Apple reshuffles government affairs and music divisions in latest changes

Time of India

30-04-2025

Apple
Inc. is shuffling the management of its global affairs and music divisions in separate moves, extending a series of recent changes at the iPhone maker, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
The global affairs reorganization includes adjusting management of the government teams for Europe, India, China and other parts of Asia, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the personnel moves haven't been announced. Apple Music, meanwhile, will get a fresh leadership structure — with two co-heads reporting to Oliver Schusser, a top company vice president who previously led the unit.
The organisational changes are just the latest moves for Apple this year. The company reshuffled its retail division, elevating Vanessa Trigub to global head of retail stores. Daniel DiCicco, head of retail real estate, recently left to become the chief of Louis Vuitton in China. On the product side, Apple has also reorganised its Siri and robotics divisions.
A spokesperson for Cupertino, California-based Apple declined to comment on the changes.
As part of the government affairs revamp, the heads of Europe and Asia will now report to Lisa Jackson, a former Obama administration official and vice president who reports directly to Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook. They'll be moved from the oversight of Nick Ammann, the vice president of global policy.
At the same time, Ammann, who answers to Jackson, will see the India and China groups report to him. Jackson, who oversees all
Apple government affairs
, is also responsible for the company's work on the environment, education and accessibility.
The government affairs team is an increasingly critical piece of Apple. The company is facing mounting regulatory scrutiny around the world, as well as the fallout from Trump administration tariffs. It's been coping with the upheaval by shifting some device production to India from China, where export tariffs are poised to be higher.
Matt Browne and Elizabeth Hernandez, who run the Europe and Asia government affairs teams, will no longer have Ammann as their boss. The heads of the China and India government groups — Frank Fan and Virat Bhatia — are now under Ammann.
In the new structure, the Asia and Europe teams will be on the same reporting level as US government affairs, which is run by executive Tim Powderly. Ammann remains Apple's point person for working with the Trump administration. That's a role he played during Trump's first presidency as well.
Apple is under fire in the European Union, which continues to hit it with fines and other penalties and press the company to make changes to its operating systems. That's an area Browne has overseen under Ammann — responsibility that will now shift under Jackson. The company is also dealing with competition issues in Japan and South Korea, areas that Hernandez administers.
Before the changes, Ammann had managed, with Hernandez, a five-month public dispute with the government of Indonesia, which pushed Apple to make major investments in the region in order to get the green-light for local iPhone 16 sales. Apple ultimately agreed to build some AirTags and mesh components for the AirPods Max headphones there to reach a truce.
In the music overhaul, the group will now be overseen by longtime executive Rachel Newman as well as TikTok music veteran Ole Obermann. The two will co-manage Apple Music under Schusser.
The changes may alleviate the load for Schusser after he gained responsibility over other Apple services units in the past year or so, including the company's TV+ business and sports initiatives. He also oversees the Beats brand and its services in
international
markets. Schusser reports to Eddy Cue, the company's senior vice president of all online services.
The Apple Music platform is the primary competitor to
Spotify Technology SA
and part of the company's push to generate more money from services. Apple reports earnings results Thursday, and its services division is expected to once again be a growth driver — especially as sales of hardware slows.