Google's Eric Schmidt to leave Apple board?

The Guardian is reporting that Google’s CEO, Eric Schmidt, is soon going to discuss his future (if there can be such a thing) on Apple’s board.  Schmidt, who is in Sun Valley, Idaho at a retreat with the world’s most powerful media executives, also mentioned that the conflicts of interests had not yet been discussed with Apple.

"I’ll talk to the Apple people," he told reporters on Thursday. "At the moment, there’s no issue."

The US Trade Commision is investigating possible conflicts alongside fellow Google/Apple Board member Arthur Levinson.

A further Reuters report also mentioned some other interesting tidbits including the relationship (both are Webkit based) between Safari and Chrome (the browser) and how Schmidt, as an Apple board member, kept close watch on Steve jobs during the liver transplant.

Schmidt said Chrome, which is based on open-source technology, worked with Apple’s Safari browser.

"There’s a very large collaboration with respect to Chrome and Safari," he said.

Schmidt also said he was kept well abreast of the circumstances surrounding Apple founder Steve Jobs’ medical leave of absence.

In January, Jobs began a nearly six-month leave to seek treatment for unspecified health issues. He received a liver transplant while on leave, and returned to work last week.

Apple and its board have been criticized by some observers for failing to disclose the exact state of Jobs’ health.

"I was extremely well-informed as a board member with what was going on with Steve," Schmidt said. He declined to comment further on the matter.

This follows an amuzing post by FakeSteve of basically the same message.  This one too.