Steve Jobs to take leave of absence amidst health concerns

Apple CEO Steve Jobs told employees in an e-mail Wednesday that he is taking a leave of absence due to health-related issues.

“Unfortunately, the curiosity over my personal health continues to be a distraction not only for me and my family, but everyone else at Apple as well,” he wrote. “In addition, during the past week I have learned that my health-related issues are more complex than I originally thought.

“In order to take myself out of the limelight and focus on my health, and to allow everyone at Apple to focus on delivering extraordinary products, I have decided to take a medical leave of absence until the end of June.”

Jobs said he has asked Tim Cook to take over day-to-day operations of the company, but he plans “to remain involved in major strategic decisions while I am out.”