In a move that some might think of as cutting off your nose to spite your face, Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) has confirmed that it will not include YouTube—the online video piece of its uber competitor Google (Nasdaq: GOOG)—on the next version of iOS software (iOS6) embedded in the iPhone and iPad.
It is a sign of the times and a sign of the newly competitive heated atmosphere between the two companies, which are increasingly battling to dominate the online space with either iOS or Android. YouTube has been a core application on iPhone since it started in 2007 and just naturally went along with iPad. Now not only is YouTube outtahere, but Apple also plans to replace Google Maps with its own version.
"Their two ecosystems are pulling away from each other," Carl Howe, a Yankee Group analyst said in a Bloomberg story. "This is two companies agreeing they just don't want to work together anymore."
This doesn't necessarily mean that users won't be able to see YouTube on their Apple devices; it means it will take a little more effort than when it was pre-installed. To get YouTube now, users will need to access it via a downloadable app in the App Store or through Apple's Safari Web browser.
Apple spokesman Trudy Miller seemed to be trying to dampen the idea that the move is designed as part of an increasingly heated competition with Google. She said that a license that let the company include YouTube expired and that it just won't be part of the next version, according to the Bloomberg story.
Google, also, seemed to try to downplay the increasingly acrimonious relationship between the two competing giants.
"We are working with Apple to ensure we have the best possible YouTube experience for iOS users," YouTube spokesman Chris Dale told Bloomberg.
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