EFTA01896626.pdf
dataset_10 PDF 457.4 KB • Feb 4, 2026 • 4 pages
To: Steven Sinofsk
From: Jeffrey Epstein
Sent Wed 4/3/2013 8:17:32 PM
Subject Re:
Brad is really at 10. being gracious and above reproach in this negotiation will go a long way to
stopping Steve from trashing you. you are right about the pr and i am very sensitve to it. I will
handle it moving foward with jay, you can always blame jay , we will tell brad that you have
removed yourself. I will charge you a one million dollar fee ( i will not get insulted if you
choose not to ). Right at the end, not for jay , I will attempt to specifillay get samsung
approved. letting steve feel good that he flicked you already , will minimize the moving forward ,
so i do not want to give up the higher amount demadn until the very last minute
On Wed, Apr 3, 2013 at 9:59 AM, Steven Sinofsky < > wrote:
My gosh, I am s000 sorry that I was not explicit in showing my appreciation. I am deeply
appreciative from the moment of referral to you checking in on things to the side dialogs
you've had. I'm terribly sorry I did not express that in a way that made it clear.
Thank you.
I'm more than happy to turn this over to you. Any fee you want is fine. That isn't an issue for
me at all. Or if you don't want to be involved that is fine too. I would rather be friends more
than anything.
I'd like you to be involved. I just want you to understand a little more about the situation. It is
more nuanced than a money negotiation i think.
We've both done lots of contracts and have both been more involved with lawyers tons more
than we would have liked. But in very different ways and with different business situations.
Together we bring almost too much experience. :)
For me, the currency in this negotiation isn't money. Steve doesn't care about the money
because he knows I am not motivated by the money. The most important thing for Steve is
foreclosing options for me. That is why he did the negative stuff about me. The second most
important thing is just feeling like he won. That means he gets to brag about something. Me
being a vc is a victory for him. Me being a startup CEO is a victory. Samsung is a clean loss.
I have been part of a dozen lawsuits filed after Microsoft people went to competitors. It is
nasty, public, and ultimately Microsoft prevailed in all of them. Either the person backed down
or ended up so tarnished they were ineffective. The suits are filed regardless of the work--
"inevitable leakage of trade secrets".
PR is part of foreclosing options. People do remember pr. Read about "Kai Fu Lee". He was
branded ineffective and then left google as ineffective. He was a traitor then and is now a
traitor to China. Maybe he is all of those in reality, but he was also a leading Carnegie Melon
computer scientist.
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This goes back to the 80's and is always done. Senior people leave and there is a lawsuit if they
go to a competitor. Always.
If I choose to be a manager of people, especially a large group, then that group will know about
me almost exclusively through what they read about me. I don't get a chance to charm them.
And because of the lag time from start to releasing a new product it means i have to change
an organization and manage it with a cloud of doubt or worse. Getting the most out of a team
becomes impossible. That's the failure cycle. It is real.
Managing a large team when they get all of their information about their manager from the web
or launching a product when the press thinks they know you is all impossibly hard with bad
"personal pr".
The "sightings" arc real. Just like the conference I signed up for this is what impacts negotiation.
I do believe in sharing that with counsel which might be different between us. Both ways can
work (or not).
But the truth is people went straight to Steve and Steve went straight to brad. Just like how
steve fired off panic mail after i signed up to speak at the conference.
It was a "material" event. Samsung is, in Steve's words, "our new biggest competitor".
Microsoft depends on hardware and only two companies that make hardware are executing--
apple and Samsung. Lenovo steals windows and all the others from hp to dell to asus are
betting on android big.
I don't think I have been flip flopping or erratic. I have been frustrated at jays lack of
engagement after the New York meeting. I think this is just like your frustration with his
worries. I have no worries not closing but dragging it out isn't good for anyone since
everything that happens in public changes the negotiation. Even Windows Blue(next release)
gives Steve more confidence he doesn't need to signs this.
His second concern is me stealing people. That's why he wants a gag order.
The only tool they have is money or suing me. Suing me is hard but hardly impossible. The only
variable is that suing me means a deposition for Steve. But if they don't sue me then they have
to sue everyone who leaves with me. That they don't prefer.
I think:
• $15m to me is fair and reasonable since it was comp i earned modulo the proxy bullshit which
drops 125,000 or so shares. For negotiation more than happy to say "plus 5m cash". I don't
care about the timeline. Id set up an automatic escrow account so I don't have to go back to
them.
• Not working at apple, google until 2014 is fine
• Cooperating and not poaching is fine
• The timeline doesn't matter so long as jay is driving and not letting brad stall. That's new since
jay is dragging now.
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I can say yes to Samsung with an agreement. If we don't have an agreement I will get sued
going to Samsung. They know it and i know it. If not then tell me why not?
I think they should agree not to sue other microsoft people who leave to the same company as
me. That's new. That's added because of the way they structured the gag order. If I can't talk
to them about stuff then i can't be recruiting them. If i go to Samsung they can't now declare
that a competitor because of me. People can quit and join other companies.
On Apr 3, 2013, at 4:34 AM, "Jeffrey Epstein" <jeevacation®gmail.com> wrote:
no secret I texted melt. I woudl like you to succeed , which means only to get what you
want, that is for you to decide. I think it is a sensitce negotiation, therefore even more
important to decide on your persaonl prioirites. get it closed, is ok, but if that message comes
out in the wrong way , it wil do you more harm than good . One moment you say it has to
get closed and the next you say im not impatient. If I can help I will , It appears as if you think
i am beating up on you , no thanks . thank you , or the merest sign of appreciation, I will play
any role you choose, except for the villain. I will take total control and leave you out if thats
what you prefer. you are too close , and worried about press, lawsuits, gossip, percieved
slights. I actully know how difficult this is for you, and if i were a girl woudl give you a
hug,. This is not life and death, things will be ok ,
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Jeffrey Epstein
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******************************** ***************************
The information contained in this communication is
confidential, may be attorney-client privileged, may
constitute inside information, and is intended only for
the use of the addressee. It is the property of
Jeffrey Epstein
Unauthorized use, disclosure or copying of this
communication or any part thereof is strictly prohibited
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and may be unlawful. If you have received this
communication in error, please notify us immediately by
return e-mail or by e-mail to jcevacation@gmail.com, and
destroy this communication and all copies thereof,
including all attachments. copyright -all rights reserved
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