Apple is the biggest influencer of the video game industry, according a survey of 1,000 industry employees at the 2011 London Games Conference. Attendees were asked during the conference to list the top five people and products that have shaped the video game industry. Steve Jobs ranked first among people, with 26% of the vote, while the iPhone topped the products chart with 17%.

Mr. Jobs beat out other industry veterans such as Gabe Newell, the co-founder of Valve, and Shigeru Miyamoto, creator of Nintendo classics Mario, Donkey Kong, and Zelda.

The iPhone topped the Nintendo Wii, the Playstation, and Xbox Live, among others.

Both Mr. Jobs, whose company created the App Store distribution platform, and the iPhone have been tremendously influential in both the creation and distribution of games, and attendees at the London Games Conference were not surprised at the results of the poll.

“In just over three years the iPhone and the App Store have transformed what consumers expect of games, and how the industry makes and sells them – today, download games have come to the fore,” stated Michael French, editor in chief of MCV, the UK-based computer and video games trade publication. “Steve Jobs, the iPhone’s driving force, was the ultimate independent developer – uncompromising in his vision, with unquestionable influence, and hugely artistic and commercial results.”

Other notable individuals and products listed included Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the world wide web, and Steam, Valve’s digital distribution platform for Mac and PC games.