Apple Yanks YouTube App from iOS 6, Google Working on App Store Version

After being present in iOS right from the start way back in 2007, the YouTube app has now been removed from iOS 6 in the latest beta 4. Later confirmed by Apple itself to The Verge, it also revealed that the license for the app had ended and that Google is working on a new, standalone app.

Apple’s full statement:

Our license to include the YouTube app in iOS has ended, customers can use YouTube in the Safari browser and Google is working on a new YouTube app to be on the App Store.

As mentioned, Google is apparently working on a new YouTube app to be released at a later date, but this change certainly cranks the tension between the two companies up a notch, especially after the removal of Google’s Maps from Apple’s mobile platform.

We’ll have to see if any more direct hostilities take place, but the removal of YouTube from iOS is pretty significant: search bar aside, Google services are no longer built into the operating system at all, and it could be the final straw to break the connection between the two tech giants.

Henry Taylor-Gill

Henry is a student who is a huge Apple fan, and has used their products since day one. He can remember how happy he was when he received the first iPod back in 2001 as a birthday present. He has an international background, having spent most of his life in France but he now lives in the UK. He is also a native French speaker and can also speak Spanish at a decent level. In addition to tech, Henry is an avid sports fan and has his own sports blog.