Did Apple Bludgeon ‘Think Secret’ Into Shutting Down?
December 20th, 2007 by Dan GillmorThis announcement — Apple, Think Secret settle lawsuit — says:
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.”
The confidentiality begs any number of questions, which I hope some folks will pursue, such as whether any money changed hands.
Early in this case, at the request of Ciarelli’s lawyers, I filed a declaration with the court saying that he was doing journalism that deserved protection from Apple’s attempts to coerce information — about unnamed people inside the company who were allegedly leaking “trade secrets” — that Apple wasn’t pursuing all that hard inside its own shop. Going after a journalist, in California, is the very last thing a company can do, and Apple in this case was essentially going after the journalist first.
Apple lost a related case, badly, and was forced to pay $700,000 in legal fees. I’m guessing, but there’s nothing on the record about this, that the company paid Ciarelli to shut up.
The outward appearance of the case, however, is not pleasant for free speech. Too bad we don’t know, and maybe never will know, what exactly happened here.
