Steve Jobs wins MWC's Mobile Personality of the year — in absentia

Even though Apple had no plans to attend the Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona (though I’m sure they sent a few spies), they’ve been making waves at the event.  The latest bit?  Steve Jobs pulled the “Mobile Personality of the Year” award. 

The special award was created to mark the 15th anniversary of the Global Mobile Awards and “reflects the contributions of individuals, established names, new thinkers, and rising starts, across the global industry and leaders of other industries that have contributed to the growth and convergence of mobile during the last year”.

Stephen Fry accepted the award on Jobs’ behalf.  He referred to Apple as “the elephant in the room” and that he admired “Apple’s success insomuch as it inspires others. It causes the whole ecosphere to adapt, adopt, and excel.”

Others in the running (all at the event):

Eric Schmidt
Chairman of the Board and CEO, Google Inc.

Mike Lazaridis
Co-CEO, Research In Motion

Pete Chou
CEO, HTC