Apple buries a Blog: Sayonara Think Secret

Once a popular blog that covers anything and everything about Apple and its secrets, Think Secret will be finally put to rest after years of grueling court battle against the big Apple.

In 2005, the Think Secret blog published a juicy story from an insider tip. The story revealed plans. Apple sued, and requested subpoenas from the email provider to uncover the source of the leak. Two other blogs (Powerpage and Apple Insider) were also included in the lawsuit.

In May 2006, a California state appeals court ruled that online journalists enjoy the same rights as traditional media reporters to protect the confidentiality of their sources. Two months later, Apple declined to appeal that decision further.

Think Secret published this press release on the blog:

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.”

Twenty-two year old Think Secret blogger Nick Ciarelli has been publishing on his blog since he was 13. After announcing he will shut down Think Secret, he still may pursue a career in journalism or put up a new blog altogether.

Apple may have successfully bullied the bloggers, brought them to their knees with surmounting legal fees but I think they also lost something in return — could be a slightly tarnished reputation, a reduced coolness factor and/or even an upgrade to the “bully” status.

I hope these type of stuff don’t happen to us bloggers around here. It would be a shame to spoil all that fun. You know me — I love blogging stuff about insider secrets, speculations, and the real stories behind “press releases” here. *heh*

P.S. And no, I’m not saying I eat C&D for breakfast.

Abe Olandres

Abe is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of YugaTech with over 20 years of experience in the technology industry. He is one of the pioneers of blogging in the country and considered by many as the Father of Tech Blogging in the Philippines. He is also a technology consultant, a tech columnist with several national publications, resource speaker and mentor/advisor to several start-up companies.

https://www.yugatech.com

8 Comments

ThinkSecret says:

17 years ago

Further to the story:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7155332.stm

http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=404481
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jhay says:

17 years ago

Apple products are suave-looking, but behind it, is a company no different from M$. ;)
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BrianB says:

17 years ago

Ka-ching!
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Chuching says:

17 years ago

Apple is such a retarded crybaby.
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Berlin says:

17 years ago

patent records are public. so anyone can see what patent APple has filed and guess what new products Apple is cooking behind the scenes. but cheap publicity is always hard to pass and more likely why apple sued.

apple’s design is top-notch but their software is what hackers call security-through-obscurity. iPhones are banned in corporate meetings because hackers can turn on the mic, record conversations, download files and even check recently visited sites.
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Hamilton Chua says:

17 years ago

I believe very much that “Think Secret” and blogs like it actually contributed to the hype that is Apple.

Sure their products are top notch but a blog like that helps build up marketing hype and anticipation for their products.
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Jan Alvin says:

17 years ago

Same goes for me. Thats why I always look in every angle that they might use against me…

My blog is just a baby, and I don’t want her to end so soon.
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Karlo.PinoyBlogero says:

17 years ago

This shows that we should always be wary of what we say on our blog, we should think of every decision that we make.

It’s kinda scary clashing against giants like Apple, or even Microsoft, even though we are protected under the freedom of speech they could always resort to bullying.

Geesh I don’t want that to happen to me and my blog.
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