Apple's Steve Jobs Takes Medical Leave Again

Apple founder and CEO Steve Jobs sent a note Monday to employees saying he's taking a medical leave of absence so he can focus on his health.

He said he will continue as CEO and be involved in major decisions but has asked Tim Cook to be responsible for all day-to-day operations.

Jobs said he loves Apple and hopes to be back as soon as he can. He says he and his family would appreciate respect for their privacy.

Jobs returned to work in June 2009 after a five-and-a-half-month medical leave, during which he received a liver transplant.

Apple has a long history of secrecy when it comes to the iconic CEO's health, disclosing major illnesses only after the fact. Jobs was "cured" of a rare form of pancreatic cancer called an islet cell neuroendocrine tumor in 2004, but his surgery and recovery were not made public until afterward.

In 2008, Jobs' dramatic weight loss prompted new questions about his health. At the beginning of 2009, he said in a statement that he was suffering from an easily treated hormone imbalance, but less than two weeks later Jobs said his medical condition was more complex than he initially thought. He announced he would take a leave of absence until the end of June.

Few CEOs are considered as instrumental to their companies as Jobs has been to Apple since he returned in 1997 after a 12-year hiatus. With Jobs serving as head showman and demanding elegance in product design, Apple has expanded from a niche computer maker to become the dominant producer of portable music players and a huge player in the cell phone business.

"In the short term it's actually not a big deal. Apple has an excellent management team. You can see that manifested in Apple's success - Jobs can't do that alone," said CBS Moneywatch.com executive editor Jack Otter. "I think the big problem is in the long term, Jobs is a visionary and this is a visionary company. It's changed the way we think about personal computers, about smart phones. And you have to wonder, can they keep on hitting it out of the park without a visionary at the helm."

Cook also took the company reins during Jobs' 2009 hiatus.

It was Cook's second stint leading Apple. Cook, who joined Apple in 1998, ran the Cupertino, Calif.-based company for two months in 2004 while Jobs recovered from surgery for pancreatic cancer. His performance then won him the promotion to chief operating officer in 2005.

Analysts credit Cook with solving problems that Apple was having with inventory management. Many people consider Cook as Jobs' logical successor.

Under Cook's direction in 2009, the company kept cranking out well-received products including updated laptops with lower entry-level prices and a faster iPhone with many longed-for features. Apple sold more than a million of the new iPhone 3GS during its first three days on the market.

Business Insider's Henry Blodget wrote Monday that the wording of Jobs' e-mail to employees was "not encouraging."

Blodget seized particularly on Jobs' declaration that "I love Apple so much and hope to be back as soon as I can." (Read the e-mail in full below.)

"In our opinion, those are not the words of someone taking a short leave who is confident he will be back at the company soon (or ever)," Blodget said. "Rather, in our opinion, they read like the tragic, heartfelt sentiments of someone who thinks he might never be coming back."

It's not clear how investors will react to the news, but Apple stock fell sharply when Jobs took his first leave of absence in 2009. U.S. markets were closed Monday in observance of Martin Luther King Day.

Jobs' e-mail to employees, in full:

Team,

At my request, the board of directors has granted me a medical leave of absence so I can focus on my health. I will continue as CEO and be involved in major strategic decisions for the company.

I have asked Tim Cook to be responsible for all of Apple's day to day operations. I have great confidence that Tim and the rest of the executive management team will do a terrific job executing the exciting plans we have in place for 2011.

I love Apple so much and hope to be back as soon as I can. In the meantime, my family and I would deeply appreciate respect for our privacy.