What Matt Fischer said in the alleged mail
In the LinkedIn post, Fischer wrote: “After 21 years at Apple, I’ve made the decision to step away from our incredible company.This has been on my mind for some time, and as we are also reorganising the team to better manage new challenges and opportunities, now is the right moment to pass the baton to two outstanding leaders on my team.”
As per his LinkedIn profile, Fischer holds the title of “Vice President, Head of Worldwide App Store and Apple Arcade.” He joined Apple in 2003 and led marketing and partnerships for iTunes before shifting to the App Store in 2010. He was then promoted to the vice president role for the App Store and reported to Apple Fellow Phil Schiller.
How Apple will restructure App Store
The report also claims that Apple may restructure the App Store team by splitting it into two groups: one will oversee the App Store while the other one will be responsible for implementing alternative app distribution.
As per the report, Apple executive Phil Schiller is making the changes as regulators force the company to allow alternative stores and payment methods for apps on the iPhone, iPad and other products.
Apple veteran Carson Oliver will take charge of the App Store team, while Ann Thai, App Store’s product director, will oversee the alternative app distribution team.
Oliver, who joined Apple in 2012, currently holds the position of Senior Director of Business Management for the App Store.
Meanwhile, Thai, who began her career at Apple in 2010 working on marketing for the company’s education apps, was promoted to Worldwide Product Director for the App Store and Apple Arcade in January 2020.
Read the full letter here
I have some professional news to share and sent out this message to Apple colleagues earlier this afternoon:
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
After 21 years at Apple, I’ve made the decision to step away from our incredible company. This has been on my mind for some time, and as we are also reorganizing the team to better manage new challenges and opportunities, now is the right moment to pass the baton to two outstanding leaders on my team — Carson Oliver and Ann Thai — both of whom are more than ready for this next chapter.
When I joined Apple in 2003, we were launching the iTunes Music Store. I started as a contractor, helping to sign indie labels to iTunes, and was soon brought on full-time as one of the first members of the marketing team. Together, we built the iTunes brand, grew our customer base, expanded internationally, and formed partnerships that propelled our growth. I loved working closely with artists, record labels, TV networks, film studios, and emerging podcasters, helping them thrive on our platform.
In 2007, everything changed with the introduction of the iPhone. I was in the audience at Macworld that day, and the energy in that room when Steve unveiled the product was unlike anything I’d ever experienced in my career. The App Store followed a year later in 2008, with 500 apps. Apple’s goals were clear and remain true today: to create a safe and trusted place for customers to discover and download apps, while offering developers a great business opportunity. Since then, we’ve expanded the App Store to iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, Apple TV and Apple Vision Pro, and we launched Apple Arcade. Running the global App Store business over the past 15 years and working with our amazing team and Apple developer community has been the highlight of my career.
Throughout my two decades at Apple, I’ve been fortunate to work with some truly inspiring leaders, including Steve Jobs, Tim Cook, Eddy Cue, and Phil Schiller. I’m deeply grateful for the wisdom, support, and guidance they’ve provided me. I also want to thank my incredible colleagues for their commitment to our customers, to our developers, and to each other. I’m immensely proud of what we’ve built together — a platform with over 1 billion customers worldwide, with developers generating over $1 trillion in total billings and sales in the App Store ecosystem in 2022 alone.
Going forward, Carson and Ann will be leading the team, and I’ll be available through mid-October to assist with the transition. After that, I plan to take some time off, creating memories with my wife Renee and our two teenage sons, before exploring new opportunities. Please stay in touch — you can always reach me at matt.fischer@me.com.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you for your support, inspiration, and friendship. It’s been an honor and a privilege to work with all of you.
Best,
Matt