ThinkSecret Shuts Down, Settles Apple Lawsuit

MacRumors · 01:36 AM

Apple rumor site, ThinkSecret published a statement today indicating that they would no longer be published due to terms of a confidential settlement.

Quote:

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."

ThinkSecret has been one of the longest running Apple rumor sites, starting in 1999. Apple sued ThinkSecret in January of 2005 for posting Apple trade secrets and encouraging and inducing persons to provide product information in breach of agreements.

When contacted, Nick Ciarelli was unable to provide any further details but said, "I'm very satisfied with the settlement" and wished to thank the Electronic Frontier Foundation and his attorney, Terry Gross of Gross & Belsky, for their support.

Article Link

Eidorian · Dec 20, 2007, 01:01 AM

Ouch, good times they were.

mintlivedotcom · Dec 20, 2007, 01:02 AM

Wow. So, what will that mean for MR? I suspect an even greater status of Apple news, but not as many sneak-peaks.

dizastor · Dec 20, 2007, 01:05 AM

wow. shocked would be an understatement.

deathshrub · Dec 20, 2007, 01:05 AM

Wow, this is HUGE.

neoserver · Dec 20, 2007, 01:05 AM

Well it was good while it lasted. I'm very curious about the details of the settlement however. This sets a pretty good standard however of what might happen to rumour sites that start to play in the red zone.

irmongoose · Dec 20, 2007, 01:06 AM

The end of an era. Oh well, at least we still have MR, right?

Between you and me, though... what kind of future does this guy have in journalism, anyway?

irmongoose

WildCowboy · Dec 20, 2007, 01:07 AM

Think Secret went through a long dry spell after Apple got on their case, but they seemed to be coming up with decent content over the last year. Very interesting developments...

LillieDesigns · Dec 20, 2007, 01:07 AM

Isn't 9to5 Mac the big time now?

3rdpath · Dec 20, 2007, 01:08 AM

amicable: sometimes you're just happy to escape with your life.

maryanny · Dec 20, 2007, 01:08 AM

wow, that's crazy.

spriter · Dec 20, 2007, 01:09 AM

Stepped on one too many toes it seems.

TS has been off the mark many times in the past few years anyway, losing my faith in them.

macomposer · Dec 20, 2007, 01:09 AM

I always thought ThinkSecret danced a little close to the edge, and that MR is careful and reliable with what is published. I'm not that surprised, and I expect things around here will continue much as usual.

p0intblank · Dec 20, 2007, 01:09 AM

Wow. I definitely didn't see this coming... MacRumors, please be careful!

spriter · Dec 20, 2007, 01:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 3rdpath

amicable: sometimes you're just happy to escape with your life.

Yup. Smacks of "Shut up or pay up. (which we know you can't)".

luminosity · Dec 20, 2007, 01:11 AM

Wow. One of the most notable Apple websites is no more. That will send some waves rippling across the pond.

PowerBook User · Dec 20, 2007, 01:11 AM

It's too bad they are shutting down. They always had something interesting to say. I can't recall them having too many stories recently with insider knowledge, although I could be wrong. Also, is it normal for settlements like these to be confidential?

Jeremy! · Dec 20, 2007, 01:11 AM

Time to start a new one, one that is more resilient to attacks from Apple's lawyers.

Hmmmmm.....

Can't do it here, since that would jeopardize this site. And yet, there are people out there that still want to talk.....

pamon · Dec 20, 2007, 01:14 AM

you gotta wonder how much the settlement was to Thinksecret to shut down? I see apple's legal and PR team offering TS ownership a 6 digit to low 7 digit figure to shut down and walk away. They lost their muster and a lot of pageviews over the past year or two. Too bad, good site.

mcarnes · Dec 20, 2007, 01:19 AM

Sounds like Apple paid them off. In essence, bought them to shut them down.

dawnraid · Dec 20, 2007, 01:21 AM

This sucks! Looks like they sold out

BiikeMike · Dec 20, 2007, 01:21 AM

Haha, looks like I came to the party 20 minutes late

That sucks though, BOOO!

LaDirection · Dec 20, 2007, 01:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 3rdpath

amicable: sometimes you're just happy to escape with your life.

You mean your iLife?

gkhaldi · Dec 20, 2007, 01:27 AM

Why all over sudden I see that 900 pound gorilla showing up on Thinksecrets door....

Sad day it is for the community. It is for a large part the rumors that attract new business.

Grrrr

LaDirection · Dec 20, 2007, 01:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by macomposer

I always thought ThinkSecret danced a little close to the edge, and that MR is careful and reliable with what is published. I'm not that surprised, and I expect things around here will continue much as usual.

Basically, TS had a VERY well informed insider source coming directly from within Apple. In that year that led up to Apple's switch to Intel and Tiger they had pretty much EVERYTHING foretold in advance. Apple here didn't really go after TS per say, their main goal was to find out WHO from the inside was leaking so much info. We'll probably know one day and we might be surprised to discover just how high up that person really was,,,

Dec 20, 2007, 01:01 AM	#2
Eidorian macrumors G3 Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Indiana	Ouch, good times they were. __________________ MRoogle it! hikari T7500 2.2 GHz / 4 GB / 320 GB / GMA X3100 / 10.5.8 chobimaru Core i5 750 2.66 GHz / 4 GB / 640 GB / 4830 / Windows 7

Dec 20, 2007, 01:02 AM	#3
mintlivedotcom macrumors regular Join Date: Apr 2004	Wow. So, what will that mean for MR? I suspect an even greater status of Apple news, but not as many sneak-peaks. __________________ The really happy person is the one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour. Hark! Angel Productions

Dec 20, 2007, 01:05 AM	#4
dizastor macrumors 6502a Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Los Angeles	wow. shocked would be an understatement. __________________ ejc on Twitter

Dec 20, 2007, 01:05 AM	#6
neoserver macrumors 6502 Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: AB, Canada	Well it was good while it lasted. I'm very curious about the details of the settlement however. This sets a pretty good standard however of what might happen to rumour sites that start to play in the red zone. __________________ A Step in the wrong direction.

