[matkem]

What he did was unacceptable.

Why should someone be bribed with free expensive products for writing a blog post?

He took advantage of the situation. It takes a lot of time and effort for hardworking people to make money and I don't see why a kid should be given a MacBook under unethical circumstances.

[allenp]

Let me re-write my response: Why shouldn't they pay for getting the advertising and millions of views of being on TechCrunch? Why should this be free?

Wouldn't the ethical dilemma be the payment for good results not the payment to be included in the first place? If consumer reports was running a review of vacuums and I knew I'd probably not be included, is it unethical to pay them to be included even if they don't give me high marks?

[allenp]

On the flip side - why should anyone pay three million dollars for a 30 second commercial during the Super Bowl. Having the ability to post on TechCrunch is the same as having wealth and he wanted to trade some of that wealth for a laptop.