SugarString, the controversial would-be tech site launched by Verizon, has quietly disappeared from the Internet.
Last month, the fledging site made news, after it was revealed that its editor had instructed writers to avoid covering stories on spying and net neutrality.
The editorial rule scotching net neutrality stories was particularly noteworthy, considering Verizon's past efforts to oppose net neutrality.
The controversy set off a flurry of discussion in media circles about the propriety of companies creating media sites designed to control the message around their industry.
Verizon told Mashable that the site was a "pilot project" launched by the company's marketing department. However, when asked about the editorial dictum censoring certain stories, Verizon's spokesperson distanced the company from any such policy.
"Unlike the characterization by its new editor [Cole Stryker], SugarString is open to all topics that fit its mission and elevate the conversation around technology," a company spokesperson told Mashable last month.
As of Wednesday, a visit to the SugarString website returns a blank page with the message, "This webpage is not available."
Similarly, all branding has been removed from the site's Twitter page, and its tweets have been protected.
It remains unclear just how far Verizon intended to take its "pilot project," but as the worlds of traditional news reporting and "native advertising" - that is, sponsored content designed to look like and blend in with a publication's non-sponsored content - merge, we'll likely see another major company try something similar in the near future.
A Verizon spokesperson has confirmed that the site was taken offline on Monday.
"We've always said this was a pilot project; and as with any pilot project, we evaluate, take our learnings, improve our execution and move forward," the spokesperson told Mashable. "That's what we've decided to do here."
