Apple Removing Music Downloading Apps from App Store, Asking Developers to Change Apps

MacRumors · Jun 10, 2014

Apple appears to be removing many of the popular music downloading apps from the iOS App Store, including those that allowed users to obtain files from third-party file sharing sites. The move is likely in an attempt to push the iTunes Store and iTunes Radio, as well as to clean up the App Store ahead of an overhaul in iOS 8.

A search for the term "music download" in the App Store displays a message inviting users to try out iTunes Radio, while glancing through the first few results shows apps for streaming services such as Spotify and other music-based apps that lack downloading capabilities.

Previously, the same search would show results for a number of apps that could download music and audio files from websites such as Soundcloud and YouTube, with many appearing on the App Store's "Top Charts" section. Some developers have also noted that Apple has asked them to remove audio downloading functionalities from their app, perhaps to prevent potential piracy.

A previous search for "download" apps in the App Store. (Image credit: evolver.fm)

The crackdown on music downloading apps may very well be related a revamp that Apple will launch alongside iOS 8. Among those changes to the App Store include an improved search algorithm, an "Explore" feature to improve discoverability, app bundles, and TestFlight beta testing for developers. A report yesterday also highlighted Apple's crackdown on apps that incentivize ad watching and social sharing.

Thanks, Branden!

Article Link: Apple Removing Music Downloading Apps from App Store, Asking Developers to Change Apps

Berti10 · Jun 10, 2014

If Apple would first release iTunes Radio outside US and Australia; that would be great.

MenaceF1 · Jun 10, 2014

Agreed. iTunes radio means nothing to people in the UK as it's not available here. It seems a little strange for Apple to remove other music streaming apps if their own isn't available as an alternative.

wikiverse · Jun 10, 2014

Berti10 said:
If Apple would first release iTunes Radio outside US and Australia; that would be great.

It's not that good. Spotify and pandora are better. You're really not missing anything.

Also, I can use iTunes Radio in the UK when I travel. The content isn't tied to a location so I'm not sure why apple doesn't release it.

MenaceF1 · Jun 10, 2014

It's all about licensing. Either the UK or EU won't allow Apple to stream music in that region. It's done based on country of residence rather than physical location. In the same way that you sometimes get content in the US iTunes store that you cannot get in the UK iTunes stores. So even if I'm in the Untied States, I can still only access content in the UK iTunes store.

nagromme · Jun 10, 2014

Maybe this is an anti-piracy move in part as a display to content owners, for the sake of deals being worked on by Iovine and Dre?

MenaceF1 said:
Agreed. iTunes radio means nothing to people in the UK as it's not available here. It seems a little strange for Apple to remove other music streaming apps if their own isn't available as an alternative.

They're leaving streaming apps; they're removing downloader apps, apparently.

Nermal · Jun 10, 2014

Berti10 said:
If Apple would first release iTunes Radio outside US and Australia; that would be great.

No kidding. It's bizarre that it's not available in NZ since streaming rights are shared with Australia. Competitors like Pandora and Spotify launched in both countries simultaneously so I don't know what the hold up is for Apple.

Reason077 · Jun 10, 2014

nagromme said:
They're leaving streaming apps; they're removing downloader apps, apparently.

Spotify isn't only streaming. It lets you download, too, if you have the £9.99/mo "Spotify Premium".

Menel · Jun 10, 2014

Reason077 said:
Spotify isn't only streaming. It lets you download, too, if you have the £9.99/mo "Spotify Premium".

irrelevant. This thread does not apply to Spotify.

As detailed in the summary, apps that let you download from third parties. Spotify and Beats do not count. You are downloading from them. First party downloading,

Piracy apps, that are clearly piracy apps. Probably part of some concession with music industry,

----------

Menel said:
irrelevant. This thread does not apply to Spotify.

