Apple chief executive Steve Jobs may not appear at the company’s annual developer conference next month, after being left off a list of executives who will appear at the opening keynote speech.
The annual event, held in San Francisco, is widely anticipated by Apple users around the world – it is likely to see the debut of the third version of the iPhone and iPod Touch operating systems.
It is also likely that the conference will see the introduction of new iPhone models.
Jobs is currently on a six-month medical leave after suffering complications from surgery years ago for treatment for pancreatic cancer. But his absence was hinted at last month by chief financial officer Peter Oppenheimer.
“We look forward to Steve’s return to Apple at the end of June,” he said in a conference call. The Worldwide Developers Conference begins on 8 June.
The conference will host more than 100 sessions by company engineers displaying new software and products. Each year the conference debuts at least one major new Apple product.
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
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