In a Monday morning email to Apple employees on a federal holiday, Mr. Jobs wrote that the company's board of directors "has granted me a medical leave of absence so I can focus on my health."
Apple's 55-year-old chief executive and co-founder didn't specify what health issue was causing him to take the time off or when he might return. Instead, Mr. Jobs said he hoped to be back as soon as possible and his family would "deeply appreciate respect for our privacy."
The leave marks the third time in the past decade Mr. Jobs has been forced to step back from his role at Apple, which he has built into a $65 billion consumer electronics giant with products such as the iPhone and iPad. He took a leave in 2004 when he had surgery to remove a tumor in his pancreas and then again in the first half of 2009 for the liver transplant
In his six-sentence email, which Apple released publicly, Mr. Jobs said he will continue as CEO and "be involved in major strategic decisions for the company." In his absence, day-to-day operations will be run by Tim Cook, his longtime lieutenant and chief operating officer. Mr. Cook, 50 years old, led Apple during Mr. Jobs's previous leave and won praise for his ability to make Apple's sprawling operations move on time.
Mr. Jobs's email came a day before the Cupertino, Calif., company is slated to report its latest quarterly results. It also was released on a day U.S. stock markets were closed to commemorate Martin Luther King's birthday. In Frankfurt trading, Apple shares fell 8% to €239.50 ($317.96).
he CEO's leave raises anew questions about the company's succession plans and product road map, since Mr. Jobs is so closely identified with Apple's gadgets and strategy. It also revives debate about Apple's disclosure practices, given the limited information the company has revealed about a CEO who is seen as so central to its success.
Mr. Jobs's Monday statement to Apple employees "leaves a lot to the imagination—and that was the problem the last time," said Charles Elson, head of the Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance at the University of Delaware's business school. "It does leave a lot for investors to worry about."
With many questions unanswered about Steve Jobs' medical leave of absence, Wall Street Journal 'ROI' columnist Brett Arends says the news is ominous for investors.
Apple chief executive officer Steve Jobs told employees in an email Monday that he will be taking a medical leave of absence but will remain CEO. WSJ's Marcelo Prince talks to Lauren Goode about what it means for the company and its shareholders.
The Securities and Exchange Commission opened an informal inquiry into Apple's disclosure about Mr. Jobs's health in January 2009, but didn't pursue an investigation. The agency is unlikely to open a fresh inquiry, as the company has publicly disclosed Mr Jobs's latest medical leave at its outset, people familiar with the matter said.
Mr. Jobs didn't respond to an email for comment or a call to his home. Apple's six other directors declined to comment or couldn't immediately be reached.
Asked if the company or board planned to disclose further details, Apple spokeswoman Katie Cotton responded: "We've said all we're going to say."
The news about Mr. Jobs, who was last seen in public in October at an Apple Macintosh event, surprised many in Silicon Valley. A former Apple employee said none of his former colleagues had noted any recent concerns with Mr. Jobs's health.
Mr. Jobs didn't appear last week at a Verizon Wireless event announcing the iPhone would soon be available through the carrier; Mr. Cook was there instead. Mr. Jobs was expected to announce with News Corp. a new digital publication for the iPad this week, but the event was postponed.
Concerns about Mr. Jobs's health have swirled since he appeared thin at a conference for developers in June 2008, before his liver transplant.
As Apple CEO Steve Jobs goes on medical leave, COO Tim Cook is set to run day-to-day operations at the company. Journal reporter Nick Wingfield talks to Lauren Goode about about Cook's management style and background.
People familiar with the situation said shortly after the transplant that Mr. Jobs was having trouble gaining weight. At his most recent appearance in October, the CEO continued to look thin.
Mr. Jobs was diagnosed in 2004 with a rare type of pancreatic cancer called islet cell neuroendocrine tumor, which could be cured if surgery removed it promptly. But in 2008 he began exhibiting weight loss, and questions intensified when he said he would skip the Macworld trade show in early 2009. The CEO initially blamed a hormone imbalance for his weight loss in January 2009 but a week later went on medical leave blaming a "more complex" condition he didn't disclose.
Apple didn't explain Mr. Jobs's 2009 medical leave, but a physician expert at the time said the type of cancer Mr. Jobs had commonly metastasizes in another organ, usually the liver, during a patient's lifetime. A Tennessee hospital later disclosed Mr. Jobs had received a liver transplant there.
Over the past year and a half, Mr. Jobs has again taken center stage in public events, making it clear that he was providing the direction of the company.
People familiar with the situation have said Mr. Jobs had come back to work with full energy and was like the "old Steve." During his 2009 leave, Mr. Jobs kept close management ties with Apple.
Kim Caughey Forrest, an analyst for the Fort Pitt Capital fund, which previously owned Apple stock, said there are concerns about succession at Apple.
"I'm not sure that the company, and the board of directors in particular, have answered the question on succession planning," she said. "We had this issue in 2008, and the board was supposed to learn from it, but they haven't."
Despite concerns about Mr. Jobs's health, Apple's business has flourished. Over Apple's past two fiscal years ended in September, the company's sales have more than doubled to $65.2 billion and its profit has nearly tripled to $14 billion.
Last year, Apple passed Microsoft Corp. in market capitalization to become the world's most valuable technology company. The stock hit its latest high of $348.48 on the Nasdaq Stock Market on Friday, more than four times where it stood two years ago.
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