 | |
Type of site | News |
|---|---|
| Available in | English |
| URL | thinksecret.com |
| Launched | 1998 |
| Current status | Offline |
Think Secret, founded in 1998, was a web site which specialized in publishing reports and rumors aboutApple Inc.The name of the site was a play on Apple's one-time advertising slogan, "Think Different". Think Secret's archives reached as far back as May 3, 1999. On December 20, 2007, it was announced that the site would eventually shut down as part of a legal settlement.[1] The site officially shut down on February 14, 2008, and now shows the statement "The publicationThink Secret is no longer in operation." when trying to access it.
In December 2004, Think Secret published rumors of anew Mac and a new piece of word-processing software.
Apple subsequently sued Think Secret editor "Nick dePlume", claiming that the site's reports violatedtrade secret law. The rumors were confirmed on January 11, 2005, atMacworld inSan Francisco when Apple's CEOSteve Jobs introduced theMac mini and theiWork productivity suite.
Prior to Think Secret's legal troubles, the identity of its editor was unknown outside the Mac journalism community, as he had always written under the pen-name "Nick dePlume". It was later discovered bybloggers at Black Vortex that he wasNicholas Ciarelli.[2]
The lawsuit with Apple was settled on December 20, 2007. The site said that, "as part of the confidential settlement, no sources were revealed and Think Secret will no longer be published."[3]Think Secret was officially shut down on February 14, 2008,[4] giving aForbidden error upon entering the site.