As detailed in the summary, apps that let you download from third parties. Spotify and Beats do not count. You are downloading from them. First party downloading,

Piracy apps, that are clearly piracy apps. Probably part of some concession with music industry,

Ooops that was a different site's summary that clarified third party downloading. Maybe SlashDot. Just an example of poor journalism and reporting here.

Plutonius · Jun 10, 2014

wikiverse said:
It's not that good. Spotify and pandora are better. You're really not missing anything.

Also, I can use iTunes Radio in the UK when I travel. The content isn't tied to a location so I'm not sure why apple doesn't release it.

I guess everyone has their own opinion. I find iTunes Radio much better than Pandora.

Yvan256 · Jun 10, 2014

Berti10 said:
If Apple would first release iTunes Radio outside US and Australia; that would be great.

Sorry, couldn't resist.

Rufuss Sewell · Jun 10, 2014

This is the front line of the war on downloads. It's just like Apple removing CD drives to force the transition to downloaded mp3s.

iTunes mp3s are out. The new format is streaming Beats.

Reason077 · Jun 10, 2014

Menel said:
As detailed in the summary, apps that let you download from third parties. Spotify and Beats do not count. You are downloading from them. First party downloading,

Piracy apps, that are clearly piracy apps. Probably part of some concession with music industry

Well, that's fine if they're targeting piracy apps. They shouldn't have been on the app store in the first place.

But the article summary actually makes it sound they are targeting legitimate apps that compete with iTunes:

"The move is likely in an attempt to push the iTunes Store and iTunes Radio"

PBG4 Dude · Jun 10, 2014

I created 3 iTunes Radio stations for bands that I like. For example, I created a Grateful Dead radio station. I heard The Allman Bros., Doobie Bros., Grand Funk Railroad, etc. Kept waiting for them to play some Grateful Dead, but no joy.

After trying the same thing with Iron Maiden, and hearing everything but Maiden, I gave up. Maybe if I set up a Judas Priest radio station and listened to that, I would hear some Maiden.

2457282 · Jun 10, 2014

Rufuss Sewell said:
This is the front line of the war on downloads. It's just like Apple removing CD drives to force the transition to downloaded mp3s.

iTunes mp3s are out. The new format is streaming Beats.

The deal has not even been approved by the government agency. I doubt that if your theory were true, that apple would do it now -- they would wait until the deal was sealed. My guess is that they are clamping down on policy versus trying to move traffic to an apple or beats app. If I am wrong, the justice department should immediately investigate and get more stewards to sit in an apple office and charge $5k a day to do nothing but annoy.

Menel · Jun 10, 2014

Reason077 said:
Well, that's fine if they're targeting piracy apps. They shouldn't have been on the app store in the first place.

But the article summary actually makes it sound they are targeting legitimate apps that compete with iTunes:

"The move is likely in an attempt to push the iTunes Store and iTunes Radio"

Of course, it's the big bad Apple. The most sinister explanation is the most likely.

Not the most logical, that meshes with what is actually happening.

Weird how anti-Apple MacRumors can be.

JosephAW · Jun 10, 2014

Some of us use the downloading apps to download other things besides music.

Since I live in a remote area with no cable or DSL I have to download all my osx updates via my mobile download app. I just downloaded the itunes 11.2.2 dmg update the other day. I wait until I get to work and then connect to the wifi there. Other times I download a large video like the ESO Cast and watch it later at home on my desktop.

I have to have these features on my iphone else I'll be forced to move to an android phone.

Jessica Lares · Jun 10, 2014

Love all the cool little apps I've found going through the music section. Glad they've made this move as it'll be much easier to shift through.

JosephAW said:
Some of us use the downloading apps to download other things besides music.

Since I live in a remote area with no cable or DSL I have to download all my osx updates via my mobile download app. I just downloaded the itunes 11.2.2 dmg update the other day. I wait until I get to work and then connect to the wifi there. Other times I download a large video like the ESO Cast and watch it later at home on my desktop.

I have to have these features on my iphone else I'll be forced to move to an android phone.

