“In its latest lawsuit seeking to clamp down on leaks, Apple Computer has added credibility to several hot rumors, including plans to offer a cheaper Macintosh and its own line of office software,” Ina Fried reports for CNET News. “Apple on Tuesday sued the publisher of Mac enthusiast site Think Secret and other unnamed individuals, alleging that recent postings on the site contain Apple trade secrets, according to court documents seen by CNET News.com.”
“The suit, filed Tuesday in the Superior Court of Santa Clara County, Calif., aims to identify who is leaking the information and to get an injunction preventing further release of trade secrets. However, in filing the suit, Apple identifies specific articles that contain trade secrets, indicating that at least parts of those reports are on the mark,” Fried reports. “In its suit, Apple specifically lists certain articles that contain confidential information, though it does not confirm which of the article’s details are true. For example, when mentioning the report that Apple plans a ‘G4-based iMac without display,’ Apple says the article ‘disclosed numerous confidential details regarding the technical capabilities of Apple’s unreleased computer product as well as Apple’s confidential marketing plans.'”
Fried reports, “Similar confirmation is offered regarding iWork, which Think Secret said on Dec. 31 would be a suite of office software combining the company’s Keynote presentation program with a new document creation application called Pages… The suit illustrates the challenges Apple faces in trying to keep its products secret. In order to maintain trade secret protection, companies have to vigorously try to plug leaks. However, in trying to identify the leaks, Apple has at times lent credence to the rumors it wishes to squelch.”
Much more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: A great article with many details. Read the full article over at CNET. Apparently, according to Fried’s report, Apple has gone to great lengths to try to stop the leaks through ThinkSecret, sending ThinkSecret a “a number of letters” through their lawyers in recent years, only to have ThinkSecret ignore Apple’s demands, according to Apple, as reported by Fried ( better safe, than sorry 
). Let’s see if a rumormill currently running in Macworld Expo overdrive can be safely downshifted so quickly. Will Jobs’ Macworld Expo Keynote Presentation please just hurry up and happen already?!
Related MacDailyNews articles:
IGG Software changes name of ‘iWork’ to ‘iBiz’ – clearing the way for Apple’s iWork? – January 03, 2005
Enderle: Rumored $500 Apple Mac ‘should be a media server, not a general purpose PC’ – January 03, 2005
When fictional ‘US$499 Headless iMac’ doesn’t materialize, the disappointment could hurt Apple – January 01, 2005
Rumored $500 ‘Headless Mac’ could double Mac market share, boost share price – January 01, 2005
RUMOR: Apple to debut ‘iWork ’05’ productivity suite at Macworld Expo – January 01, 2005
Analyst: Budget $499 Mac doesn’t make sense for Apple Computer – December 31, 2004
Apple’s rumored $500 ‘Headless Mac’ more wishful thinking than fact? – December 31, 2004
Quick glances back at 2004 and ahead to 2005 – Happy New Year from MacDailyNews! – December 31, 2004
Apple’s next great idea: gearing up to take a big bite out of the mass computer market – December 30, 2004
Rumored ‘Headless iMac’ would be radical departure from Apple’s usual high margin strategy – December 30, 2004
Piper Jaffray: ‘Headless iMac would appeal to many potential Windows to Mac switchers’ – December 30, 2004
Headless iMac for $499? Please, Apple, let it be true! – December 29, 2004
RUMOR: Apple to debut $499 ‘headless iMac’ at Macworld Expo on January 11 – December 29, 2004
Inexpensive ‘Headless iMac’ could hook Windows users who love their iPods on Mac OS X – December 29, 2004
Whoohoo!!!!
good for Apple….the press isn’t going to talk about what Apple releases next week….just what they didn’t release because of the rumor sites
Jkel, except that by suing based on trade secret claims Apple has given those articles credibility they didn’t have yesterday.
Kindly like if I published an article saying that you were found mating furiously with a monkey at the local mall. A suit for libel would be denying what I published. On the other hand, if you sued for invading your privacy one thing everyone could be sure of was that there was an awfully sore monkey at the mall.
That sucks, Thinksecret does many of us a great service by finding the rumors. Apple should be upset at it’s employees for leaking the info not Thinksecret for posting it.
This is a sad sad day. And since when did RUMORS become headline news anyway? RUMORS are just that, RUMORS!!
If websites choose to take unconfirmed news and report on it, thats there mistake if it does not turn out to be true.
So is this a confirmation that the headless *Mac is not a figment of the imagination, or is Apple suing Thinksecret for getting everyone’s hopes up and therefore potentially damaging their reputation? Who knows…
Ray I think Apple is suing thinksecret in order to obtain that information.
I think Apple needs to layoff on the lawsuits in regards to the various mac rumormill sites!
Any press is good press. Apple’s secrecy fuels speculation and generates interest in the keynote. If Apple confirmed or denied the rumors in a statement they would kill interest in the keynote. By suing they have, to a degree, confirmed the rumors, gained more press and hightened interest in the keynote. Brilliant!!!
And since when did RUMORS become headline news anyway? RUMORS are just that, RUMORS!!
