably be building something by now. Knowing your personality, why would I take such a risk?”
—Hmm. Is that so?
“And didn’t we talk about this before? Putting a computer inside a phone. I saw that possibility in the third-generation iPod.”
—......Ha! You really are uncanny, Charlie.
As expected, Jobs was already thinking about making the iPhone.
—That’s right. But nothing concrete has come out yet. It’s still just at the concept stage.
Just the concept stage? That couldn’t be true.
Even if only experimentally, the iPod had used a touchscreen.
That meant he’d already decided on the general direction of how to build it.
“Just concepts? Where did you get stuck?”
—First of all, the touchscreen method isn’t technically ready for commercialization yet. We tried applying it to the iPod, but the malfunctions were too severe.
The core of the iPhone was the touchscreen. Since it wasn’t behaving as he wanted, he seemed to be struggling.
—Microsoft has declared they’re going to make a tablet PC. They’re claiming laptops will disappear and tablet PCs will take their place. But that’s not what I want. I want to make a single electronic device that can handle calls, the internet, and MP3s all at once. The device I told you about when we first met.
Someone at Microsoft had probably provoked Jobs.
And on top of that, my meeting with him seemed to have influenced him to envision the iPhone earlier than he otherwise would have.
“So technically, it’s still lacking? And you want a touchscreen-based approach, not the kind Motorola or BlackBerry are making?”
—Exactly. And I don’t want to make an electronic device that absolutely requires a stylus pen.
“Hm.......”
—Why? Is there a way?
Which company held the patents for capacitive touch technology? It didn’t come to mind immediately.
“I’ll need to look into it a bit more.”
—Please do. The most important thing is eliminating touchscreen malfunctions. We’ve already contracted Motorola to ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) manufacture the phone. They’ll build it on their end. We just need to secure the technology and do the design.
“What? Motorola? Apple isn’t making it directly?”
—Why would Apple jump into the phone business? We already have plenty to do.
What kind of novel nonsense is this? Apple not making phones?
“Jobs, why would you cook the meal just to feed it to the dog? What kind of absurd talk is that?”
—Cook the meal and feed it to the dog? What does that mean?
“It means why do something that benefits someone else? Apple can just make it directly.”
—No, that would be difficult. Right now, growing the iPod is more important. I can’t push things too far for my personal ambitions. Apple is finally making stable profits again, and that’s all thanks to the iPod. If we overlap......”
For someone so sharp, he was being frustratingly cautious.
Come to think of it, had Jobs remained negative about directly making smartphones until the very end?
I cut him off quickly.
“Jobs.”
—Go on.
“Would you really be satisfied? You, a perfectionist—would you be satisfied with a phone made by Motorola? And on top of that, it’s basically doing the work twice. Do everything yourself, from design onward. I want to see a smartphone made by Jobs, not something Motorola made.”
—......Motorola is currently number one in the mobile device market.
“That’s true. But mobile phones and smartphones are on completely different tracks. Phones are just tools for calls and messages. The smartphone you and I are dreaming of replaces computers and becomes an essential part of people’s daily lives. For that to happen, it has to be beautiful. It needs a design that won’t lose anywhere.”
At the mention of prioritizing design, Jobs fell silent.
Looking at the Macintosh and the iPod he created, it was obvious how much care he put into design.
It wasn’t just about functionality—it had to be something you could use as an accessory. That was Jobs’ philosophy.
“So if you’re going to do it, Apple should do everything. You have more than enough capacity. The success of the iPod? The smartphone you’ll make will bring in far greater profits.”
Jobs let out a small chuckle. My confident words seemed to have struck a chord with him.
—There’s no product yet, and you’re already confident that what I’ll make will succeed.
“Because it’s you, Jobs. No one else—because it’s you. You may have a bad personality and plenty of enemies, but the products you make always shock the world.”
—Is that a compliment or an insult? Still, if it’s your advice, I should take it. I’ll gather the executives and discuss it. But we’ve already signed a contract with Motorola. The results will come out soon. A fusion of a phone and an iPod.
“Really?”
—Originally, we planned to acquire Motorola. But they tried to sell themselves at too high a price. So we decided to collaborate instead.
Apple acquiring Motorola? What would that even mean?
Right now, the mobile phone market was dominant. But over time, only smartphones would survive.
Traditional manufacturers like Motorola and BlackBerry would fall one after another, and their market share would be replaced by smartphones.
And Apple would become the representative leader of those smartphones.
“You made the right call. Unless it’s cheap, it’s not a company worth acquiring.”
—You’re that certain?
“When times change, companies need to change with them. But top companies find it hard to change, don’t they? Then they get weeded out and disappear into history. Apple almost disappeared into history before you came back, didn’t it?”
—That’s true...... Why do you have to poke at sore spots like that?
Jobs, who had been agreeing with me nonstop, replied sulkily.
“Haha, back then you were too much of a lone wolf. Well...... you haven’t changed all that much now either. But unlike back then, I’m on your side.”
