When Apple announced that Scott Forstall, head of software for the iPad and iPhone, would be departing from the mega-corporation at the end of the year, a variety of theories inevitably sprung up. Why was Forstall leaving? More importantly, did it have anything to do with the debacle that was the iOS 6 Maps?
Some analysts claimed it was so but, as reported by ABC News, a recent report from the Wall Street Journal suggests that Forstall had been asked to resign after he refused to sign Tim Cook’s Maps apology letter. For those who weren’t aware of this, new Apple CEO Tim Cook actually released an apology letter in response to the debacle that was iOS 6 Maps. You can find the full statement here, in fact. Interestingly enough, he even integrated suggestions of other useful map applications.
Personally, however, I’m somewhat confused as to how a refusal to sign an apology could possibly be enough to merit a demand for a resignation. There has to be more underlining reasons. Previously, a story in Bloomberg Businessweek had described Forstall as “polarizing” and “difficult to work with”, descriptions that coincide with Wall Street Journal‘s claims that Forstall wasn’t always “co-operative”. Was Forstall’s alleged refusal to sign the apology the straw that broke the proverbial camel’s back? Perhaps.
