Getting on with my life and thinking about things.
Press release:
Apple and Think Secret have settled their lawsuit, reaching an agreement that results in a positive solution for both sides. As part of the confidential settlement, no sources were revealed and Think Secret will no longer be published. Nick Ciarelli, Think Secret's publisher, said "I'm pleased to have reached this amicable settlement, and will now be able to move forward with my college studies and broader journalistic pursuits." Source
The BBC News writes:
Apple is notoriously secretive about forthcoming products and it sued Think Secret claiming that bloggers should not enjoy the same rights to protect sources granted to mainstream journalists.
A California court initially sided with Apple but the hi-tech firm lost the case on appeal. The outcome of that said bloggers should be considered as journalists and subject to the same protections.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) aided Think Secret in its legal fight to stop Apple forcing it to reveal its sources.
"I hope that Apple takes from this that it is neither useful nor wise to sue its fans," said Kurt Opsahl, an attorney for the EFF.
Full story and historical links.
From the BBC in April 2005:
The information appeared on three Apple enthusiast websites, PowerPage, Apple Insider and Think Secret. Source
Ah well.
5 comments:
That's interesting.
As time goes on I'm becoming privvy to an awful lot of outdoor product information, some of it for as much as two years down the road.
It wouldn't occur to me to write any of it up yet, it would have consequences for me and the company. I didn't realise how competitive and indeed aggressive some parts of the trade are. Some of the turnaround times for design to production are quite short and a leaked design could easily be absorbed into someone elses product.
I don't know where I stand on the Apple thing. The Blog is such a unique and valuable source and I'd hate to think of any action censoring it.
But spilling the beans is not necessarily a good thing either, even if it's a big fat success like Apple.
I'd guess we all self-censor to a certain degree, ptc*. Some more than others. Whether it's the old "what happens on the hill stays on the hill", or a formal non-disclosure policy.
Clearswift's "7 deadly sins of blogging" (pdf link) is worth a read.
If you think "should I write this?", then the answer should always be "no". The troubles happen if people blog first and ask the question later. If you can't talk about something to your mates after work cos the subject is confidential, then why should folk think they'd be okay to blog about it?
Writers have editors, people on social sites (blogs, forums, chat rooms, etc) don't.
Anyway, if you want someone to tell about these secret developments, ptc*, then just drop me an email and I promise not to tell anyone else...honest ;-)
Tarps made from recycles fishnet stockings...uhuh...mp1 players as they're lighter than mp3 players...mmm...dropping the asterisk from your name to lighten up more...uhuh...TNF being sold in Aldis next...yup, I'll not tell a soul...
We shouldn't really be surprised. I used to follow Think Secret nut you can understand Apple protecting their interests. A 6 month product lead on this business can be pretty critical - and they're good employers. Rumour are one thing, Imdustrial leaks another I guess.
All I can say is, whatever comes up in the January sales, don't buy it...2008 kit is better :o)
Dear Father ptc*
All I want is a Primus ETA system upgrade for my Micron.
The rest is just more fashionable clothing - for example a decent outdoors hat, not one that looks like it came off the Mayflower.
But mainly the time and energy to get off my *rse and get out more.
But it's not as if I've not been naughty this year...
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