Apple Demands Prototype iPhone Back

[jonpwnz]

Giz could be in trouble for trade secrets issues

first off apple wont do anything like that to GIZMODO they will do anything to keep the "good guy" image. if anything happens to this guy who lost it or gizmodo everyone will be like "HEEYYY YOU GUYS ARE BIG JERK FACES!!!!" apple doesnt want to be a jerk face...so gizmodo and that guy are going to be just fine

 

[Mark Booth]

I favor the assertion that the initial takings was a conversion under CA laws, however, the counsel for Gawker may have a brilliant counter-argument. Assuming this is true, the Gawker employee who performed this act could be the legal chain which links the company to the illegal act. The company could be responsible through the theory of vicarious liability. Assuming Apple's legal end-game is to financially punish Gawker for its acts, it could follow this route. There is a problem with this theory, though. Do you see it?

Conversion: Torts. The unlawful turning or applying the personal goods of another to the use of the taker, or of some other person than the owner; or the unlawful destroying or altering their nature.

When a party takes away or wrongfully assumes the right to goods which belong to another, it will in general be sufficient evidence of a conversion but when the original taking was lawful, as when the party found the goods, and the detention only is illegal, it is absolutely necessary to make a demand of the goods, and there must be a refusal to deliver them before the conversion will be complete. The refusal by a servant to deliver the goods entrusted to him by his master is not evidence of a conversion by his master.

The tortious taking of property is, of itself, a conversion and any intermeddling with it, or any exercise of dominion over it, subversive of the dominion of the owner or the nature of the bailment if it be bailed, is evidence of a conversion.

OK, I see where you are going with conversion but I don't see the hole in the theory.

Mark

 

[sigpikul]

Gizmodo wrote in their letter back to Apple, "P.S. I hope you take it easy on the kid who lost it. I don't think he loves anything more than Apple."

They're the ones who brought his name out.

Now they're telling the kid to keep his head up.

http://gizmodo.com/5520496/keep-your-head-up-gray-powell

What a nice gesture...

That's like someone walking up to you, punching you in the face, handing you an ice pack, then proceeding to walk away. :|

i'm not sure if i buy this whole "gizmodo is an ******* for revealing his name" arguement, to tell you the truth I think posting the article about him helped him much more than it hurt.

since this story broke this morning EVERYONE was thinking to themselves "god i'm glad i'm not the guy who lost the new iphone", it was a stupid, but honest mistake that could happen to alot of people, and putting a name to the face makes it that much harder for apple to just quitely give him boot + whatever legal ramifications they feel like.

everyone can relate to making a big ****up, and this was a BIG ****up, but a ****up nonetheless, somehow i choose to beleive that whether or not gizmodo had his best intrests in mind putting a face & name to the human part of the story is going to make him less of a target for wrath of apple.

not saying its going to happen, but with all of the press this has been getting I WOULD NOT BE SUPRISED if he atleast KEPT A JOB AT APPLE, something that would definitely not have even a glimmer of hope had people not known who he was.

him ever having his hands on a privledged device or peice of information again is a whole other issue all together.

- my .02

 

[admanimal]

Blackmailing is an illegal crime.

As opposed to a legal crime? And that isn't blackmail.

 

[carbonmotion]

So, simply having a name on it proves that it belongs to Apple? Wow, remind me to get some white-out and go to Starbucks tomorrow. When someone isn't looking, I am gonna write my name on the lid of their new MacBook Pro ... and then claim that I own it.

LOL

The problem with people with Legal Degrees is that they think everyone is afraid of people with Legal Degrees.

The dispositive issue in criminal liabilities in this case is mens rea.

 

[4nNtt]

Ohh yes..

"Jobs:
Dead mr Gray Powell, We want to make some fancy marketing, and now that you work for us (apple) we want you to be the bad guy is this story.
We will intentionally leak a device and blame YOU for the leak, basiclly meaning that you will get a very hard time getting a new job with a possition like this ever again... ok?
And some site like gizmodo might post pictures of you and you will be all over the internet as the guy who leaked a prototype product and everyone will hate you... ok?

Gray Powell:
Sure!
Sounds fun!"

And we will also make sure there are many photos in your flickr account that make you look like an alcoholic too just to make sure that you will never get another job! You will work for Apple designing cell phone baseline firmware forever! No more Palm departures ever again! Bwahahaha!

 

[Geckotek]

So, simply having a name on it proves that it belongs to Apple? Wow, remind me to get some white-out and go to Starbucks tomorrow. When someone isn't looking, I am gonna write my name on the lid of their new MacBook Pro ... and then claim that I own it.

LOL

The problem with people with Legal Degrees is that they think everyone is afraid of people with Legal Degrees.

Don't take me so literal, but it's not even an argument that the device belongs to Apple. There's no way you could defend against it!

