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Apple gets new corps
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August 6, 1997: 10:19 a.m. ET
Jobs, Ellison, others join; Microsoft to buy $150 million in non-voting stock
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Apple Computer Inc. co-founder Steve Jobs on Wednesday announced four new board members and a $150 million investment by Microsoft Corp. to help steer the troubled computer maker back into the black.
Jobs will join the board along with Larry Ellison, chief executive of Oracle Corp.; Jerry York, a former chief financial officer at IBM and Chrysler Corp.; and Bill Campbell, chief executive of Intuit.
"This is a pretty sweeping change," Jobs said in a speech at the Macworld Expo trade show in Boston. "This will add a tremendous amount of expertise."
The board will wait to name a chairman after the company picks a new chief executive. Former chief executive Gil Amelio was ousted in July.
Two other board members -- Ed Woolard, chairman and former chief executive at Dupont, and Gareth Chang, president of Hughes International -- will hang onto their board seats, Jobs said.
Jobs made the announcement during his scheduled keynote address at the trade show Wednesday. The audience hooted and cheered during his speech.
In addition, he said Microsoft Corp. will buy $150 million of non-voting shares of Apple stock at market price. Microsoft will hold the stock for at least three years and will continue to develop versions of Microsoft Office for the Macintosh.
"It's a package announcement today," Jobs said. "We're very excited about it."
The audience booed and hissed as Bill Gates spoke to the audience via a video feed.
"It's very exciting to renew our commitment to the Macintosh," Gates said. "We're very pleased to be supporting Apple. We think Apple makes a huge contribution to the computer industry."
Market reaction was favorable with Apple stock (AAPL) rising roughly 6 to 25-2/16 in early morning trading on the Nasdaq market.
Jobs told the audience Ellison would contribute valuable software expertise to the board, while York has a proven record turning around Chrysler and IBM. Campbell, he said, is a former vice president of sales and marketing at Apple during the company's heyday.
"Apple had a very decent group of people as their board of directors, but it was time for a change," Jobs said.
Board members Mike Markkula, Katherine Hudson and Bernard Goldstein resigned. Delano Lewis, president and chief executive of National Public Radio previously stepped down from the troubled board following Amelio's ouster.
Ellison said during videotaped remarks that Apple shouldn't worry about competing with Microsoft. "Apple needs to worry about doing something different. It's back to innovation and creativity."
Jobs said the fundamental problem at Apple is a drop in sales from $11.1 billion in 1995, to $9.5 billion in 1996 and roughly $7 billion expected for this year.
"[Apple] is doing some of the wrong things because the plan is wrong," Jobs said. "A lot of other people are pulling together to get Apple healthy again." 
-- Martine Costello
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