Dec 20, 2007, 01:06 AM	#7
irmongoose macrumors Demi-God Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Sometimes Tokyo, sometimes California	The end of an era. Oh well, at least we still have MR, right? Between you and me, though... what kind of future does this guy have in journalism, anyway? irmongoose __________________ A Film and Artwork Portfolio

Dec 20, 2007, 01:05 AM	#5
deathshrub Banned Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Christmas Island	Wow, this is HUGE.

Dec 20, 2007, 01:07 AM	#8
WildCowboy macrumors god Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: nowhere near the infinite loop anymore	Think Secret went through a long dry spell after Apple got on their case, but they seemed to be coming up with decent content over the last year. Very interesting developments... __________________ 15" 2.4 GHz MacBook Pro -- 15" 1.67 GHz PowerBook -- 14" 1.2 GHz iBook

Dec 20, 2007, 01:07 AM	#9
LillieDesigns macrumors 6502 Join Date: Oct 2005	Isn't 9to5 Mac the big time now? __________________ Please Watch My Shorts! Flickr

Dec 20, 2007, 01:08 AM	#10
3rdpath macrumors 68000 Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: 2nd star on the right and straight till morning	amicable: sometimes you're just happy to escape with your life.

Dec 20, 2007, 01:08 AM	#11
maryanny macrumors member Join Date: Jan 2006	wow, that's crazy.

Dec 20, 2007, 01:09 AM	#12
spriter macrumors 6502 Join Date: May 2004 Location: England	Stepped on one too many toes it seems. TS has been off the mark many times in the past few years anyway, losing my faith in them. __________________ MacBook Air (Rev.A) 1.6GHz 80GB HD: 20" ACD : iPhone 8GB (Rev.A) 3.0 JB/UL : 2G Shuffle

Dec 20, 2007, 01:09 AM	#13
macomposer macrumors newbie Join Date: Jan 2002	I always thought ThinkSecret danced a little close to the edge, and that MR is careful and reliable with what is published. I'm not that surprised, and I expect things around here will continue much as usual.

Dec 20, 2007, 01:09 AM	#14
p0intblank macrumors 68020 Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: New Jersey, USA	Wow. I definitely didn't see this coming... MacRumors, please be careful!

Dec 20, 2007, 01:11 AM	#16
luminosity macrumors 65816 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Arizona	Wow. One of the most notable Apple websites is no more. That will send some waves rippling across the pond. __________________ 17'' MBP 2.8 4 GB RAM 500 HD, 15'' MBP 2.33, 2 GB RAM 120 HD

Dec 20, 2007, 01:11 AM	#17
PowerBook User macrumors regular Join Date: May 2003	It's too bad they are shutting down. They always had something interesting to say. I can't recall them having too many stories recently with insider knowledge, although I could be wrong. Also, is it normal for settlements like these to be confidential?

Dec 20, 2007, 01:11 AM	#18
Jeremy! macrumors newbie Join Date: Dec 2007	Time to start a new one, one that is more resilient to attacks from Apple's lawyers. Hmmmmm..... Can't do it here, since that would jeopardize this site. And yet, there are people out there that still want to talk.....

Dec 20, 2007, 01:14 AM	#19
pamon macrumors regular Join Date: May 2006	you gotta wonder how much the settlement was to Thinksecret to shut down? I see apple's legal and PR team offering TS ownership a 6 digit to low 7 digit figure to shut down and walk away. They lost their muster and a lot of pageviews over the past year or two. Too bad, good site.

Dec 20, 2007, 01:19 AM	#20
mcarnes macrumors 68000 Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: USA! USA!	Sounds like Apple paid them off. In essence, bought them to shut them down.

Dec 20, 2007, 01:21 AM	#21
dawnraid macrumors regular Join Date: Nov 2007	This sucks! Looks like they sold out __________________ -1.8ghz Macbook CD 2gb, Macbook Pro 160gb CD 2gb, iPod Touch 8gb, iPod 5g 30gb, Gold iPod Mini 4gb, Blue iMac G3 300mhz Flickr

Dec 20, 2007, 01:21 AM	#22
BiikeMike macrumors 65816 Join Date: Sep 2005	Haha, looks like I came to the party 20 minutes late That sucks though, BOOO! __________________ Mac Pro 2.66, x1900, 5GB RAM; 30" ACD; MBP CD 2.16, 2GB RAM; MB CD 512MB RAM; PowerMac G3, 704MB RAM; 30GB 5.5G iPod, 16GB iPod Touch; 8,2GB nano

Dec 20, 2007, 01:27 AM	#24
gkhaldi macrumors regular Join Date: Feb 2005	Why all over sudden I see that 900 pound gorilla showing up on Thinksecrets door.... Sad day it is for the community. It is for a large part the rumors that attract new business. Grrrr __________________ MacBook Pro C2... Argh, who cares anyway....?

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