Apple VARs: IPhone Snafu Could Have Repercussions

According to a report from Cnet, law enforcement authorities in California's Santa Clara county are investigating whether Gizmodo's $5,000 purchase of an iPhone 4G prototype from an unnamed third party was a violation of criminal laws.

Over the weekend, police seized computers, servers and other electronic devices from the home of Gizmodo editor Jason Chen, who posted photos of the prototype device last week. Gizmodo says it paid $5,000 for the device, which was discovered by an unnamed third party at a Redwood City, Calif. bar last month after being accidentally left there by an Apple engineer.

Although some early reports suggested that the whole incident may have been an elaborate publicity stunt on Apple's part, solution providers told Channelweb.com Apple's reputation for actively protecting its unreleased products makes this scenario highly unlikely.

"I don't think this was a PR stunt, as Apple seems very capable of generating all the press they want without resorting to such tactics," said Nick Gold, sales manager for Chesapeake Systems, a leading Apple Video VARs in the country.

Marc Wolfe, CEO of New York-based ProActive, agreed: "Apple loves secrecy, even to the detriment of their developers," he said. "I don't believe that they would have 'planted' this as publicity as customers would still be lining up at Apple store when the new iPhone is released this summer."

Wolfe expects Apple's reaction to be harsh and decisive, as the company has shown it isn't afraid to protect its intellectual property. "They will probably fire employees, get warrants and get their lawyer team prepared for some action," he said. "This shows how the actions of one person can have [a major impact] on any organization."