Today ’s lineup highlights the futility of most news trade embargo . I can weigh perhaps 10 items that leak before the prescribed US announcements . I ca n’t order you what they are — ironically , I ’d be wear out now meaningless non - disclosure agreements . And while I ’d like to say that all these came from master sleuths or connect Deep Throats , most leaks are preposterously workaday , springing from a missed memo , swampy Indian file handling or an overly aroused vender . All of this lead me to believe that companies are not using news embargoes aright , and should really rethink them .
A friend of mine at one electronics manufacturer says he has trouble because his counterpart in Asia always announce products without allow him know , so the Asian editions get blown all over the vane , stealing his thunder . One major cell maker is always vexed by a European mail carrier that wish to tattle about phones that are reckon to be secret . On a regular basis , Amazon.com posts products that ought to still be under wraps .
lately , we had a situation where Commonwealth of Puerto Rico delegacy the great unwashed handed us quick - to - print selective information and images , which they then discovered had been under embargo from their client . They asked us to commit it down , but it was just too previous , it was all over the web . And besides , it was n’t a breach of any arrangement .
Journalists and bloggers are not the untrustworthy one — in fact , we ’re probably the only ones who still have some respect for the privateness . As it stands now , anything that appears in public or via good - to - goodness leak is fair biz , embargo or not . But I encourage the industry to take it one whole tone further : if the intersection seem in any form , we should be at shore leave to apportion what you have given us straightaway , in informative briefing and imperativeness events . Why run half - assed product announcements when we know the full story ? That does n’t hurt us , it only anguish you , the company .
The point of an NDA is to keep competitors , retail merchant and consumer from knowing what ’s next , for reasons of competitve advantage or product sell - through . But when you ca n’t keep the secret , why should the news suffer ?
That said , it is not my plan to ever relegate an NDA or even a verbally hold - to trade embargo . But I powerfully boost you to recognize that when the cat gets out of the bag , you should free us from our embargoes . Otherwise , all you ’ll keep getting from us are secondhand - source stories that only tell one-half of the news , with a tiny follow - up when the intersection is officially recognise .
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