--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our independence from AOL was so…" description: "\"Our independence from AOL was so important to me that I negotiated an extremely odd provision in our purchase agreement that allowed me to disclose con..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1da/michael-arrington-12023_about_our-independence-from-aol-was-so-importa_1142767.jpg" --- # Our independence from AOL was so important to me that I… ![“Our independence from AOL was so important to me that I negotiated an extremely odd provision in our purchase agreement that allowed me to disclose confidential information about AOL. It was their job never to give me that information. It was not my job to protect it in any way.” quote by Michael Arrington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1da/michael-arrington-12023_about_our-independence-from-aol-was-so-importa_1142767.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1da/michael-arrington-12023_about_our-independence-from-aol-was-so-importa_1142767.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1da/michael-arrington-12023_about_our-independence-from-aol-was-so-importa_1142767.jpg) > “Our independence from AOL was so important to me that I negotiated an extremely odd provision in our purchase agreement that allowed me to disclose confidential information about AOL. It was their job never to give me that information. It was not my job to protect it in any way.” [Michael Arrington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-arrington/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He valued independence from AOL so much he secured a clause to disclose confidential info, highlighting a stance against corporate secrecy. **In simple terms:** He wanted freedom from AOL, even if it meant revealing secrets. Key Takeaway Prioritize transparency over corporate control. Themes independence transparency corporate power ethics Mood critical analytical Type ethical business When to use this quote - startup exits - legal counsel - ethical decision‑making - privacy policy drafting Key Concepts information freedom contract negotiation corporate governance Questions to Reflect On - Is transparency always the best policy? - When should confidentiality be upheld? A Different Perspective Such disclosures can breach trust and legal obligations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [About](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/about/) [Agreement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agreement/) [Allowed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/allowed/) [Allowed Disclose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/allowed-disclose-3192714/) [Any](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/any/) [Aol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aol/) [Aol Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aol-important-3192710/) [Confidential](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confidential/) [Disclose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disclose/) [Disclose Confidential](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disclose-confidential-3192713/) [Extremely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extremely/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Give](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/give/) [Give me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/give-me/) [Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important/) [Independence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/independence/) [Independence Aol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/independence-aol-3192711/) [Information](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/information/) [Information Aol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/information-aol-3192712/) [Job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/job/) [Me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/me/) [Never](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/never/) [Odd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/odd/) [Our](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our/) [Protect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/protect/) [Provision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/provision/) [Purchase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/purchase/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [If AOL had ever ordered me to remove a piece of content from the site for any reason, I would have immediately written about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-arrington/if-aol-had-ever-ordered-me-to-remove-a-piece-of-content-from-the-site/) [Michael Arrington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-arrington/) > [More than once at TechCrunch, we made AOL extremely uncomfortable with things that we wrote. But they never ordered us to write or not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-arrington/more-than-once-at-techcrunch-we-made-aol-extremely-uncomfortable-with/) [Michael Arrington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-arrington/) > [I guess I'm the queen of the Web series. Yeah, right. I'm not at all. 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The opportunity is to get out from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-armstrong/until-the-company-believes-in-itself-aol-didn-t-have-its-own-space/) [Tim Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-armstrong/) > [Prior to email, our private correspondence was secured by a government institution called the postal service. Today, we trust AOL, Microsoft, Yahoo, Facebook, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-battelle/prior-to-email-our-private-correspondence-was-secured-by-a-government/) [John Battelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-battelle/) > [We have people who pay to use our products and services, and they are heavily engaged in our content. 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As soon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magdalena-neuner/i-don-t-think-about-the-press-or-the-crowds-or-the-other-leaders-of/) [Magdalena Neuner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magdalena-neuner/) > [Sport is not just about entertainment. It is equally about winning and losing, pooling and galvanising the energy of the youth, upgrading people's physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-ambani/sport-is-not-just-about-entertainment-it-is-equally-about-winning-and/) [Nita Ambani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-ambani/) > [One of the ways that I discovered my confidence and my ability to overpower is becoming a mother. Suddenly, my world wasn't about myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lights/one-of-the-ways-that-i-discovered-my-confidence-and-my-ability-to/) [Lights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lights/) > [I didn't want to do 'Fashion Police' because I thought, 'This is stupid, this is beneath me, who wants to talk about fashion?' 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I can't dribble a ball and run at the same time, I can't do lay-ups - I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-mullins/i-have-no-physical-genius-about-me-i-can-t-dribble-a-ball-and-run-at/) [Rich Mullins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-mullins/) [Browse all 26,122 About quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/about/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Our independence from AOL was so important to me that I negotiated an extremely odd provision in our purchase agreement that allowed me to disclose confidential information about AOL. It was their job never to give me that information. 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