TI Media, the parent company of the online video game publication Trusted Reviews has donated over £1 million (roughly $1.3 million) to charities chosen by Take-Two Games as an apology for using a “confidential corporate document” obtained by the site as the source for an article.
Internal documents leaking out into the world and being picked up by the press isn’t something that’s especially rare nowadays, but legal action from the companies affected (or $1.3 million donation settlements) are less common.
In a statement received by Variety, Take-Two doubles down on its reaction to leaks like this one, noting that it “security seriously and will take legal action against people or publications who leak confidential information.”
As part of the settlement, TI Media’s $1.3 million donation was split between three charities selected by Take-Two: the American Indian College Fund, the American Prairie Reserve, and the First Nations Development Institute.
“On February 6, 2018, we published an article that was sourced from a confidential corporate document. We should have known this information was confidential and should not have published it,” reads a letter on the Trusted Reviews website. “We unreservedly apologize to Take-Two Games and we have undertaken not to repeat such actions again. We have also agreed to donate over £1 million to charities chosen by Take-Two Games.”
The article in question offered up information about the single-player campaign of Rockstar Games’ recent release Red Dead Redemption 2 as well as details about the game’s yet-unreleased online mode. The text of that original story, however, has now been replaced by the apology letter above.