Why not use a podcast app instead for your podcasts? I just looked up ESO Cast and it showed up on Castro (bad example because it only plays audio, but other apps will play them fine). Both in HD and SD.

itpromike · Jun 10, 2014

Menel said:
Of course, it's the big bad Apple. The most sinister explanation is the most likely.

Not the most logical, that meshes with what is actually happening.

Weird how anti-Apple MacRumors can be.

Yeah because we know Apple has never rejected Apps because those apps treaded on it's toes in a space that they operate in or even plan to operate in, in the future... :roll eyes: I guess some people don't remember the days of 'Your app has been denied because it duplicates functionality of app already provided by Apple'.

kronusdark · Jun 10, 2014

As far as I can tell, this is only targeting apps that word their descriptions to music piracy and/or download directly from YouTube/Vevo/Soundcloud (which is a gray area anyways)

Legitimate music sources like Google Music, Spotify, SoundCloud and the like are still in there. and HTTP downloading apps are still there too.

But I have seen many apps that are obviously designed to fit in the "piracy gray area" and the AppStore is no place for those sort of apps.

as for more generic downloader apps, i see no shortage of those currently.

The Phazer · Jun 10, 2014

kronusdark said:
As far as I can tell, this is only targeting apps that word their descriptions to music piracy and/or download directly from YouTube/Vevo/Soundcloud (which is a gray area anyways)

It's really more of that black kinda grey.

mabhatter · Jun 10, 2014

Reason077 said:
Well, that's fine if they're targeting piracy apps. They shouldn't have been on the app store in the first place.

But the article summary actually makes it sound they are targeting legitimate apps that compete with iTunes:

"The move is likely in an attempt to push the iTunes Store and iTunes Radio"

There are no "legitimate" apps that allow iOS song DOWNLOADING other than iTunes. Apple has never expressly allowed it... That's why Amazon/emusic/etc stores cannot download directly into iPhones libraries. These were apps that "cut corners".

iolinux333 · Jun 10, 2014

JosephAW said:
Some of us use the downloading apps to download other things besides music.

Since I live in a remote area with no cable or DSL I have to download all my osx updates via my mobile download app. I just downloaded the itunes 11.2.2 dmg update the other day. I wait until I get to work and then connect to the wifi there. Other times I download a large video like the ESO Cast and watch it later at home on my desktop.

I have to have these features on my iphone else I'll be forced to move to an android phone.

Yes I also use that first app shown, "free music downloader" to download files from the web that I could not otherwise get onto my iphone without a computer. I can then pass it to other apps and work on the file. So now what apple, I'm supposed to have zero ability to get a file off the web ? I'm so sick of this. That app was pulled several weeks ago BTW, I noticed it when I was trying to restore my phone as new.

Yvan256 · Jun 10, 2014

Rufuss Sewell said:
This is the front line of the war on downloads. It's just like Apple removing CD drives to force the transition to downloaded mp3s.

iTunes mp3s are out. The new format is streaming Beats.

Apple removing CD/DVD drives has almost nothing to do with selling music. The primary use for an optical drive in a computer was to install software but we've switched to downloads years ago. Removing the optical drive allows Apple to put more hardware and/or put in bigger batteries and/or make their computers smaller, thinner, lighter and cheaper.

Removing built-in CD ripping is just a bonus. And even if you need to do so, Apple hasn't disabled external optical drives and still sells an external drive of their own.

Reason077 · Jun 10, 2014

mabhatter said:
There are no "legitimate" apps that allow iOS song DOWNLOADING other than iTunes. Apple has never expressly allowed it... That's why Amazon/emusic/etc stores cannot download directly into iPhones libraries. These were apps that "cut corners".

Spotify allows downloading. Not downloading into your iTunes library, of course, but downloading into the Spotify app for offline playback.

Apple Removing Music Downloading Apps from App Store, Asking Developers to Change Apps

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