Apple and GT Advanced agree to part ways
Apple and sapphire supplier GT Advanced Technologies have reached an agreement that severs the ties between the two companies. GT Advanced's lawyer Luc Despins told a bankruptcy court that the two companies have agreed to an "amicable parting of the ways."
Under the agreement, GT Advanced would reveal additional details about its bankruptcy, but Apple's contracts with GT would remain sealed and other documents between the two companies would be destroyed. GT Advanced also will be allowed to sell the sapphire furnaces and other assets in its Mesa, Arizona sapphire facility to satisfy its debt. The final amount Apple will receive as part of this settlement was not disclosed.
The assistant attorney general of New Hampshire and other lawyers reportedly scoffed at the secrecy clause of the agreement, arguing that creditors and laid off workers have the right to know what happened to the company. According to a report in Reuters, GT Advanced's bankruptcy centers on the November 2013 agreement it signed with Apple to provide sapphire screen displays for the company's future mobile devices.
The settlement is subject to approval by Judge Henry Boroff, who earlier approved GT Advanced's plan to close its sapphire facility. A court approval hearing is scheduled for November.
