7. Apple of our iTunes

Steve Jobs
Chairman/CEO, Apple
Age: 51
Years in Industry: 30 (founded Apple in 1976)

Why Him? Let’s see… how about more than 35 million video downloads on iTunes? Who would have thought that a computer hardware company all but written off as dead meat only a few years ago would reinvigorate itself into the force it has become in youth culture (and even beyond). Interestingly for cable, Apple is no longer a media marketplace sidebar. Rather, Steve Jobs just keeps spotting trends early and worming his way into new markets. Sure, it began with a new way for the music industry to look at digital music (i.e., favorably). And now the traditional media industry, including cable, has watched over the last year as Apple’s iTunes signed content deal after content deal to provide popular TV shows for a couple bucks a pop over the Internet. The kids just love their video iPods. Good for cable? Bad for cable? No one’s really sure yet, but iTunes seems poised to move forward no matter what: It now sells more than 220 TV shows from networks, including Bravo, MTV Networks and Showtime (not to mention more than 75 movies from major studios, including our #1 heavy hitter Disney). We can’t wait to see how Jobs markets his new “iTV” player designed to bring iTunes to the IPTV environment. That could easily fizzle, but Apple has cornered the market in cool. And if recent history is any guide, Jobs isn’t prone to failure. - MG

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