When Grooveshark, an Internet radio provider that allows users to listen to MP3s for free, tried to bring its service to the iPhone, it was rejected by Apple. So the company did what any snubbed publisher would do – it made the app available for jailbroken iPhones.
Grooveshark said that although it spent months in developing the iPhone app, Apple was “ritually rejecting” their submission to add it to the official App Store. The online service reportedly accused Apple of using “primary selfish reasons” for not allowing the app. Grooveshark does compete with iTunes by giving users free access to songs that would cost around $2 each on Apple’s service.
In addition to searching for and streaming music over the Web, the app allows users to save their tracks and playlists offline so they are still available when an Internet connection is not. Bringing all that functionality to the iPhone would have been a great idea and could have potentially been gobbled up by consumers.
Now, though, Grooveshark says it has given up on bringing its service to the App Store. Instead, it has turned to Cydia, an “underground” online destination that hosts material available for people who have a jailbroken iPhone or iPod Touch. It is quite a slap in the face to Apple.
Interestingly enough, the Grooveshark app has been accepted and is available by all the other major rival platforms: Android, Blackberry, and Palm.
