Apple has given its official approval for a Spotify app for the iPhone.
Spotify joins other streaming music services on the device such as Last.fm, but the big difference is that Spotify allows you to choose which tracks you want to hear from a roster that includes all the major labels and a growing number of independents.
Many had assumed Spotify’s application would be vetoed by Apple, since Spotify could be seen as encroaching on iTunes’ territory. Not only do the two look very similar, but by offering the same tracks for ‘free’ that iTunes sells for an average of 79p each, it could be seen as a strong rival to Apple’s offering.
The Spotify app will be free when it appears on Apple’s App Store ‘very soon’, however it will only be available to Spotify’s premium subscribers, who pay 9.99 a month to receive the service without ads. Spotify will be hoping the ability to use Spotify on the move will convert significantly more than the current one per cent of its users who pay for the service.
Apple hasn’t yet confirmed if it is to receive a slice of this subscription pie, but it’s widely assumed that this will have been a factor in its approval of the Spotify app.