Is this the smoking gun for Apple's long-rumored new cloud storage service, iCloud?
Following the release the developer preview of a new Mac OS X Lion build last Friday, French blog Consomac reports that developers have spotted a new cloud service, codenamed "Castle," in Mac OS X 10.7 Lion.
Showing screenshots as proof, the developers say they found options for users to upgrade from MobileMe to Castle; another button directs users to complete the upgrade to Castle. The options were stored in an upcoming "Find My Mac" feature that will let users remotely locate a missing laptop.
While the developers admit that the could not find the origin of "Castle" in System Preferences, they see the upgrade options as proof positive that "Castle" is simply Apple's codename for an iCloud service.
Apple's MobileMe remotely stores your files and photos, and pushes email and calendar updates to your iOS device or Mac desktop. Some believe Apple will scrap the service this year, ever since Steve Jobs emailed a disgruntled consumer and said MobileMe would undergo a major revamp this year. Last week, Apple inexplicably ended a long-offered rebate for MobileMe, fueling speculation of iCloud.
The blog post arrives just two days after reports surfaced that Apple had bought the iCloud.com domain for $4.5 million. Before that, Apple reportedly secured licensing agreements with Warner Music Group and at least one of the remaining three largest music labels: Universal Music Group, Sony, and EMI.
Furthermore, Apple has built a massive data center in North Carolina, believed to be used for a streaming video service.
Apple has "been very aggressive and thoughtful about it," an unnamed industry executive told AllThingsDigital. "It feels like they want to go pretty soon."
Apple will hold its Worldwide Developer Conference in June, during which it has promised to unveil the future of iOS and Mac OS.