Apple iPod exec leaves

One of Apple's most crucial executives is stepping away from the company, an announcement states. Confirming earlier reports, Tony Fadell, senior VP of Devices Hardware Engineering, is said to be "reducing" his role at Apple in order to spend more time with his family. For the same reason, Fadell's wife -- Human Resources VP Danielle Lambert -- is expected to leave the company before 2009, but only after a replacement is found. Fadell is expected to retain some work with the company, but only as an advisor to CEO Steve Jobs.

The executive is said to have been instrumental to Apple, joining the company in 2001 to help design the iPod and work on the company's music strategy. He has held his senior VP position since 2006, and was a part of the executive group responsible for the iPhone, said to be the most rapidly-accelerating part of Apple's income.

Fadell is being replaced by Mark Papermaster, a former IBM executive with experience in chip design, including a principal role in the creation of the PowerPC chips Apple once relied on, before switching to Intel CPUs. Papermaster, whose employement with Apple was noted last week, is currently the subject of a lawsuit by his former employer, accusing him of violating a non-compete agreement.

by MacNN Staff