Tuesday, July 19, 2005, 07:00 pm

Motorola plans media event, Jobs likely to attend

By Kasper Jade

Motorola on Monday will host a media event as part of its Annual Financial Analyst Meeting to introduce some of the company's latest products, which may include the highly anticipate ROKR iTunes phone, sources tell AppleInsider.

The July 25th event is where Motorola will unveil "what's wow and what's now," according to the company. The feature presentation will be delivered by Motorola chairman and chief executive officer Ed Zander. Motorola will also provide a live webcast, which is scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m. Central Daylight Time.

It was at the same event last July that Apple chief executive Steve Jobs joined Zander via satellite to announce that Motorola and Apple were teaming to bring iTunes capabilities to Motorola’s next-generation handsets via a USB or Bluetooth connection.

During a press conference on May 19, Zander said the ROKR iTunes phone -- believed to be the first fruit of the Apple/Motorola endeavor -- would debut in "a couple of more months." That would place the introduction of the phone around the same time as the analyst event.

Sources believe Jobs has planned an encore appearance for this year's event to help Zander take the wraps off the much anticipated iTunes phone. The device, believed to be similar to this image of the ROKR, is expected to retail for around $199.

According to one source, the iTunes phone may only store about two-dozen tunes in its default configuration. Customers will be able to purchase an upgrade from Apple, which will increase the number of tunes that can be stored on the phone, the source added.

A spokeswomen for Motorola declined to comment on whether Jobs would make an appearance or what products would be announced, explaining that the company is not offering any advanced details on the event.