Apple’s Phil Schiller Works 80 Hours a Week Overseeing App Store

2024.03.27 3 min read

With the App Store and app ecosystem undergoing major changes in the European Union, The Wall Street Journal today shared a profile on ‌App Store‌ chief Phil Schiller, who is responsible for the ‌App Store‌.

Though Schiller transitioned from marketing chief to “Apple Fellow” in 2020 to take a step back from Apple and spend more time on personal projects and friends, he is reportedly working close to 80 hours a week.

Schiller is known for responding to emails almost immediately, and answering phone calls at all hours. He testified during the Epic v. Apple lawsuit to ardently defend the ‌App Store‌, and he is involved in Apple’s EU messaging as well. Schiller joined in on Apple PR calls with members of the media when the iOS 17.4 changes were announced, and he spent time explaining how the DMA will impact user privacy and security in Europe.

When Apple terminated the Epic Games developer account in March to prevent it from creating an alternate app marketplace, it was Schiller who sent an email to Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney to suggest that the account had been shut down because of Epic’s criticism of Apple’s DMA compliance. Schiller’s email did not go over well with the European Commission, and Apple ultimately reversed its decision.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Apple CEO Tim Cook defers to Schiller when it comes to ‌App Store‌ matters. Schiller joined Apple back in 1987, left in 1993, and returned in 1997 when Steve Jobs came back to Apple. He has been at the forefront of some of Apple’s biggest product launches, developing marketing strategies for everything from the iPod to the Mac.

He was one of the main supporters of adding third-party apps to the iPhone, working to convince Jobs to launch the ‌App Store‌ in 2008. Known as a Jobs “mini-me,” Schiller has reportedly kept Jobs’ philosophy alive at Apple. Under his watch, human review has remained a key part of the ‌App Store‌, and the ‌App Store‌ has grown into a major revenue stream for Apple.

More on Schiller can be read in The Wall Street Journal‘s full profile.

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