There must have been a lot of truth to the rumours that the relationship between Apple and Motorola is a rocky one.

During a Churchill Club event last week, Motorola chief executive Ed Zander lashed out against the company that he had partnered with to create the Motola Rokr.

"Screw the Nano. What the hell does the Nano do? Who listens to 1,000 songs?" he said about Apple's newest member of the iPod family.

Zander's comments followed remarks by Steve Jobs earlier that week Apple Expo Paris about the disappointment called Motorola Rokr – better known as the iTunes phone.

“We wrote the iTunes software for that phone,” Jobs said in the understatement of the year. “We see it as something we can learn from. It was a way to put our toe in the water and learn something”.

Both executives have lots to be disappointed. Jobs would be right to be upset about the affront of a music playing telephone that the Rokr turned out to be. While Zander probably was sadended by the fact that most people left the unveiling of the Rokr talking about Apple's iPod Nano (which was presented the same day).

The relation between the two companies is said to have been rocky all along – Zander didn't even bother to show up for the Rokr's unveiling. Just consider this an additional chapter in a very thick book.

Steve Jobs unveils the Motorola Rokr

This photo on your website or blog?
This photo is available under a Commons Attribution - ShareAlike 2.5 License. Attribution required: www.SiliconValleySleuth.com

Tags: apple, motorola, cingular, rokr, itunes

26 Sep 2005