Palm, which has a very effective iPhone killer in the market place, has just appointed the bloke behind the Apple iPod to be its new CEO.

Jon Rubinstein replaces Ed Colligan who is stepping down after 16 years with the company. The announcement will send a shiver through Apple head quarters. Although Mac fanboys have a problem believing it, it was Rubinstein not Jobs who was responsible for the iPod's success.

Rubinstein began at Apple in 1997 as senior vice president for hardware engineering. He helped lead the rollout of the iMac and later headed up the iPod division. With him behind the wheel at Palm, which has a technological advantage over the iPhone, Apple could be in trouble. The Palm pre costs $199 and syncs with the iTunes music store just like an iPod or iPhone.

Rubinstein is currently chairman. He has been doing a sterling job getting Palm the technology needed to take on his former employer. The Palm Pre runs on the Sprint network in the US and is already a sell out. Sprint Nextel CEO Dan Hesse said last month he expected demand to outstrip supply early on.

Colligan is joining the private equity firm Elevation Partners.