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*chuckle
Quote of the Day
MacRumors.com
I CAN see where releasing news about this product could screw Apple up though. Like for example if they were NOT planning on announcing it at MWSF and only announcing it later after they had all their ducks in a row this could screw them up bad. If they don’t announce it, everybody thinks it is not true and the stock price could tank. If they do announce it but are not ready to ship, everybody could be waiting for the cheaper Mac and their sales in the interim could take a hit.
I understand they want to know who’s responsible, I think they need to find a better way to do it.
Honestly, Apple should be somewhat honored. What other company do people predict weeks ahead of time what new products they will release? Besides, Apple is concerned that their competition might get a head start? Big Deal! The story of the headless iMac comes less than two weeks for before Mac World. How much of a head start can the competition get? Besides if Apple has a better product, which they do 99% of the time who cares what the competition does?
I’m sorry but all these lawsuits are changing my view of Apple from a bunch of geniuses who love technology to a greedy corporation who wants to shut down the freedom of others.
Hey Steve, would you had taken this approach in the 60’s?
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It’s hard to be the alternative to the Evil Empire when you start suing everyone.
My guess is that they want ThinkSecret to divulge their source since that is who needs to be sued.
Ouch!
I think what apple needs are counter-spies. Put a mole or two into Thinksecret and other such sites. Start up a software version of the cold war.
Apple is wrong to sue reporters for reporting. Even the Defense Department is not permitted to sue newspapers for exposing national security secrets, right? Apple is damaging its own reputation by doing this. The benefits that competitors could glean from 2-week notice about this are miniscule anyway, I would guess.
The ‘confirmation’ seems to have pushed the share price up.
I enjoy the Mac soap opera as much as anyone else but don’t blame Apple at all. Think Secret know what business they are in, and they profit from Apple rumours by virtue of the advertising they sell.
Apple has to pursue leaks and broken contracts (NDAs), if they don’t it prejudices their ability to do so in the future. I don’t think Apple is really bothered about the runour sites, it is when the mainstream press goes big time on rumours that Apple has problems. The rumour sites are cited as the sources for the mainstream press so that’s where Apple have to go and look.
Pssst….Steve is Thinksecret�s source…
What do they care if the rumor comes out? Who is their competition? It is not like Sony stealing/leaking info from Canon on a new camera.
Truth is there will be no headless Mac…just something they plan, but don�t do.
Macworld is going to be a bust. Will Apple go from outsider to monopolist in their market???
Think secret’s source is probably an Apple Employee too!
Only a handfull of people at Apple know what products are going to be released at the keynote – so my guess their source must be someone pretty high up in Apple!
Ok, what would happen if ThinkSecret didn’t give us the tale of the headless Mac before MWSF? The world would say “wow, a cheap mac”, and then stop thinking about it. It would be as intresting as a new design for the milk-bottle. It would be a product, and products are intresting for those who want the products.
Rumors are exiting, unconfirmed, and they makes us think. Think about the Apple-philosophy, think about Apples future market-share, think about the potential of a cheap Mac, and at the end: Think about wether the rumor could be true. By MWSF everybody has had their heads full of Apple for two weeks. Thats good news for Steve. Too bad he is more conserned of wether he gets to tell news or confirm rumors.
iSue — The next product that Apple is perfecting.
I predict ThinkSecret won’t have anymore secrets.
I totally agree with Ray.
As I have written here before, ThinkSecret and AppleInsider only report rumors that in general come true later. Their rumors are highly reliable.
Like Ray, I worry about what will happen to ThinkSecret after this lawsuit. It has been one of the best sources for reliable rumors on the Mac web in the last 5+ years. AppleInsider only became a respectable source of rumors in the last year or so.
If you empathesize with Steve Jobs, maybe you can understand why they want to sue… These rumors totally take the element of surprise out of these big annoucements!
Which rumour site hinted at a $99 iPod, hmmm?
ThinkSecret should disclose fully who their sources are.
solarflare: “Only a handfull of people at Apple know what products are going to be released at the keynote – so my guess their source must be someone pretty high up in Apple!”
Uh, what about the marketing people, Apple web desingers, the public relations people (yeah, they generate press releases), retail managers (who do you think gets those publicity posters to the stores). Oh, and don’t forget the hundreds of programmers, hardware engineers, and product designers.
We should all be mature enough to realize that if we have signed a non-disclosure agreement, we are bound to abide by the rules (employees, contractors, and press as well). Apple has the legal right to sue to obtain the information regarding who leaked the details.
Right now I think everyone is foaming at the mouth in desperation for the keynote. Why are we so impatient?
Kind of thinking of different possibilites, other than the obvious. Wonder if it’s possible Apple is worried about these leaks because they set up false expectations that may drive stock prices down when they don’t materialize. Apple may certainly be working on these projects, but what if they aren’t anywhere near completion, or are only concepts, and they aren’t able to deliver like people expect? Personally, I don’t believe completely that because Apple is pursuing this legally, that it necessarily means all (or even) some of the rumors are completely true as they have been interpreted.