 

[WvB22]

I like the sense of humour in apple's subversive marketing department:

Making up an employee called Gray Powell, in honour of Gary Powers who 'lost' an american U2 spy plane over Moscow in 1960, making the disabled craft known to russia and the international press...

(Powers was actually shot down and received high honours after the final details were disclosed in 2000.)

That would be amazing.

 

[gr8tfly]

In the SF Bay area, he's very much ruined. The tech industry up there follows these sites. Sure, he can move to Los Angeles and try to get a job, but to say his career hasn't been significantly tarnished by Gizmodo is naïvete at its finest.

+1
Even if, at a minimum, it was lost through carelessness (I think there's more to the story...), his career is headed for some serious bumps. He can have all the degrees and experience in the world, but if he can't be trusted with corporate intellectual property (good luck obtaining a DOD clearance), he would have a tough time getting hired. Not impossible, but this is a pretty big obstacle to overcome.

 

[1Zach1]

As opposed to a legal crime?

I only commit legal crimes, it's the new black.

 

[cygni]

I wonder if Gizmodo's Lam or Chen or Denton will continue to be a smug as they've been today if Apple files a criminal complaint against them in federal court.

Mark

Gizmodo and Apple are probably smart enough to understand that no once cares outside of the curious "Apple fan" universe. They don't care how the phone was lost, the guy's name who owned it, internal pictures, the legal ramifications, or the particulars about the OS for the phone. And it will be cleansed from the cultural consciousness as soon as the next scandal or intrigue hits.

Of course, not true for Mac Rumors and other sites that post mock-ups, endlessly discuss the newest tech rumor, or leaked detail. But, you know, in the real world, the 15 min. on this story are almost up.

 

[Boomhowler]

I think there's an error in the article. It says "left in a bar by an apple employee", it should probably be, "left in a bar by a former apple employee that can never get a job again... anywhere"

 

[Scottsdale]

Blackmailing is an illegal crime.

I didn't mention blackmail. I simply said send SJ an email offering it back. I would mention that I had taken videos and photos but that's not blackmail. Then I would give it back to Sir Steve. At that point, I believe Sir Steve would offer me a non disclosure agreement. I wouldn't sign that unless Apple rewarded me for my returning of the iPhone HD. At that time, I would probably accept whatever Apple offered me for signing the NDA. I believe something as minimal as 1,000 shares would be instantly worth it for Apple, Inc. I would get the 1,000 shares for signing an NDA, NOT FOR RETURNING THE iPHONE HD!!! Secrecy is NOT required by someone who finds something. Secrecy is rewarded by someone who signs an NDA.

EDIT
Actually, I copied and pasted my reply and missed part of it stating that I would send Steve Jobs an email and offer it back immediately. However, I would mention that I had taken photos and videos of it and I think it's really cool. Then I would let SJ offer to have me sign an NDA. However, I am not going to sign an NDA as I did nothing wrong at that point. An NDA is a reward for trusting someone, so I will either get paid or share all at that point... but I would have given the device back to Apple Inc the morning after I found it. I wouldn't hold the damned iPhone hostage for blackmail, nor would I call what I was doing blackmail... again, it's no crime to find something, take photos of it, and share freely everything I have seen. Apple can gain that NDA from me by rewarding me not to disclose everything I saw.

 

[brewcitywi]

More Fake Humor

I totally respect all of the legal postings!

But, I think the iPhone was wiped so that Gray's drunken texts to Tiger's ex-mistresses would be erased before they were aired on Morning Express with Robin Meade!

 

[MRU]

The fact apple are being so civil leads me to believe they are the ones who leaked the prototype themselves. Let's face it its good free publicity and it gets all the techies drooling for months without having to do 1 press release or spend 1c on marketing (at the moment).

 

[aucl]

Now that's funny! Someone here has a sense of humor!

yea, they could even mention that first reviewers gave it a 5k price tag

 

[cygni]

In the SF Bay area, he's very much ruined. The tech industry up there follows these sites. Sure, he can move to Los Angeles and try to get a job, but to say his career hasn't been significantly tarnished by Gizmodo is naïvete at its finest.

Who, outside of this forum and others like it, will remember his name in a year? Reality is, unless the person did it on purpose, most companies would not have an issue hiring someone who is talented, even though they made a mistake.

Worst case, if Apple fires him, he could certainly leave the industry and find employment elsewhere.

 

[H. Flower]

I like the sense of humour in apple's subversive marketing department:

As I said in the other thread, could this be any more manufactured without someone noticing?

 

[Riversen]

Let's be clear about a few things...

