Palm Names Chairman Rubinstein As Chief Executive

   DOW JONES NEWSWIRES 
 

Palm Inc. (PALM) named Jon Rubinstein as its chief executive, replacing Ed Colligan, who has led the mobile-device maker for 16 years.

Rubinstein joined the company in October 2007 as executive chairman. In 2006, he retired as senior vice president of Apple Inc.'s (AAPL) iPod division.

The appointment comes as a critical time for Palm, which released its much-hyped Pre smartphone over the weekend, only to see its spotlight stolen Monday by Apple, which unveiled a new-generation model of its iPhone while halving the price of its entry-level model to $99.

"I am very excited about taking on this expanded role at Palm," Rubinstein said. "Ed and I have worked very hard together the past two years, and I'm grateful to him for everything he's done to help set the company up for success.

Rubinstein's appointment is effective Friday.

In March, Palm said its fiscal third-quarter loss widened as the company's smartphone sales plummeted in what it called a "challenging transitional period" ahead of the launch of the Pre touch-screen phone. Some analysts have expressed concern about the rapid decline of its aging product portfolio, but the Pre saw strong sales over the weekend.

In after-hours trading, shares rose 8 cents to $12.07.

-By Lauren Pollock, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-5964; [e-mail]