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Wikipedia:Notability (organizations and companies)/Example

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Imagine that a draft article on Acme Inc. cites four sources: a single-sentence mention in an article by The New York Times while pointing out a missing feature in a rival's product when compared to the product by Acme; an extensive company profile in a Forbes.com blog by a non-staff contributor; a blog post by a tech enthusiast who has provided a review of the product; and a court filing by a competitor alleging patent infringement. Analysis:

  • The New York Times article is reliable, independent, and secondary – but not significant (a single-sentence mention in an article about another company).
  • The Forbes blog profile is significant and secondary – but not independent or reliable (most such posts are company-sponsored or based on a company's marketing materials - see WP:FORBESCON).
  • The tech blog review is significant and secondary – but may not be independent (blog posts are often sponsored) and is not reliable (self-published sources are generally not reliable, unless they are written by subject-matter experts).
  • The court filing is significant and reliable (in that the court record is a verified account of a legal action being taken) – but not secondary (court filings are primary sources) or independent (they are written by the parties to the legal action, which have a vested interest in the outcome).

Therefore, the article does not have a single source that could be used to establish the notability of the company, let alone multiple sources.