First, GIZMODO covered their butts quite well with documenting the interview with the person who found the iPhone and was given the phone as his or his friend's phone. Secondly, the finder of the phone contacted Apple and even has an Apple Care incident to document this internally with Apple, which I suspect was followed up with the email that we normally receive. Thirdly, why would Apple sue? They got free press; any follow up with a law suit makes it even worse and gives Apple a tarnished reputation; if it is the real deal then remember what our mom's told us... don't make it a big deal, too, and we won't make it a big deal, talk about being to trend market acceptance; GIZMODO did not take it apart officially and post pictures of the inner workings (no, they could have) and thus reveal confidential chip names, processors, etc.; they did not post images of the iPhone plugged into iTunes noting the OS4.0 which would have violated NDA's for beta release; and more things that I cannot recall right now.

GIZMODO dotted their i's and crossed their t's. They reported as much observed things as they could without opening, destroying, turning 'on', etc. the iPhone before its officially release in June. I think a lawsuit would be frivolous by Apple.

Finally, the iPhone is slicker, thinner, cooler (HD, better removable battery), more iPad like, and just is a nice update. Good design and kudos! I will be buying one once they are released.

 

[H. Flower]

The fact apple are being so civil leads me to believe they are the ones who leaked the prototype themselves. Let's face it its good free publicity and it gets all the techies drooling for months without having to do 1 press release or spend 1c on marketing (at the moment).

The whole thing is fake.

 

[Scottsdale]

If I were Apple, I would fire the employee who lost it. The fact that this was lost at a bar and not at a mall leads me to believe the employee was impaired and made an improper decision based not on just an honest mistake but because he loved his "German" beer and even reported it on his Facebook account while at the bar on the very phone. In addition, I would ensure future employees realize that going to a bar with a prototype iPhone and losing it will result in immediate termination. I don't believe it's just an honest mistake... the honest mistake was taking it into a bar... the problem was drinking while having an Apple unreleased iPhone in the bar and negligently leaving it there. The cost to Apple could be huge.

After all of this, I am sure SJ was pleased to see the poll on the front of MR with a 69% approval rating! The best part of this loss was independent validation from the people that WILL buy this iPhone.

I wonder if the reporting truly could lead Apple to make some changes, to color, if not the complete shell. I can imagine the insides being impossible to change at this point, but I wouldn't put it past SJ to delay its release by a month and completely change the case just to resolve the issue.

 

[Mark Booth]

The dispositive issue in criminal liabilities in this case is mens rea.

Yes, but if Apple goes the tort route, they don't have as much duty to prove that Gizmodo knew they were committing a crime. It would be a civil liability action and it seems mens rea really wouldn't apply.

Mark

 

[Scottsdale]

What would you do?

The most negligent party here was Gizmodo. This is a real company, and news is different than something obtained through these means. If I were Gizmodo, I would have completely reported exactly what I saw, after taking the thing apart and photographing. However, I wouldn't have printed any photos of the device. It could have gotten just as great of press by reporting the details without the photos of the device.

If I were Apple now, I would come out and do a media event tomorrow and disclose and release the complete details of the new iPhone HD. It would spark more news, encourage excitement, and stimulate pre-order sales as people love this thing. I believe the best Apple can do, if this is truly its release ready device, is fully disclose the details and show OS 4.0 running on it now. Why not release it while the news is hot? Apple cannot make the websites all pull down the photos since they were not stolen photos.

If you were the finder what would you do?

If you were Apple/Steve Jobs what would you do?

If you were Gizmodo what would you do?

If you were SJ would you now change the case? Would you come out in the open tomorrow and fully disclose the new iPhone HD? Or would you just wait for your own terms and still release the fully disclosed device on your original schedule?

 

[reactions]

Haha, nice. Looking forward to getting one of these.

As for the poor guy who lost that phone...well, I don't think there will be much left of him to find. Steve will take his organs, wear his face like a mask, and devour the rest.

Don't know why Gizmodo wouldn't return it to it's rightful owner in the first place. Instead they wanted to be all "look what we have". Apple should sue the **** out of them for it too. This is a good example of it. Gizmodo should be held liable as well. That will teach them to this kind of **** again.

Are u serious?

U are the worst fanboy I've ever met!

How can you bog not share the findings with the community?

Don't blame gizmodo blame the apple tard that left it behind.

You fanboys make me sick - still denying that this will be the final product

U truthfully Want apple to punish everyone for seeing this?!

End your pathetic life already

good lord u guys need a life.

You are a consumer.

Not an apple employee.

Apple is not a religion or cult.

They are corporate America.

Wake up.

 

[brewcitywi]

Comic Relief

As if you need more comedy from me.

The Shining

Jack Nicholson (Jack Torrance) to Shelley Duvall (Wendy Torrance):

"Wendy, give me the bat."


Apple to Gizmodo:

"Gizmodo, give us the iPhone."