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Apple Disclosures About Jobs To Face SEC Review

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the they-really-hate-turtlenecks dept.

suraj.sun writes "US regulators are examining Apple Inc.'s disclosures about Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs's health problems to ensure investors weren't misled, a person familiar with the matter said. The Securities and Exchange Commission's review doesn't mean investigators have seen evidence of wrongdoing, the person said, declining to be identified because the inquiry isn't public. Bloomberg News reported last week that Jobs is considering a liver transplant as a result of complications after treatment for cancer, according to people who are monitoring his illness."

7 of 187 comments (clear)

  1. fixed link by TheGratefulNet · · Score: 5, Informative

    http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aDL78iMCdOzk

    (its a question mark, not a quote mark...)

    copy the url, look at it, does it look 'right' to you? ;) usually its a question mark as the first delim char before the parms.

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    --
    "It is now safe to switch off your computer."
  2. Practice what you preach, SEC. by RogueWarrior65 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I'll tell you what, Mr. SEC Investigator, you do a really good job sniffing out wrong-doing in the Mortgage Crisis (and that means severely pointing fingers at Congress) as well as demanding transparency in the oil trade business and I'll let you bitch about Apple.

  3. leave steve alone! by goombah99 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Just leave him alone! He's suffered enough, can't you all see that. Just leave the poor guy alone.

    In any case, this SEC thing seems sort of silly. The SEC while it has the power to abusively coerce responses, techincally Jobs is just he CEO, not a golden child. How can his health issues be any more important than those of head of tupperware or American Toyota, who's name you don't know.

    Is it because you know his name that makes his health techincally relevant? Then what about some who's names you do know, like Jack Welch, or Larry Ellison. Should they have been given annual public proctology exams since that's a high cancer risk for men their ages?

    Sure the cult of Steve is an importnat phenomena to apple, but it's not a techincal criteria that I can see. It's not like Apple is somehow misrepresenting it's products or it's book value or it's liabilities to it's shareholders.

    So what does the SEC have to argue here.

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    Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
    1. Re:leave steve alone! by MikeDirnt69 · · Score: 5, Funny

      Yeah! What's the problem with a company trying to keep their Jobs?
      Oh, wait...

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      Am I eval()? - http://www.monst3r.com.br
    2. Re:leave steve alone! by DanTheStone · · Score: 5, Informative

      If Apple's disclosures were an attempt to influence stock prices, then it would matter. The SEC just seems to be watching for fraud like stock manipulation. That is their job, after all.

    3. Re:leave steve alone! by _LORAX_ · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Like it or not the stock price is linked to Steves Health. This is for several reasons, none of which the SEC cares too much about.

      If Steve or the board, knowingly, withheld information they knew would have a negative ( or positive ) impact on the stock price would be breaking SEC regs.

      It's not specifically about his health, but the fact that his health has a material effect on the stock price and therefore investors have a right to know enough information to make informed investment decisions. It's one of the basic requirements for a free market.

    4. Re:leave steve alone! by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · · Score: 5, Informative

      I suspect that they are interesting in the possibility that apple lied about jobs' health, not in his health per se. As TFA notes, apple is not obliged to disclose anything about jobs' health; but they decided to do so anyway. If they were lying about it, that would be an issue.