—Charlie, you really are unpredictable. I’m always grateful. Meeting you was the greatest stroke of luck in my life.
“Same here.” freewebnoveℓ.com
Jobs and I laughed together for a long while.
“By the way, what you’re making with Motorola—is it a phone with iPod functions?”
—Yes. Not all functions, but a mobile device with MP3 functionality, running iTunes software. The strategy is to make users naturally seek out the iPod through that.
“That doesn’t sound bad.”
Phones with MP3 functionality were starting to appear.
That could pose a threat to the iPod as an MP3 player.
So Jobs seemed to be joining hands with Motorola to make a phone.
However, the iPod was doing so well that Jobs might not even attempt a real challenge. He needed a push to start worrying.
After a brief moment of thought, I added one last thing.
“Jobs, in the end, the market will shift to smartphones. I recommend going all-in before it’s too late.”
—Understood. Then I’ll see you next time.
Jobs abruptly hung up.
I looked down at the disconnected phone and muttered.
“This should be enough, right?”
* * *
After ending the call with Kim Muhyuk, Steve Jobs summoned all developers.
In the large conference room, Apple’s executives and engineers gathered together.
“From now on, we’re going to pour all our strength into smartphone development.”
At Jobs’ shocking declaration, the room fell into instant silence.
In particular, Apple’s senior executive Scott Forstall—who had been arguing day and night that Apple should make a smartphone—went wide-eyed.
After standing there dazed for a long while, he finally snapped back to his senses and asked,
“Jobs, you want to make a smartphone?”
“That’s right! The very thing you’ve been insisting on every day. A small computer in the palm of your hand!”
“Ha, now? We’ve already started collaborating with Motorola, and most of the technical staff are focused on that. We can’t just pull them out and reassign them.”
Scott Forstall pointed out the key issue, but Jobs responded casually.
“That’s fine! We can start after that’s done. For now, let’s think about how we’re going to make it!”
Everyone in the room realized that Jobs had already made up his mind.
This wasn’t something you could persuade him out of—nor should you try. When he first insisted on making the iPod, most of the people here had opposed it.
But Jobs had pushed it through, and now more than half of Apple’s revenue came from the iPod.
Everyone understood that his opinion would now become the mainstream.
“If that’s the case, why not just acquire Motorola?”
“No, no! What I’m trying to make isn’t just a phone.”
Jobs waved his hand and raised his voice.
“The smartphone I want to make is literally a small computer. With nothing else needed, a single smartphone should be able to do everything. What you were proposing was merely a combination of an iPod and a phone. That’s not innovation.”
Jobs walked over to Scott Forstall and firmly grabbed his shoulder.
“You need to make the software. You need to put a user-friendly interface inside a handheld device! From today onward, you’re not allowed to tell anyone about this project.”
He issued the same warning to the other executives as well.
“If even one person leaks this story outside, be prepared. I’ll make sure that person is utterly ruined.”
Scott felt Jobs’ grip on his shoulder tighten.
Enduring the throbbing pain, he asked curtly,
“What about the team? I can’t do this alone.”
“Bring anyone you want onto your team. Build a dream team. If necessary, you can even bring in people from outside. I won’t spare any support. Oh, but before you tell them what the project is, make them sign a non-disclosure agreement. And all of you will have to sign one too.”
Jobs shot a look at his secretary.
The secretary placed a sheet of paper in front of everyone.
“It’s a non-disclosure agreement. Everyone, sign.”
“Jobs!”
Several executives protested fiercely. But Jobs didn’t even blink as he spoke firmly.
“I’ve already finished discussing this with Dreamhigh. If you can’t use that, then pack your bags and get out of Apple!”
Even at Jobs’ threat, some executives hesitated.
They had already signed non-disclosure agreements before.
But they knew that shoving this in their faces again meant he intended to bind them completely.
“Ha, seriously!”
Scott Forstall slapped Jobs’ hand off his shoulder and ruffled his hair.
Then he pulled out a fountain pen from his chest pocket and signed the contract without even reading it, grumbling.
“Jobs, you’re a dictator. If you keep doing things like this, you could get kicked out of Apple again.”
“Ha! Are you worried about me now, Forstall?”
Scott shook his head and stood up.
“You said I should build the team myself, so don’t interfere. No matter who I bring in. Even if I bring in Bill Gates.”
“What? Bill Gates?”
“I’m saying that no matter how much you hate someone, don’t show it. Got it? Otherwise, I’ll tear this up and quit.”
Scott Forstall laughed, waving the contract on the table.
“All right. But their competence has to be unquestionable.”
“Of course. Then I’ll be going.”
As Scott Forstall moved to open the conference room door, he suddenly stopped and turned around.
“So, what’s the name of the smartphone you’re trying to make?”
Jobs raised one corner of his mouth, as if he’d been waiting for that question, and answered,
“I PHONE! iPhone!”
