Leaking parts of the next iPhone may be costly for Apple’s suppliers, according to new documents. As a part of GT Advanced Technologies’ bankruptcy proceedings, the cover screen supplier revealed part of its contract with Apple, and showed that the company would have been charged $50 million per leak if anything showed up in the press, according to a report by the Financial Times.
It’s not clear if that penalty is standard on all Apple’s supplier contracts, or if GT Advanced got special treatment. The latter is certainly a possibility, especially since the Apple Watch will feature a sapphire screen display. If word got out that GT Advanced was making certain displays, it could have spoiled Apple’s big reveal last month.
GT Advanced, which declared bankruptcy last week, said that the terms of its $578 million contract with Apple were “oppressive and burdensome,” and helped lead to the company’s bankruptcy. This penalty may have had something to do with that.
One way or another, it wouldn’t surprise me if Apple’s contracts with its other suppliers included some sort of clause like this one, even if the specific financial penalties were different. The company has a continuing problem with leaks in its supply chain, and it’s in Apple’s best interest to keep details of its products confidential until their big reveal.
