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NewsPoster · Dec 21, 2012, 06:04 AM

The Venus, a yacht commissioned by late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, has been seized in Amsterdam at the behest of lawyers for its designer, Philippe Starck, Dutch reports say. Bailiffs boarded Venus last week with a court order; the boat is now chained to its dock, and port authorities have been informed that it can't depart. At issue is a dispute with Jobs' family over how much Starck is owed for his work.

The yacht was originally projected to cost 150 million euros. The Jobs family, however, is claiming that the final cost is only 105 million, an amount that would dramatically reduce Starck's pay, since the designer is due 6 percent of the boat's value. Starck is claiming the 9 million euros he would be owed for a 150 million euro pricetag, while the Jobs family is insisting that he be paid closer to 6 million. Steve Jobs originated the design of the Venus after returning from a cruise between Italy and Turkey, but died before the ship could be revealed to the public. The craft is 80 meters long and, like many Apple products, built mainly of aluminum and glass. It even relies on 27-inch iMacs for functions like navigation. After his death, Jobs' widow, Laurene, met with Starck to finish construction.

trevj · Dec 21, 2012, 06:18 AM

"the boat is now chained to its dock"

Damn those Kensington locks!

burger · Dec 21, 2012, 06:46 AM

To remove the boat from the Dock, drag the boat with your trackpad or mouse cursor out of the dock until you see the small cloud on the icon, then release.

pottymouth · Dec 21, 2012, 07:00 AM

Options > ✓ Keep in Dock

Bobfozz · Dec 21, 2012, 07:20 AM

These difficulties happen to honest designers all the time and unfortunately some go to court.
Solution for court is relatively simple.

What did S. Jobs sign off on (amount, specs, etc.). Let's say X

How much up to know has the Jobs family paid? Call this Y.

Of course proof is necessary.

Then X-Y is the amount owed (0 or something else).

Any time someone has to get lawyers involved, someone is screwing the pooch. It is seldom a matter of "misinformation," someone is trying to take advantage of the other. Read Les Cabarga's book (at the back) on the LOGO FONTS BIBLE.

mac_in_tosh · Dec 21, 2012, 08:00 AM

What a world we live in. The people that make Apple products work in slave-like conditions and the owner and designer of this thing are arguing over whether it cost 105 or 150 million euros.

coffeetime · Dec 21, 2012, 08:41 AM

OK. So designer is disputing between 6 million and 9 million Euros pay. But the things that darns me is Steve Job spent a 100 million plus Euroa toy for himself. That's some serious toy there. This is like Howard Hughes with his wooden plane before he died.

pottymouth · Dec 21, 2012, 10:08 AM

Hughes' spruce goose would be about 263M Euro, adjusted. That was never a toy, though.

pottymouth · Dec 21, 2012, 10:11 AM

And it looks like some Malaysian guy has Job's dinghy beat handily with his $4.8 BILLION yacht.

An anonymous Malaysian businessman owns this excessively designed yacht. History Supreme, also known as Baia 100 SUPREME, is uniquely decorated with bones of dinosaurs and tiny meteorites. The person who owns this has so much money to spend that he even decided to use almost 100,000 kg of gold and platinum to make it more elegant. The designer of this yacht has worked with so much passion that he never settled for any cheap material. Indeed, it deserves to be in the no. 1 post for the most expensive yacht in the world. Several parts including the dining area, the anchor and the deck are perfectly constructed with the use of precious stones.

http://www.therichest.org/entertainment/the-worlds-10-most-expensive-yacht/

trevj · Dec 21, 2012, 10:13 AM

Steve would have been the ultimate Geek shipping magnate.

blahblahbber · Dec 21, 2012, 02:23 PM

More bad publicity??... You don't say? Pay your dues!!

Charles Martin · Dec 21, 2012, 03:00 PM

Originally Posted by coffeetime

OK. So designer is disputing between 6 million and 9 million Euros pay. But the things that darns me is Steve Job spent a 100 million plus Euroa toy for himself.

He didn't design it for himself. It was always intended to be a gift to his family so that they could enjoy cruises in privacy. In part, it was also therapy to help keep his spirits up.

Second, yachts of this class are expensive, and I'm sure this one is even more so. If I know anything about Steve, he changed the design at least six times, fiddled with details even while the ship was under construction, and generally ran up costs.

exca1ibur · Dec 21, 2012, 04:05 PM

A quote from the legal firm.

"The project has been going since 2007 and there had been a lot of detailed talk between Jobs and Starck. These guys trusted each other, so there wasn’t a very detailed contract."

blahblahbber · Dec 21, 2012, 09:43 PM

Originally Posted by exca1ibur

A quote from the legal firm.
"The project has been going since 2007 and there had been a lot of detailed talk between Jobs and Starck. These guys trusted each other, so there wasn’t a very detailed contract."

obviously that is how the problem all starts.... contract got to be thorough for reasons such as this.

Spheric Harlot · Dec 22, 2012, 05:55 AM

Originally Posted by chas_m

Originally Posted by coffeetime

OK. So designer is disputing between 6 million and 9 million Euros pay. But the things that darns me is Steve Job spent a 100 million plus Euroa toy for himself.

He didn't design it for himself. It was always intended to be a gift to his family so that they could enjoy cruises in privacy. In part, it was also therapy to help keep his spirits up.

Second, yachts of this class are expensive, and I'm sure this one is even more so. If I know anything about Steve, he changed the design at least six times, fiddled with details even while the ship was under construction, and generally ran up costs.

Not sure how that jives with the fact that the yacht ended up 45 million cheaper than projected.

Unless they saved 45 million in the last year by not following through on some of Jobs' more extravagant plans.

RobOnTheCape · Dec 22, 2012, 07:28 AM

Do you think the nav systems rely on Apple or Google maps?

blahblahbber · Dec 23, 2012, 09:36 PM

Originally Posted by RobOnTheCape

Do you think the nav systems rely on Apple or Google maps?

nav maybe with google earth.

Grendelmon · Dec 26, 2012, 05:28 AM

Originally Posted by coffeetime

This is like Howard Hughes with his wooden plane before he died.

The spruce goose was not a toy. An obsession, perhaps- but his company was trying to cash in big time by building a legitimate military transport (under a government contract) with the resources that they had available.

The Venus is simply a recreational vehicle. You cannot even compare the two.