SAN FRANCISCO: A Silicon Valley gossip website has evidently triggered Apple’s ire by offering rewards for proof that the notoriously secretive company has made a tablet computer.Valleywag.com has offered$ 10,000 for “bona fide” pictures of an Apple tablet; $20,000 for video

of one in action, and $50,000 if Apple chief executive Steve Jobs was in the pictures or video.

The reward would jump to $100,000 “if you let us play with it for an hour,” the website promised while announcing what it dubbed the “Apple Tablet Scavenger Hunt.” Yesterday, Valleywag declared Apple the first winner of its contest due to a letter it said it received from the iconic California company’s lawyers.

“We believe you and your company have crossed the line by offering a bounty for the theft of Apple’s trade secrets,” an Apple lawyer said in a copy of the letter posted online by Gawker-owned Valleywag.

“Apple demands that Gawker Media discontinue this program and retract the offer to pay for photos, video, or samples of Apple’s unannounced product.” The Valleywag scavenger hunt was still on yesterday, with Gawker warning anyone going for the prize not to break the law.

Silicon Valley is buzzing with rumours that Apple will hold a press event the last week of January to unveil an “iTablet” computer.